August? Really? Almost the End of August! What???

We are in the yard every day, checking on progress, on growth, on little friends.   This little guy was hiding on an oak leaf  I was about to remove from my Abelia bush.  Both of us were a little surprised.  

I was torn between removing the dead twig and getting a picture of this little anole who kept trying to hide from me.

Continuing with the walk through the yard I am happy to find more Blue lobelia, Lobelia siphilitica growing in the low untended part of the yard.   This is an area where many of the wildflowers I have shared over the past couple years have been growing.    Leaving it wild will ensure that these wildflowers will continue to appear in my garden.

In the tended area of the garden the Blackberry lilies, Belamcanda chinesis, are starting to show their seedpods.  It is shown here with Phlox paniculata 'Robert Poore' from Racquel at Perennial Garden Lover.  She shared this Phlox with me before we moved and it has been a shining star in the garden.  

The Toadlily, Tricyrtis formosana 'Gilt Edge' I bought earlier this summer is happy in its location.  It is starting to bloom, I love these crazy blooms.  I will be looking for other varieties of Toadlily in future years.  Some are more polka dotted than others.

This beauty is growing on the underside of the Fringe Tree, Chionanthus retusus, in my front garden.  Crawling under the tree and behind some of the Lantana made it a little hard to get a great photo of this bloom....but I kept at it!  Looking at the picture below I see dog hair, it is everywhere! hahaa

Hard not to love this bloom.  Can't wait for more blooms to open, it is full of buds right now.

I had one in the back garden the first year we moved here.  It was planted on the north side of an oak tree.  Unfortunately somebody lives there...there is a hole and no Toadlily.  Not sure whose hole it is, but this will not be a place I plant again.   In the meanwhile I will enjoy this one.  

This is the time of year that some trees are blooming.  One that is really making a big show is Goldenrain Tree in Uptown.  In front of the old library there are a number of these trees planted.  The library has moved and this building is now the Veteran's Center.  I love how these trees have last year's seed pods and this year's flowers.  You may remember my posting of this tree, Koelreuteria bipinnata

It is easy to see why the common name is Goldenrain Tree.

The bees were having a good time going from flower to flower.

In the early evening light the pink of the seedpods stand out nicely against the bright yellow blooms. 

And for all you tree fans out there, Tuesday's Trees will be coming back.  I went through many of my photos to gather the tree pictures together.  I have a few that I can move forward with some more posts.  This coming Tuesday, Persimmon.  See you then!

©Copyright 2012 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.

GBBD -How Can It Be June Already?

Decisions decisions.... 

I know you are looking at the picture above and wondering what you are looking at AND why is this on the Garden Blogger's Bloom Day.  The green plant on the left is a volunteer...a vigorous growing volunteer.  A volunteer I hadn't seen since we lived in Virginia.  It is a Passion vine.  Passiflora incarnata.  See the white twist tie?  And the dark 'stick' going up through the middle of it?  THAT was a Sassafras tree sapling (Sassafras albidum).  I planted it (along with a lot of other saplings) last December.  Sadly I knew this Sassafras stem was not alive, it was given the scratch test a couple months ago.   This is a test where you scratch the stem, peeling back a little bit of the bark, if you see green, it is still alive. I did not see green, it was brown....dead.  I did another test, pulled it a little bit, and whatever was below ground held fast.  I left it alone.  Crossed my fingers.  Talked to it as I walked by.    Let's look at the above photo again.  At the base of the dark dead stem are green leaves!!!! Yes, I have a small Sassafras emerging from the roots!   

So now it was decision time.  Passion flower vine is a native, host to Gulf Fritillary and many other butterflies.  Knowing how strong the root system of the Passion vine is, I decided to dig up the vine and move it away from the tiny tree.  Even if the vine doesn't survive, I know the root system is still there.   There will be another one popping up nearby. 

For now, I am thrilled to have this great native tree, small but alive!  

Let's get on with Garden Blogger's Bloom Day.  I have had an explosion of color in the backyard.  Hooray!

