And to every season, turn, turn

My front yard is beginning to make the inevitable transition to fall.  I never plant much for fall blooming and I tend to forget about it until it is too late.  I am pleased, however, with what is still blooming.  There is nothing out there that has yet to bloom, so this is it until next spring.

From this angle, lots of magenta and coral colors are apparent.  I love the variety of textures that weave together.  Even though I lost the Japanese Stewartia, the barrel is still there, adding interest until next spring when the new one arrives.  I love the rocks and how they add contrast to the plants.

  This angle is also the front of the house, just from the opposite side.  The Japanese Maple at the back and the hydrangea frame that window so nicely.  Again, the rocks, now visible in middle of the yard, give that structure and elevation that I appreciate so much.  I often just sit on these rocks and watch the world go by.

  I love the orange of this Mountain Ash tree.  The caterpillars really made short work of some of the leaves.  I was concerned they would eat all of the leaves because they work so fast, but the damage they caused was only significant on a few branches, not the whole tree.  The fruit seems ripe to me, so I am hoping the Cedar Waxwings will come and eat the berries.  The robins ate them last year.  I haven't seen either species so far. 

  This is at least the second bloom for the Wisteria.  The first one was very dramatic because there were no leaves.  I also don't think there are as many blooms the second time around, but they seem to last longer.  I will wait until the blooms fade before I prune it back.  I will have to return to that web page where I got the instructions for winter pruning to see if there is a second pruning suggested or if I just wait until February.  I did hear that it is time to prune my fruit trees which surprised me.  I thought that was done mid winter as well.

  These two plants are not so lovely now, but I am leaving them for the birds.  I do have a number of feeders out, but I am hoping to attract some birds that might not like coming to the feeders.  It is hard to have such messy flowers in the front of the yard and I did not think of this potential problem when I planted them there.  I think once I have these same plants growing elsewhere, like in the backyard, I will feel better about pruning them.  I do love them while the blooms are pretty.

 I wanted to show the difference between these two Highbush Cranberry plants.  The one in the barrel gets much more sun than the other by the porch.  They one by the porch gets more water more regularly and the ground is generally moister there.  Though they are the same height essentially, their leaves look very different to me.  There are some black spots on the porch variety that the barrel plant does not have.  Also, the barrel plant has larger, more vibrant leaves with sharper edges.  Both plants should have brilliant fall color, though neither one produced berries this year.

  I love the messy wildflower look of this part of the garden.  The lone Canna that finally made an appearance is really splendid.  I hope it comes back next year.  Just to the left of the Canna is the Aronia berry plant.  It is doing well, though I plan to move it to the back yard this fall along with the Gogi berry bush.  I love the nasty smelling Pineapple Sage with its tiny hot pink flowers.  The hummingbirds don't seem to be on them as much as they were, but the color remains vibrant.  Also, at the bast of the Canna are a couple of the African Daisies.  What a great buy those flowers proved to be.  They have bloomed consistently since they were planted in April I think it was.  The pale purple flowers in the background are from a plant I got on clearance at that same time.  It has also been a constant bloomer, though I must admit I don't love it like I do the African Daisy.

The Monk's Hood has finally bloomed!  I love it.  It looks a bit like Foxglove I think.  I understand it is poisonous, so it will stay in the front yard.  It brings all the various purple plants together.

  This is the Black and Blue Salvia.  It is at the base of my bird feeder and it looks great there I think.  I see it whenever I come out of the house.  Of course, the suet melted on it last month when the temperature got to be just under 100 degrees, but other than that, it looks great and it hides the spilled seed.

  On the trellis is Clematis that never bloomed.  I planted a Honeysuckle in the backyard and it didn't bloom this year either.  The lavender flowers are some kind of carnation I think, though I am not sure.  The flowers have been blooming a long time.  I like all the spots of purple, violet and lavender around the landscape.

