Again, the end of the week brings a scattering of topics and photos. Let's start with the clematis that I can't remember the name of:
Agastache may be my favorite genus of flowering plants: fragrant leaves, tubular flowers all summer that keep the hummingbirds happy, and pretty much carefree. The only problem I've ever had with Agastache is they sometimes won't make it through our wet winters -- other than that, just ignore them!
Time to notice some of the color in the garden, mainly from the blooms. Yes, green abounds here, but it's the canvas for the daubs of pigment that the flowers provide.
This weekend I went to pick up the Sweet Summer Love Clematis I ordered a couple of months ago, and while I was at the nursery (Sugar Creek Gardens) I couldn't resist buying a few more plants.
My recent walkway project ended for this year once I got all of the perennials planted. It's time to show you what plants I put here to give the area not only instant impact, but to ensure that it becomes a real thing of beauty and interest in future years.
If you asked me what plant I had the most "extras" of, it may take me a minute to think about it, but the answer would probably be Agastache foeniculum. Besides having it growing in half a dozen places on purpose, it's also popping up everywhere -- including the mulch around my neighbor's tree.
Some posts are pretty, involving interesting plants with colorful blooms and lush foliage. This is not one of those posts, because it came about from my attempts to clear off my driveway. Yes, the driveway that this year became essentially a garden center, covered in pots of all sorts of plants.
One plant that I have dozens of this year -- more than I really want since many of them are still in pots, looking for a place in the ground or a new home -- is Agastache foeniculum, "Anise Hyssop" or "Blue Giant Hyssop". Spicy, minty, sweet leaves smell and taste so delicious, and it flowers forever it seems. Although not everyone agrees on how to pronounce it (I favor "Ag-a-stack-EE", so it rhymes with "bee"), I think most gardeners who grow it do agree on one thing: the pollinators love it.
I'm terrible when growing spring greens. I've thought about it a little and I'm pretty sure there are a few mistakes I make, but the main one is I'm not good at thinning. Some of the pots of greens I planted on my deck (for convenience -- no need to make the long trek down to the veggie garden) exhibit this quite clearly:
Yesterday I looked at the violets that have taken over my lawn. Today it's another plant that seems to form as lush a carpet as any I've seen. I don't understand why this plant hasn't taken over every planting bed I have:
Every month I end up with several photos that just didn't lend themselves to a whole post. Sometimes I had planned on taking several shots and composing a post, but the subject didn't cooperate. Take for instance this woodchuck:
One of my favorite genus of plants is Agastache, or "hyssop". I love their spicy, minty foliage, their fruity colors, the way they attract bees and hummingbirds. I love that they're quite easy to grow, that they reseed, and that deer, rabbits, and every other mammal around here won't eat them.
I've been so focused on digging lately: digging up weedy beds, planting in the refreshed beds, wondering what animal has been digging up my pots and beds. Today no posts about digging.
I've been looking after my neighbor John's garden for a few days. His vegetable garden. As in vegetables that he wants to eat. Obviously he hasn't had a good look at my veggie garden recently, nor has he read about my poor spring crop.
I have to say that the cool season crops in my veggie garden were a big disappointment this year. I planted spinach, lettuces, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, and beets.
There are some beautiful flowers starting to bloom in my garden right now, so let's take a look. First up, a sight that I'm amazed to see:
I don't know about your garden, but I've got seedlings everywhere! Not just weeds either -- I've got plenty of seedlings from desirable plants. Plants that I probably want to save, perhaps to transplant, or maybe to leave where they are. It's important to recognize the plants you want to keep while they're small, otherwise you'll end up yanking them out with all of the weeds. Sometimes it's simple, like when you're growing in pots, as is the case with this red plains coreopsis:
Today just a quick task, as time is quite limited. Each day as I walk out of the garage, this is the first bed I pass. It's the triangular raised bed ("box") that was my first cleanup task this year. It is jam-packed with Agastache foeniculum. I love this plant, but there are too many here.
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