Phlox paniculata 'Robert Poore' and Blackberry lily Belamcanda chinensis

 Karin from Southern Meadows shared a Sunshine Award with me.   I am going to fudge a little, I will answer the questions, but instead of sharing it with five other bloggers, I am opening it up to my followers.  If you would like to share a little Sunshine, please do!

Clearwing enjoying a Monarda

 Karin lives pretty close to me across the state line in Georgia.  I hope sometime this summer we can get together. It was great meeting fellow bloggers at the Fling, want to continue the fun!

Unnamed White Phlox

 Part of the Sunshine Award is to answer some questions about yourself.   

Phlox paniculata 'Laura'

 1. Favorite color--  Depends, blooms-- I like purple, cars-- red, walls-- blue, clothes-- magenta.
 2. Favorite animal--  Pets, we have dogs, have had a cat.  In the wild-- love bird watching.

Lonicera sempervirens still blooming!

 3. Favorite number --  Um?? 6!  Ask me tomorrow, might be different.  (I really don't have a favorite number)
4. Favorite non-alcoholic drink-- Iced tea, unsweet.  Gotta get away from sugar!!

Lonicera sempervirens berries!!

5. Facebook or Twitter-- I play on Facebook more than Twitter.
6. My passion-- Gardening, photography, and enjoying our slice of heaven.

Gladiolus 

 7. Getting or giving presents--  I love it when we come up with a great idea for a gift.  Some are hits and some are misses.
8. Favorite pattern--  As  I write this I have on a polka dots t-shirt.  I really have no favorite.

Hibiscus moscheutos 'Kopper King' eaten by small caterpillars

 9. Favorite day of the week-- Since Charlie has retired neither of us know what day of the week it is!!
10. Favorite flower--  Oh, I am so fickle!  Whatever is blooming currently is the center of my attention.  Right now some of the oriental lilies are about to open.....new fav!

View across the garden, where the washout was last month.  Still need to do some
rocks and mulch to repair the open soil spots.

One of the best things about blooms is bringing them inside to enjoy them a little longer.  

Be sure to stop over to Carol's blog, May Dreams Gardens to see all the other Bloom Day posts.  It was great to meet Carol at the Fling.  Super having faces to go along with names!!


©Copyright 2012 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.

A Bit of Color and a Small Mystery

I have mentioned this plant a few times earlier this year but wanted to share it in multiple stages. One can truly see the blackberry in the Blackberry Lily. Belamcanda chinensis - the seedpod certainly looks like a blackberry!



The recent rainfall lends itself to some nice photo shots. I love the raindrops hanging off the ever-maturing bud.

And the droplets beading up on the Edgeworthia...the large leaves are almost like velvet.

Two of the shrubs in my garden that shine this time of year are the two different Callicarpas. I bought a Callicarpa at a native plant sale and it turned out to have smaller leaves and smaller berries. Further investigation proved it to be the Callicarpa japonica (that they were also selling, this was mislabeled).



As you can see the americana variety has much larger leaves and the berries are larger and a little different shade of purple. These shrubs are edge of forest/ dappled sunshine loving plants. Mine have been in ground since 1999. About 4 years ago my neighbor had her pines taken out...about 5 or 6 large Loblolly pines. Since then, this section of my garden is in full sun and the Callicarpa seem to be doing just fine. Every other winter I cut them almost to the ground. As mature shrubs they are about 6-8 wide and about 5- 6 feet tall.

The Miscanthus sinensis 'Dixieland' is in bloom now... thought the dark skies through the seed heads was a good backdrop.


And now for the mystery. My sister suggested I do this in the form of a contest, though I am not sure how to prove one right or wrong... here is a 'volunteer' plant in my backyard. I never planted this plant, no one in the area grows this plant, soooo........HOW DO YOU THINK IT GOT HERE???


Know what this is??? A peanut! Arachis hypogea. But how...???
Sweetbay has IDed this as a Cassia obtusifolia which looks amazingly like a peanut. Still a mystery as to how it got here.

To close out this posting I wanted to share a nice pairing of plants. Fine Gardening online is asking for photos of your best summer plant combinations. Here is my contribution. Solidago 'Fireworks' and Lobelia siphilitica - Great Blue Lobelia

Have a great weekend!