  The photo doesn't show it all that well, but these are the yellow crocrosmia I planted this spring.  I had moved them from beside the porch.  They bloomed well in this rather dry location, though as you can see, they are not near as tall as their red cousins which are finished blooming now.  This area is really weedy and dry, so I think it will require some more compost and generally attention.  It is not a part of the yard that I see, so I have to remember to take care of it.  I don't mind the fullness of the plantings here, but I need to keep the weeds in check.  There is a patch of dead ones that need to get pulled as well.  I like that spiky plant in the lower right corner.  It dies back when we have a really cold winter.  I always think it is gone for good, but then it returns, like a phoenix from the flame.

 

 

Now I am planning on where to move things that maybe didn't work as well as I wanted them to.  I still can't move things yet, maybe not until next month.  It is a slowly evolving canvas.  The back yard has room for some things, though a great deal of work must be done before I can move anything.  I have a new puppy, so I must be aware of what goes back there so I don't make her sick.  I have some plants that are hidden that I want to move to the open, some that can be used as a backdrop for other plants.  I learn so much and am given so much opportunity to go ahead and make mistakes.  And if I don't get it all done in time, there is always next year.  I appreciate that level of flexibility.

Summer flowers

I have been watching the transformation of my yard over the last six months.  I was so sad when those trees came down, my old friends.  I knew almost immediately that I had full sun now in my front yard, but I don't think I quite realized just that meant.  Not only do I have more vibrant flowers, but the ground dries out much more quickly and the weeds flourish along side the flowers.  I am making plans now about what to move when the weather turns.  Always a work in progress...

 

These are the cone flowers that bloomed.  I had planted three groupings of them, but only one plant made it, I think.  There is a late bloomer in the garden that may be cone flower as well.  Lupine and pineapple sage are in the background.  This was part of the bird sanctuary garden that I planted in the early spring.  Goldfinches supposedly like cone flower when they go to seed.  I think they are interesting looking.

 

 




This is Pineapple Sage.  The hummingbirds really like it, which surprises me since the blooms are so small.  Fuscias are so flashy, I always find it odd when the birds choose small blooms like on my raspberry bushes from which to feed.

 
 These are the African Daisies I planted in the spring.  All the other plants that were blooming at that time have since died or lost their blooms.  I love this color.  I thought they were perennials, but recently read they are annuals.  If all annuals lasted this long, I would be more inclined to plant them.  In the background is a beautiful Dahlia that continues to bloom these fabulous magenta flowers with dark purple leaves.  These may survive the winter if I mulch them heavily.  It is my front yard, so I will need to find an attractive mulch.  My mom said she mulched with leaves and sticks, but I don't think I can do that so close to the road.  My HOA will send me nasty letters I think.

 
 This is one of two high bush cranberry.  They have both done very well this summer.  There is some discoloration on some leaves that I don't know what is causing it.  Looks a bit like a fungus.  I don't use fungicide very often since I am trying to attract birds and other wildlife, but I don't want to lose my tree.  I am waiting to see what comes of it at this point, because I don't know what it is really.

 
 I have a three different types of crocosmia in my yard.  This yellow one is shorter than the other two.  It is doing well.  I moved it in the spring and I am glad to say all clusters are doing well.  I can't see those by the apple tree because the red ones are so tall.  But I am sure it looks nice from the road, which is important too.  I love this solar light I bought for myself this spring.  It lights up at night and changes color.  I find it so peaceful.

This is the purple clematis that has grown nicely, but won't bloom.  I was discussing my yard with a woman at my job and she asked if I fertilized it.  "No."  "That might be why it isn't blooming."  Oh.  Go figure.  I did put some fish fertilizer on it in the spring, and I did top dress it with compost, so that is fertilizing, isn't it?

 
 I love these purple flowers.  They look like small carnations, but I don't know what they are for certain.  They have been blooming consistently for months.  The stargazer lily shown is old and has weak blooms.  I often break them off when I am weeding in the spring.  I guess it is time to replant them.

 
 This is almost the same view, but it shows a columbine that continues to bloom even though every other columbine has been done for months now.  There is also a delphinium that looks to be getting ready to bloom again as well.  Don't they know it is mid August?

