Sunday’s Garden Walk – Part 1
A nice walk in the morning
That’s what starts off the day right. I love to see everything early and hear the birds tweeting and chirping around, checking for worms in the (yes, it is raining again ) moist and overly damp soil. There are worms and bugs afoot, so it is breakfast in the “wilds” of my garden. There are a lot of “fairy tents” out today too!
The sedum is budding in tight clusters, the upright and sometimes very tall Sedum “Autumn Joy” and my cascading Sedum “Vera Jamison.” I have some Sedum VJ in containers since it spills over so nicely.
Nothing wakes you up in the morning like that bright hot pink of the purple coneflower or Echinacea purpurea . I have so many of these since they seed so freely. But they are easy to thin in the spring when too many come back. I think they look great against the weathered gray fence.
Some of the petals and leaves have provided last night’s supper and early breakfast to some Japanese beetles who have lingered. I will let them relax in a warm soapy bath here in this little jar I’ve brought! Mwahaha!
My sweet autumn clematis is gone this year. My photo is from last summer. And gone are a lot of the trees behind it. I really loved how it looked and smelled when in bloom, but when we demolished the pool, it had to be taken down too.
We had a lot of ash trees taken down, but unfortunately there was collateral damage to some maples, walnuts, and other trees on the lot too. I hope all of my other trees survive and stay healthy. I plan to write a post on the loss of these trees soon.
The Baptisia is now a large rambling bush with black “rattles” shaking in the wind. Phlox is still blooming nicely and if I deadhead better, it would bloom well into the fall. My peony plants are looking nice and full. They are such a pretty plant for foliage, I think, and that is good. So pretty in the spring , but the flower is gone so quickly.
I can always find sprouts in my pathways and in the graveled edges of the beds. Some small alyssum will have popped up to give me some pleasure. It seeds here and there , popping up all over. And this year, I am getting so much Lady’s Mantle doing the same. I will be able to share. Colorful!
This ajuga grows all over my garden in a thick mat. It suppresses weeds nicely. And the good news is that it stays neat all year. In the spring, I get the tall blue candle blooming in vivid blue, , but when those blossoms die and you trim them off, you’ve got a green-bronze mulch all year. And….a lot to share…!
I guess my pot of coffee is finished, so I need to get into the house and get a few chores done. And then maybe back out to the garden with some iced tea to weed a little, and deadhead, and trim…..lots to do in a July garden….wear a hat and sunscreen!
I will need to finish this walk tomorrow so I will see you then, same time, same place. Thanks for reading!
What are you busy with in your garden?
I love clematis and baptisia ! It’s possible with seed to have clematis ? i don’t speak english….i’am french,i live in burgundy (good wine)
Nice blog ! have a good day
I have never grown clematis from seed but hear that you can. If you collect your own seed from a plant, it may not come in true to the parent plant because of hybridization. A cutting from one you like might get better results. Thanks for visiting!
Kim I’m loving looking at your blog. I find names for the plants I have growing around here. I always wanted an autumn clematis, we’ll I had two here. They weren’t planted in good spots..one took over three of the pine trees on the side of the house, and one was on the front of the house and took over every bit of vegetation near (and not so near) it. Wes relocated the one in the back so it could spread out in the trees by the lake. It is starting to spread so I hope it does well.
Those sweet autumn clematis are spreaders, that’s for sure. I have moved mine several times, and they grow in new spots easily. In fact, I have sprouts that come up all over the place for years after I move it. I donate these to the Plant Sale in May each year. I’ll bet yours is glorious that big! That stuff grows so profusely!