Sunday, August 14, 2011

August Garden Photos

The Chinese Snowball Viburnum (Viburnum macrocephalem) doesn't seem to know that it is a spring bloomer, and seems to produce a new giant flower head every day.
Confederate Rose (Hibiscus mutabilis) dies back to the ground every year, and then grows at a maniacal rate to reach at least 8 feet, and will soon be covered with frilly pink and white blooms.  It's one of those old-fashioned plants that you'll see driving through the countryside near old home sites. 
Aren't figs just the most seductive of fruits?  I really believe it was a fig that Adam and Eve couldn't resist..... look at that nectar just dripping out of the fruit!
One can barely see the front entrance of the Big House through the Limelight Hydrangeas and Begonias!  (For those who are interested, this is "Babywing," which puts up with crazy hot Western sun, and the foliage doesn't go red.)  The Elephant Ear in the containers took off this year (after two years of being really whimpy).  It is Colocasia esculenta "Elena," and Tony Avent says it's winter hardy as far north as Zone 7B.  I'm going to plant one in the ground at the end of the season, and will let you know in the spring. 
Begonia grandis "Heron's Pirouette" is a real winner in the shade garden.  In it's first year, six plants are now covering an area 4 feet by 6 feet.

The koi ponds look especially good once the tropical foliage plants start to fill in around them. 

5 comments:

  1. I picked up a Snowball Viburnum and keep it in a pot until fall planting. It is in a part of the yard that I often neglect to water. It has survived just fine, and like yours it is budding up. I will not remind the plant that it is a spring bloomer.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ah those figs look sumptuous! The pot displays at the entrance are magnificent.

    Bertie

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've found them to flower both in spring and late summer-fall. Flat heads in the fall.....

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your garden looks fantastic! I guess its not really your garden, but the maintenance practices have been very influential.

    ReplyDelete