 I picked up this Black and Blue Salvia from Fred Meyer about a month ago.  I love it.  I hope it comes back next year.  Maybe if I mulch it will.

 Notice how there are two blooms on one stem on this Bee Balm.  Weird.

 
 I love Bee Balm.  It looks ratty like it has terrible bed head, but I love it.  It always has bees, especially the big Bumble Bees, which I love.  The hummingbirds seem to like it too.

 
 The lone canna from the 16 bulbs I planted has arrived.  I hope it lasts into the fall.

 These two pictures show the front of the house.  The monks hood still hasn't bloomed, but I love the tall stalks.  These iris bloomed in early spring along with tons of other things.  The stargazer lilies look awful.  I may move them or just replant some new ones.  I like the tree lilies and I have a number of them around the yard, but they are all looking a little peaked.

 

 
 In between the hydrangea and the vine maple, I planted this little silver fern.  It is so small right now, but it should grow into something fabulous eventually.  If it doesn't, I will move it.

 
 I know this is not a lovely photo, but I wanted to show a couple of things.  First, the weedy looking mess at the bottom is a bunch of day lilies.  They didn't have a great bloom this year, perhaps because they are so old.  The other is a lovely tree lily that is as tall as I am.  But the bloom only lasts about 10 days.  I love lilies, but I am not sure I want to replace them all. I planted these at least 5 years ago.  They do okay in the shadier parts of my yard, but none of them did all that well this year.  Maybe it is time to move them, thin them or replace them.

 
 Here are the iris greens that grow beneath the vine maple tree.  They have never bloomed, so I intend to move them this fall.

 
 This wall of green is made of the red crocosmia.  I had planted a spiky bush behind them this spring that has been completely overwhelmed by them, at least from the house view.

 
 The yellow crocosmia can be seen, but only if you peek over the top of the red ones.  There are a million and seven apples that I didn't harvest under all these greens.  I did harvest a number of apples this summer (yellow transparents) and made loads of applesauce.  It was wonderful, but I haven't picked up all the windfalls yet.

 
 I think this is corn that was planted by a squirrel.

 I love this grass.  I pulled it out from under an azalea.  I had no idea it was this huge.  I hope it survives ok in the barrel.  The tree is the other high bush cranberry.  It should have wonderful fall color in another month or so.

Lush and growing wild

  We have transitioned from late spring to early summer in the weeks since my last post.  These delphinium are just about finished for the season.  I was pleasantly surprised at how beautiful they were.  The clematis growing on the trellis is growing nicely, though no blooms as of yet.  It is the first one I have ever grown, so I don't know if it needs anything from me.  Usually, I just let things happen out there.  As you can see, the peony never bloomed though I did lift it up a bit.  I will lift it again in the fall in hopes to get some blooms out of it.  I am letting the Columbine go to seed for both the birds and the hope that I will have even more plants next year.  I moved the poppies to the open space near the peony, but I moved them too late in their season and they simply flopped onto the ground.  I would have been better served if I left them where they were with the blooms hidden behind the clematis and moved them in the fall.  There are day lilies along the lower edge there and they need to be thinned this fall.  I am not sure what I am going to do with them.  I have some very tall peach colored ones off to the side of my front yard and they are no longer blooming as well as they once did.  They are getting relocated this fall as well.

Delphinium, Clematis, Columbine, Arnica, Peony



Iris greens, Monk's hood, Japanese Maple, Lily

Hosta, Hydrangea, unknown flowering plants

The irises in this bed did beautifully this spring.  I was so pleased.  The monk's hood is growing tall and green behind them.  In fact, all the plants in this foundation garden bed where the dogwood tree was are looking so lush and vibrant.  The weeds are growing quite well in there too.  They hydrangea is growing wide with limited blooms so far.  We will see what happens as the summer season progresses.  I have put a bird bath in the back as you can see it peeking over the top there.  I planted a lovely fern at its base.  I hope it grows full and fills in the gap that is between the japanese maple and the hydrangea.  It is rather shady back there so close to the house.

