Asclepias tuberosa aka "Butterfly Weed" Did you know that there are 14 common names to this plant and there may be more ! Milkweed always sounded like it should have something to do with milk in my mind. It is supposed to be as it says .. common, but strangely it doesn't seem to be. I tried every year to make sure I had a patch of it in my garden, along with common goldenrod ,which is .. yes, a bit of a handful to control, but so loved by beneficial insects!
Shadow and light make it look rather exotic to me .
First I will mention this tiny purple barberry "Crimson Pygmy" (as far as I can tell .. lost that name tag)
The range of purple and crimson is amazing for such a tiny specimen, it is beautiful !
It is that small shot of purple that makes you look twice .. not only the colour, but the size is unusual.
Alchemilla mollis aka Lady's Mantle , I have several plants and found out something this year, after all the years of having them ! I had no idea the flowers actually have a beautiful subtle spicy scent !
It will have more of a spectacular in colour range come Autumn.
Especially when wedged between greens and golds.
How did I miss that ?
This tiny yellow flowers are almost unnoticeable because of their gold colour.
Simple respect for plants that take the initiative to "branch out" ?
Yes .. I know .. it can get annoying and tricky to keep things under control.
There are 4 characters at play here Sweet Woodruff, ajuga, gold creeping jenny and false strawberry.
For the first time I have actually seen the false strawberries it produces ! another surprise this year.
However the insects know they are there.
Taking time to notice the small subtle plants in your gardens can be difficult when your mind is racing about .. taking notes on what has to be one .. diving nose deep into the work and sometimes really becoming engrossed and physically drained. I don't want to miss these simple beauties, so I am trying to remember that. After all it is the point of growing plants .. to notice all life as a gardener.
I love Karl Foerster feather reed grass, that airy look it has. I have it in the wrong place though, and it has been beaten up with the sprinklers. So a cutback and move are in order to save it.
I hate losing those "feathers"
The ally way is filled with lots of different plants now. It used to be all day lilies , which was ok .. but now I find it more interesting with astilbe, hosta, lilies of different kinds, dwarf burning bush, spirea shrub, and lady's mantle topped off with the kiwi vine over head.
13 comments:
Your garden is looking lovely Joy, all the plants looks so healthy. I've tended to let mine go a bit and really need to do some much needed weeding, but it has been so hot. But it is summer after all isn't it? Happy gardening.
I try to make at least a daily spin around my garden to catch what's happening but I still find I miss some things, finding them a day or two too late - and there are even more I simply forget to get back to and photograph ;) I love that ornamental grass but have confirmed that, as expected, it's way outside my zonal limits. Berberis appeals to me every time I see it but I seldom see it in garden centers here, possibly because the splashiest varieties seem to be deciduous and deciduous plants are less popular here in the land of year-round gardening.
That butterfly weed is my favorite and mine just started blooming a few days ago. It was so nice last year and bloomed for a long time. Seeing all the bees buzzing it makes me happy.
Hi Linda and thank you !This heat was a bit more intense than usual so I have been hiding in the house .. I really NEED to work in the garden , lots of weeds and staking to do too.
Yes it truly is summer now and yet ? I can't wait for Fall .. happens every year at this time for me ? haha
Hello Kris , I understand what you are talking about .. your garden is so large and diverse, so much to see and enjoy along with that amazing view ! Funny .. I would think grasses would be ok in your area .. sometimes I think you are restricted in the opposite direction of what I am restricted for, and that is an eye opener. I would never survive year round gardening so my hat is off to you with that !
Hello Phillip .. it is a very simple but yet endearing plant right ? it does so much good for pollinators and that impossible bright orange screams look at me ! LOL Yes .. every time I see a bee it also makes me happy to know I can provide them with a plant(s) that does them so much good ;-)
Your alleyway is alive with lovely plants--looking happy and so well-watered. "Well-watered" may seem like a strange thing to say, but our entire rainy season amounted to less than 15 cm, and November when we can start to hope for a little rain is a long time from now.
Hey there HB ! Thank you ;-) I liked your last post of "what do you have on your patio table".
That seed head was ginormous ! LOL .. I understand you are coming from such a dry hot time. We just got a pop up storm that dumped almost 3 inches of rain and believe me I am grateful. Even though we have sprinklers there are spots that tend to dry out so quickly especially since we had so much wind acting like a wick and drying the plants and soil so much .. I wish I could do a rain dance for you !
Your garden is a delight. You do know that the dwarf burning bush isn't really dwarf don't you?? And it is terrible invasive. It is crazy to think it is dwarf when it can get to 10 feet tall. They really should rename it. I made that mistake many years ago. It was a bear to remove.
You have such an amazing garden! I love it!
Hi Lisa and thank you ;-) Maybe I have another cultivar of this because it hasn't grown in the 3 years I have had them .. it doesn't behave in an invasive way at all either .. so perhaps this is a different one altogether ? I hope so ! LOL
Thanks Jenn .. it is a product of a 20 year love affaire ? LOL
I like how you cover the ground with a mix of different creepers.
Hi Jason and thank you .. it is what I call "living mulch" and it does work well !
Oh yes, sometimes you just have to sit and look at what is growing and ignore the more showy plants. I loved all these, especially the milkweed, what a beauty! I leave more and more wild patches in the garden these days for the pollinators.xxx
Hello there SB ;-) .. I have a hard time slowing down and just appreciating what I have in the garden at times ... when I work I work until I crawl into the house and drop into the shower. I really have to take more time to just appreciate the garden and not constantly think about what I have to do ! LOL..
Post a Comment