Garden Bloggers Bloom Day -- September 2008

Once again, it is the middle of the month.   It’s Garden Bloggers Bloom Day time!   This is a meme that was begun by Carol over at May Dreams Gardens, and what a fun meme it is.   If you go over to her place and follow links at her comments section, you will be guided to many wonderful and beautiful gardens all over the world.

I decided to begin my post with the most stunning picture I captured on my trip around the yard.   This was a butterfly weed (Aesclepius tuberosa, one of the milkweed family) going to seed.  It was not until I had it up on the computer that I realized that the strands of thistledown in the seeds had refracted the light and made rainbows.   I just love this image.

Another flower that caught my eye was a chicory that was blooming out by the sauna.   It said “I am another one of Nature’s mandalas!  Try to capture me.”  So I did.  Take a moment to admire the details of this common roadside weed.

Another flower that is finally blooming nicely is my moonflower vine.  You have no idea how many truly awful shots I have of this flower and its amazing spiral buds.  Getting them in focus and exposed right when they happen to bloom at dusk as the sun is setting and then wilt promptly at dawn is a challenge.  They are so white that photography with a flash just washes them out.   This morning it was so chilly they hadn’t had a chance to fade, and so I was able to finally catch a good image.

I have moonflowers planted in one of my whiskey barrel planters out on the south side of the pergola, purple hyacinth beans in the other.  They have finally grown up and across the trellising there and have co-mingled.

Out in my front garden, the asters have started really going to town.   But what truly amazes me out there is the reblooming iris I bought three years ago.   I thought I had been gypped the first year when it didn’t rebloom, but it was only trying to get established.   Once it had that first year of quiet, it has faithfully rewarded me with irises in August/September as well as many blooms in the spring.   I may need to buy some more of these lovelies — in different colors, of course!   No “One Color Gardens” for The Havens!   I’m way too gemini for that kind of commitment!

Behind it you can see the garden phlox still going strong.  The butterflies and bumblebees love it.   Another plant that has caught my imagination lately is my celosia (coxcomb) flower.   The form of this flower continues to amaze me.   I spent a lot of time last year trying to capture the vividness of it, the amazing coral like formation.    Then this year I stood back, and these plants look for all the world like wonderful crinoline ball gowns from the Civil War era.   Can you see it?

My autumn sedums are blooming, and they are so popular with all the insects I can be guaranteed a wonderful “Party Picture” every time I go out there.   Sedums are another flower that I have literally hundreds of shots of in my computer.   I am a sick person, I know.

I would be interested to know just exactly what sort of compound these flowers exude.   Often times I can go out early in the morning and find a bumble bee lolling in the middle of the flower head, obviously drunk on something.

Now, I shall take you on a short walk around the yard so you can see for yourselves how the gardens are doing after this wonderfully rainy and cool summer we have enjoyed at The Havens.   First, the front yard.

Walking to the east across the driveway, we come to the vineyard and the espaliered apple trees.  I posted about the espalier a while ago.   Look how this apple has responded to the pruning.   Notice how full the grape vines are in the background.   We harvested over 200 pounds of grapes and have 20 gallons of wine in the root cellar, maturing.

Walk along past the vineyard, and you come to the sauna garden.  This was newly established this spring, and I think it has turned out quite well.   This is the place to come watch butterflies and hummingbirds and bees when you are in the mood.  This is also where I took the autumn sedum picture above.

You can see the vegetable garden fence back there.   Lets walk over there and peek through the gate, shall we?   The beans are pretty much done, the tomatoes are winding down.   In the back, the corn is merely ornamental at this point in time.  I dug my sweet potatoes and got about 20 pounds from my 8 little plants.   I think I may be planting those again.  Just look at that swiss chard!

Turn slightly left and you will see the pond/wild bird habitat.   I promise, there is a pond back there behind the goldenrod and tiny white aster bushes.  Really!

We are quite gratified because we have had leopard frogs move onto the place this year.   If you build it, they will come! (to cop a phrase)

Now, turn left again and walk past my clothes line and through the gate in the privacy fence.   The group of peace lilies in pots by the back door is looking splendid.  They love their time outside during the summer, but the night-time temperatures are dropping and we’ll be moving them into the living room for the winter today.   Notice the autumn blooming hostas putting on a huge display in front of them.   There are just a few balloon flowers still blooming — they are nearly done, though.

Make a 180° turn and walk along the gravel path, and soon you will arrive at the Hosta Dell in the stroll garden.   It is looking quite splendid right now.   The shade arbor that Jim built for it has made all the difference during the heat of August.  Usually at this time everything is so burned, but no longer.

I just posted about the development of the new Japanese rock garden we did a couple of days ago.   So, we back off and take a look at how the Stroll Garden project has progressed so far.   It almost seems impossible that we have accomplished all this in only one year.  The only thing that was there last September was the planting of hostas in the corner.

I am liking the rock group we call The Dragon’s Teeth in the rain garden more and more.

I shall leave you with a collection of images of the clematis that are blooming in the stroll garden right now.   Such lovely flowers, and so wonderful of them to bloom and rebloom all summer.

Next month, who knows what will be going on?   You can always stop by in between Garden Bloggers Bloom Days; I am posting pictures of the place all the time.

But I love my seasonal visitors, thanks for stopping by.

About these ads