GBBD -- August 2012

I haven't been doing much posting this month. I've been wallowing in a case of the summer doldrums. Feeling like there is nothing interesting to show, nothing new appearing in the garden (except for ugliness, got plenty of that), and nothing interesting to say.

Well, maybe it's time to snap out of it! So, here are some pictures of my current beauties. I'll leave the ugliness for another post.

The Stargazer lilies have started flowering.

They look surprisingly good with this species Rudbeckia.

I don't know for certain what this cute little lily is, it's flowering profusely, but the blooms are really small. It must be shorter than I originally thought it would be, because it's hidden behind a big clump of Pennisetum. Black Beauty, maybe?

I showed some Dahlias and dayilies in July, and they continue to bloom, but are looking a bit ragged. Here are some new ones.

I call this 'Harlequin' because that was the name of the original that I took seeds from. This is its offspring, and is a bit different, but similar enough.

I have a file drawer somewhere full of plant tags. Some day maybe I'll sort through them. But not today. That's a winter chore, right?

Dahlia

Daylily

Daylily

Daylily

My coneflowers have finally started flowering. I'm going to save seeds from them this year. Now that I took out two trees, I'm going to have a large sunny area to plant.

This Echinacea 'After Midnight,' is a short coneflower with dark stems and darker than usual flowers.

The petals on 'After Midnight' recurve much like a species Echinacea.

I can't find a name for this one, but it has a pretty flower form. I'm going to try saving seeds from it. I think I actually started this from seed a few years ago.

This Gaillardia looks good with blue oat grass.

Rudbeckia 'Cherry Brandy' has a lot of variation in color from one plant to the next.

Rudbeckia fulgida has dainty little flowers.

Belamcanda chinensis/Blackberry lily, my only one. I'd like more, so I'll be saving seeds from it this year. You can see seedpods forming under the old, twisty flowers. They'll eventually break open to show a cluster of blackberry-like seeds

Despite being ravaged over and over by raccoons this summer, the plantings in my waterfall are thriving, and the canna has started flowering. Looking a bit ragged, though.

Morning sunlight actually seems to tone down the "in-your-face" red of Lobelia cardinalis.

Purple Angelica is looking good.

The blue Lobelia siphilitica has started flowering.

Blue is usually more of a spring color, but I have a few other blue flowers now.

'Rozanne' of course, keeps going and going.

This Caryopteris is a new plant in the gravel garden (still without gravel).

Russian sage is pumping out some airy flowers too.

Abelia grandiflora is flowering, and smells really good.

Clethra alnifolia has sweet-smelling flowers too, thus its common name summersweet.

Begonia grandis, a type of hardy Begonia that should withstand our Zone 7 (or is it 8?) winter, planted mostly for its leaves, is putting out flowers.

I have one Clematis flower, a very light lavender-pink.

The hummingbirds love my three patches of magenta Monarda. I don't remember the name of this, but it's doing much better than my bright red 'Jacob Cline.' I think I'll divide it and spread it into the front garden.

I've seen a hummer checking out this succulent flower.

It's part of this little group on my front porch.

Although technically it doesn't contain any flowers, this succulent dish is one of the best-looking pots in my garden.

It's set on top of the gabion tower in the gravel garden.

Well, that's it for now. You can see lots of other flowers from all around the world on Carol Michel's blog May Dreams Gardens. She hosts Garden Bloggers Bloom Day on the fifteenth of every month. Go there and check them out.

And now, I have some housework to do, before it gets hot this afternoon.