new england asters

garden quote

"... one of those perfectly typical English gardens, tangled and overgrown with flowers and vegetables."

Grace: A Memoir, Grace Coddington

pepper plants

Very happy Joe's Round and, bottom picture, hinkelhatz, have managed to do something after their unpropitious beginnings. 

new strawberry beds: late summer

We've come a long way since the bleak look of bare ground when I planted 25 strawberry plants in each bed this spring. Immediately below are the EarlyGlo strawberries and the bottom picture shows the Honeoye plants I got from Stark Brothers.

escape of the strawberry plants

It hurts me to pull strawberry plants,which is why I've let these runners establish themselves so thoroughly outside their bed. But today is the day of new rules and the enforcement of boundaries, so I'm weeding out the runners and taking back my pathways.

benary giant zinnias

Always a joy and worth the effort to grow from seed...Get two packets next year. The hummingbirds and butterflies love them.

elecampane

Not wowed by my elecampane this year - no blooms??? But then I didn't care once I noticed a tree frog (center) sitting contentedly on a leaf. Bless him.

new england asters

another surprise that arrived a few years ago....

I'd tried growing them from seed, seemed to have no results and a few years later, here they were. 

Sunflowers

from my sunflower mix seed packet - these are pretty all right:)

Don't fall for it

Never again with the morning glories... they are swarming confidently everywhere. So, even though I will see their seedlings next spring and think, "Awww, look at that little guy. Thanks for gifting me with your presence," I must root them out anyway. 

new boundaries for next year....

So... Rain garden bed is a cacophony of  nonsense....

So... new rules. Joe Pye Weed, ox-eye sunflower, big blue stem, purple coneflower and black-eyed susan are staples. Edges are structured by sedum and ornamental onion. Do I like yarrow??? Not in late summer, that's for sure... Do we wish I took photos that actually showed anything? Sometimes. Do we let my beloved anise hyssop pop up wherever it listeth?? Probably. How bout marguerite kelways. Probably - it's the only early summer event in that bed.

Back fence bed is a disappointment everywhere it isn't a blank... So: new rules;;; add purple coneflower and black-eyed susan to the back bad. See how they mingle with phlox.... Could be delicious. But quit with the rhubarb.

 The bees and butterflies are happy, even if I'm not.

Big Blue Stem??

Grew this from seed a few years ago, to no avail, or so I thought. Now here's this sky high bad boy. I hope more grow:)