Beauties of the Night.....and Some of the Day

I have been noticing my neighbor's Moonflower every morning when I walk the dogs. All the blooms are spent and drooping. I decided to walk down the street tonight after dusk to see if there were any blooms open. Lo and behold….there were multiple blooms!

Once I got home I looked out my deck garden door and guess who else is blooming…for the third time this summer? Right! The Epiphyllum oxypetalum. This time there are about 6 or 7 blooms in various stages of maturity getting ready to open. I have really enjoyed this plant this summer. After this bloom session is done I will need to prune it back a little to move it into the garage. I may have some cuttings….stay tuned!!

As with everyone else's garden, mine is still putting on a good show. The pineapple lily that I bought earlier this year gradually turned green from the great burgundy color. Now there is new growth and it is the dark burgundy. Is this normal? I have no idea! It is certainly interesting looking. The pink is flowers falling from the Crape Myrtle.

The Black and Blue Salvia is also a new addition from last fall. It took so long to look like it was going to bloom and now it is getting the attention it deserves. Next to the B & B is one of the many Blackberry Lilies , Belamcanda chinensis, and it is in its berry mode. This garden borders my neighbor's yard. They were most curious as to the type of berry I was growing and wondering if it was edible! I told them I wouldn't try it.

The zinnias I have are the first in many years. I am really happy with the show they have put forth. Lots and lots of color. (The bees seem to enjoy it as well)

I love the contrast of the Dusty Miller and this variegated Iris.


The Clematis paniculata on the swing set is starting to pop like popcorn….a snowfall of white blooms.











Last but not least – I found the name of the Canna in the header photo of my blog. It is surprisingly hard to find many places that sell it…I bought mine at Sam's (!!??!!) I know…it was a box of 18 and it wasn't too pricey. Before the other plants filled in I was able to count the Cannas and they all came up!! This lovely variety is Canna Rosever. The foliage is chocolate burgundy in color and the blooms are a beautiful peachy- rose. I am digging up a few of these guys to take with me to South Carolina!!

Laissez-faire Isn't French for Lazy Gardener

When Helen visited last week she asked about what kind of gardener I was and I didn't have a concise answer. While posting about the visit I said I had a bit of a laissez faire approach to my garden. I think of it as working WITH Mother Nature instead of trying to grow and manage things that do not do well in my garden. I want less work, not more!

While trying to compose this posting I looked out the door noticing some movement on the deck. At first it was a little Carolina Wren. These little birds are so cute...so I got my camera. ready set.....he flew away. Why? Because someone else was also on the deck!!!! Rotten little bugger!




Back to the epistle on being a laissez faire gardener............hand me a BB gun. (I don't have a BB gun).
The deck garden is the main subject of my posting. I have a large side deck 18 feet by 12 feet (?) and the garden is next to the deck along the house. When we built the addition to the house and replaced the old deck, I redid this garden. That was 1999. In 2003 we had Hurricane Isabel flood the area. There have been numerous Nor'easters that bring in high water as well. Here is a photo from before we had the bulkhead replaced. (that is another story unto itself)

This bed is packed full with blooms...and a few weeds. Here it is lush and full with Echinacea purpurea, Rudbeckia ssp., Tradescantia 'Purple Heart', Kalimeris pinnatifida- Japanese Aster, Belamcanda chinensis- Blackberry lily, and two Crape Myrtle- Chickasaw which is a small one and Peppermint Lace.

After the bulkhead was replaced the Purple Heart disappeared...something about having heavy equipment rolling over it...?
Last summer...you can see the Blackeyed Susans are taking over...

I won a Bluebird box --currently being used by a House Wren. Not super attractive, but the birds don't mind.

Here is what the garden looks like now...with a reluctant Newton sitting next to it for scale.


The Japanese Asters are always first to bloom and will bloom all season, a really nice white filler in any garden.

Way in the back, against the house there are some Elephant Ears that could stand some attention... along with a myriad of weeds. I am only showing you this for educational purposes... not an area one wants people to see.......
but here you go--
lots of weeds with tiny Elephant Ears.
You may ask why there are so many weeds allowed back there?
Once the garden starts growing in April I do not go in there............

Viva the laissez faire approach!! Does anyone see the snake????