I haven't been around lately due to trying to heal from my shoulder surgery. It feels 100% better and I'm able to get out and dig!
Here's what I'm working on:
I planted almost all of the shrubs I got last summer in the front garden and they did very well, except for the azaleas. This garden gets sun the whole day, so the azaleas looked pretty beat up. The one I put behind the Knockout Rose got completely blocked and didn't grow much even though it wasn't burnt up. I removed the three azaleas and I'm going to plant them in my back yard where most of the yard gets shade at some time or another.
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Our lack of rain didn't help my azaleas much either.
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These Crape Myrtles are doing pretty well. They bloomed a beautiful dark hot pink.
I purchased the bricks for around the Crape Myrtles and just stuck them there temporarily, as you can see. My goal is to make two layers (larger circles than what is there now). I will put in some garden soil and humus in the circles. I want to get a few tulips and plant them and see how they do, or if they survive the critters! I'll then fill the circles with mulch, making sure I leave a space free around the trunks.
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| The Knockout roses have all gone wild and have bloomed literally all summer long. I really love them. |
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| The other Knockout that is growing like crazy. I deadhead them every few weeks. |
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I am somewhat disappointed in my clematis - it was a combination of two - a dark purple Jackmanii and this pale pink or violet. But early on in the summer I think something ate the Jackmanii - more than likely a mole or vole. I don't know the name of the pink one to know what its leaves are to look like, but it seems in need of something because the leaves don't look very hardy
The photo on the right is a close-up of the fresh bloom on the bottom of the plant. Most of the upper blooms have been small even though I fed it.
( The single bloom photo is on the right as I write this, but shows up on the bottom when I publish it!)
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| Well, now I know what does well in the heat and drought for next year: snapdragons and zinnias. A pathetic little tuft of my favorite flower peeks out from behind - cosmos, but most have died in my pots. |
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I received some used bricks for my garden and laid them down in front of the main garden. I need a few more, but I'm happy with how they look so far!
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| My poor Datura is not looking great, either. I moved it to a shadier spot, too. |
Happy gardening,
~Ann
I'm not much of a gardener. My wife is the green-fingered one in our house but I do appreciate the efforts of keen gardeners to put on a display for others to admire.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, Bill! I love your expression: "green-fingered"! Thanks for sharing, too.
DeleteYou have done a wonderful job. I normally don't do fall gardening. I know it is cold enough no more tomatoes will turn red. It is time for me to remove the plants and prepare the bed for next spring. my marigolds are still looking sharp in the front flower bed. I think i will plant nothing but marigolds next year in the front flowerbed. I My lazy susans are dying. It is time for me to remove those as well.
ReplyDeleteSandy, marigolds are very hardy in the summer if they are watered well. Are your "lazy susans" blackeyed susans, I wonder? If they are just leave them and they'll come back next year! The birds will like the dead pods in the winter, too.
DeleteWelcome back, Ann. I am so glad your surgery went well. I love the pictures of your Knockout roses. Weii, actually, I love all the pictures. Say listen, maybe someone else might know about this too, but when I had my home in Pulaski, I was having trouble getting my azaleas to grow, and someone suggested that I add some pine bark mulch around them to give the soil more acidity. I did that and they took off. Maybe it might work for you, too.
ReplyDeleteI will definitely give that a try, Karen! Thanks for the tip. Between that and getting them out of the blazing sun all day - they should do well. Thanks for your comment!
Deletemy portulaca (?? spelling??) did super well in the full sun I loved the added colour of an annual in my mostly perennial garden. Crape myrtle is new to me..must look it up! I'm glad you have your blog ~ I really enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rita! I'm so glad you enjoy my blog. I LOVE portulaca! Its brilliant colors are so beautiful! I have some in my front, and even it looks a little haggard, but this cooler weather should get it feeling better.....until the first frost comes....
DeleteI lived and learned from the drought too! I love this blog!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Angie! I love your articles too! Thank you for sharing!
DeleteThank you for sharing your projects and landscapes! Love the crepe myrtle! Will it survive over the winter this far north? I am from Wheeling but moved to Columbus. Every time I visit my brother who lives near Virgina Beach, I want to bring some crepe myrtle back with me. I was told they won't survive winters this far north! If this isn't the case, please let me know��
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your projects and landscapes! Love the crepe myrtle! Will it survive over the winter this far north? I am from Wheeling but moved to Columbus. Every time I visit my brother who lives near Virgina Beach, I want to bring some crepe myrtle back with me. I was told they won't survive winters this far north! If this isn't the case, please let me know��
ReplyDeleteHi Claudine! Yes Crape Myrtle will take temps below freezing = I thought I read up to -10 degrees. I'll find my tag and let you know. So if you mean Columbus Ohio, you'll be good. I plan on mulching them heavily in the next few weeks. I imagine you'd have to do the same with your lake-effect (aka hideous) weather! Even tho I do love winter. Let me know if you get one!
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