Lupine, Pineapple Sage, Bee Balm, Purple Love Grass, Cyclamen, Dahlia (black), African Daisy, Contorted Fig



Contorted Fig, Dahlias

The front garden is looking really lovely.  Someone was helping themselves to my flowers, but that seems to have stopped fortunately.  I can't wait for the bee balm and the cornflower to bloom, but I will have to wait I bit I think.



Just a side view that includes the wisteria

Crocosmia



 Some kind of sedum ground cover with yellow flowers that I intend to move these to another location in the fall. I love their color, but not where they are currently. I will put some iris in their place I think.



red lilies (the secrets from the spring)



 My small trees are doing fairly well. Or maybe I should say they are doing as well as I'd hoped. This cranberry in the ground is doing the best. The soil stays moist, especially because the hose has a hole in it and sprays into this bed whenever I turn it on to water something else. Fortuitous? I suppose so.


Stewartia (George) 

 I knew that the Stewartia was slow growing, so I am not surprised at its growth. Could I have wished for more? But of course.

Now it's Spring!

I admit things were looking a little bleak two months ago when I planted all these winter weary plants.  But now!  We have been fortunate to have a couple of days of warm weather following some really wet weeks.  The rununculous that I showed last time just got pulled out of the ground.  It is a spring annual whose time has come and gone.  The same with some of the daisy looking plants.  We had a couple of cold nights and they never recovered.  I noticed they quit selling them at Home Depot, so I probably got the last ones.  I will say that the larger purple version is still holding its own.  This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago.  Things are looking even more lush and lovely today.

I am thrilled to share that I will have iris blooms this year.  Not all the plants around the yard have buds, but all those in the bed closest to the house have buds.  Those under the Vine Maple and Wisteria are just greens, so I may move them in the fall.

The clematis is growing like mad.  The tendrills have grown almost to the top of the trellis.  I don't know if I will get flowers on it this year, but since we thought it was dead over the winter, this is very exciting to me.  At the base of the trellis is a delphinium that I planted last summer.  It was not spectacular if I recall and I had forgotten about them.  But, the two I planted are growing nicely and should bloom soon.  I planted one a few months back that had blooms on it already and it looks a little worse for wear.  I dead headed it and now it looks haggard.  But if all goes well, it will come back next year looking better than ever.  I am uncertain how long these plants last.  I did read recently that Columbine only lives a couple of years.  Look at these beauties.  Again, last year, they didn't do much but get a little bigger.

There is a cream colored one not shown in this picture that is gorgeous.  I had bought a bunch from our local gymnastic club last year and was disappointed how small they were.  But this year, the colors are fabulous.  I have others growing nearby that are small, but I will leave them alone to see what will come of them.

Look at these beauties.  This is the first blooming.  There should be one more once the leaves come out.  I guess the pruning suggestion that I followed was right on.  The smell wafts in through the window.  It isn't as strong as it has been before, so I wonder if the smell will be stronger with the second blooming.  It is still wonderful though.

Everything looks so healthy.  The birds are in short supply at the moment, but there may be a reason for that.  The Evening Grosbeaks are here.  They come is such large numbers that I feel they tend to run off other birds.  But they are keeping to the feeder in the back yard.  The Pine Siskins seems to be gone finally.  There were so many sick ones that it was a little gross.  But the rest?  I am presuming the chickadees and nuthatches and juncos are all sitting on their nests somewhere else.  We do have a number of hummingbirds that are visiting regularly.  I am a little embarrassed to say that I have 6 hummingbird feeders in the yard.  Hopefully with the plants and the feeders, we will have loads of birds, but so far, we have maybe 4 or 5.  One little female runs everyone else off, so I have moved the feeders around the yard in hopes of outsmarting her.

This blog is about the front yard primarily, but I am happy to share that my veggie garden is planted and growing.  We were a little delayed because of time, so I was concerned I wouldn't get one at all this year.  But my husband is helping me with it and everything is planted.  We still have loads to do in the back and the front, but nothing is ever finished, so it feels ok to be where we are.