Some August Blooms

Even in the crazy heat of summer, there are some really beautiful blossoms to be found.

And it would hardly be a Georgia garden without a peach.....but check out the size of that Moon Vine bud! The vine is climbing up the tree, and I didn't have the heart to pull it out.

Tomatoes and Marigolds

This is a photo of one of the vegetable beds at the big house. Nothing special, just a picture I thought was pretty.

I was flipping through Pamela Harper's book "Color Echoes" this afternoon, and this combination of multiple types of tomatoes, marigolds, and sunflowers seems a great play of oranges and yellows. I like the look of flowers and vegetables planted together, and the fact that they're all edibles makes it that much better.

Some Photos of the Stepchild Garden

Here is a photo of the arbor that Chuck built in June, which is finally starting to look at little more "settled in." The New Dawn Rose had to be seriously whacked back when I removed the old arbor, but it doesn't seem to be any worse for the wear! I trim this back at least once every ten days and it always looks like Medusa, waiting for unsuspecting pedestrians. The great part is that all of those tentacles are covered with hundreds of pink blooms in May, in time for the tour! The Moon Vine is racing up to the top of the arbor, and just starting showing off some blooms last week.

The top shot is the sylphium I mentioned last week. It's the perennial that everyone mistakes for a small tree. To give you an idea, the sad looking dark-leaved canna in front of it is about 3 feet tall. It puts on this much height every summer, and still manages to throw off at least twenty "babies" each season.

The seond one is showing some of the perennials that are strutting their stuff this week. The "Hot Lips" salvia is light and whispy, but holds it own with the rudbeckia and "Victoria Blue" annual salvia. That Teddy Bear Magnolia just went in last year, and will ultimately shade out the perennials, but such is the nature of long term gardening....

PS Try as I might, I never manage to pick up the hoses before the photos are taken....

Worker Bees

Here's a shot of a bee who was not amused by the photographer being in his face! This other shot is another "busy bee" trimming all of the brown edges of the mondo. As tedious a job as it can be, the end result is pretty great! (Thanks, Bill......)

August in Georgia is Not for The Faint of Heart

According to the television news anchors, this isn't officially the "Dog Days of Summer," but you couldn't tell that by the weight of the air as I walked around the garden. Some of the more delicate plants have retired until the cooler weather of September, but there are a few hardy plant souls out there that are just loving this heat!

From the top: The liriope earns its keep in August with those great purple spikes; "Honeycomb" Buddleia; Paniculata Hydrangeas; Crocosmia, and the Turtleheads that are just starting to break into bloom.

Angels Trumpets and the Full Moon

I read somewhere recently that Brugmansia (Angels Trumpet) blooms most heavily at the time of the summer full moons, so I've been patiently waiting. I am definitely now a believer, based upon what Brugmansia "Betty Marshall" is doing! Between the August heat and humidity, the fragrance is enough to knock you over! (Patti thinks we need to inject the fragrance into soap.....)

Even the Encore Azaleas are doing their thing for the Lady in the Moon!

Chuck took over 300 photos this morning, so more will be posted tomorrow. If you click on the photos above, they will appear in their full original size. This combination of two containers that includes the brugmansia is a pair that I think turned out really well this season.

Wouldn't you love to be able to do this?

Each of us probably has one particular plant which generates lots of "What is that?" sort of questions. In my own garden, it is the Sylphium, which is blooming it's heart out at the moment. It looks like a bright yellow daisy on steroids, since it is a solid eight feet tall and about five feet across. Most often I'm asked, "What is that bush?" and the person is always surprised to discover it's an herbaceous perennial that disappears every winter.

One of my suppliers was getting a gazillion questions about the shrubs at their entrance. I thought their means of response was quite clever!