With most of Friday and Saturday taken up by pesto-making and helping at a yard sale, I finally made some time Sunday to sit down and write my GBBD post. Be sure to check out May Dreams Gardens for Carol's August Bloom Day post and those of other bloggers. I wasn't quite as thorough this month as I usually am (I can hear your sighs of relief) but here's a good sampling of the few things blooming this month in my garden.
It's a bit early this year, but the Calluna vulgaris are in peak bloom now and are the most floriferous feature in my garden at the moment. There would be even more if I hadn't moved a dozen or so in the spring right before that first heat wave. Talk about bad timing. They're almost all completely crispy, but there are plenty I didn't move.
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I often say I don't like pink, and while I would prefer a different color, I have to admit the lavender-pink color of many of the heather blooms is nice, and it works, even (to my eye) with the orange heathers. Variegated purple moor grass and 'Kent Beauty' oregano play accompaniment in this photo.
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Still, I love my one white-flowered heather, if only because it was a volunteer and it's different from all the others.
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I don't remember the orange heathers blooming this much before. They must like this hot summer. Below, one of the orange heathers is covered in tiny pink blooms, while a Salvia x nemorosa 'East Friesland' is sending forth a second round of blooms.
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The Mimulus cardinalis in the paperbark maple bed are still going strong. I haven't watered these all summer. The soil brought in to form this bed is just full of uranium or something. The other scarlet monkey flowers are taking a break now, though they are gearing up for another round after I watered them.
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Iris domestica 'Gone With the Wind' continues to pump out yellow flowers that almost match the yellow of Cistus 'Mickie' in the background. Oops, mixing my GBBD post with Foliage Follow-up.
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My yellow Kniphofia seedling continues to bloom, while the oranges all seem to be done for the year.
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Echinacea purpurea, represented below by 'Magnus' continue to be magnets for bees and butterflies, though the number of fading blooms is starting to outnumber the fresh ones.
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Rudbeckia fulgida is a powerhouse of blinding yellow. Almost too bright to photograph in the middle of the day, the glowing flowers are visible long into the evening. I need to figure out where to put the darn things, though. I don't want them in the driveway island, where they currently grow. I've been thinking of taking out a strip of turf along the dry creekbed on the far side from the house and planting some of the excess Carex comans there. Perhaps a few bunches of rudbeckia will find there way over there, too.
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Lobelia cardinalis 'Queen Victoria' is coming into bloom. She's been rather droopy in the heat, so I finally gave her some water and she's perking back up.
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Aster x frikartii 'Monch' is starting its long season of bloom, contrasting nicely here with the dark Japanese maple leaves in the background.
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In the greenhouse, little Abutilon 'Hot Pepper' is producing one bloom after another. No, literally. It's just a little thing yet, and it only has one flower at a time.
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While I grow Fuchsia 'Autumnale' primarily for the foliage, I do enjoy the simple, classic blooms of this fuchsia. I'm so happy to have this plant again. This time, it will be wintering in the greenhouse rather than the uninsulated garage.
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And I'll round out this Bloom Day with Streptocarpus 'Waterbug' blooming happily indoors. Poor thing was wilting in the greenhouse. Streps don't like heat. I can sympathize.
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It's a bit early this year, but the Calluna vulgaris are in peak bloom now and are the most floriferous feature in my garden at the moment. There would be even more if I hadn't moved a dozen or so in the spring right before that first heat wave. Talk about bad timing. They're almost all completely crispy, but there are plenty I didn't move.
I often say I don't like pink, and while I would prefer a different color, I have to admit the lavender-pink color of many of the heather blooms is nice, and it works, even (to my eye) with the orange heathers. Variegated purple moor grass and 'Kent Beauty' oregano play accompaniment in this photo.
Still, I love my one white-flowered heather, if only because it was a volunteer and it's different from all the others.
I don't remember the orange heathers blooming this much before. They must like this hot summer. Below, one of the orange heathers is covered in tiny pink blooms, while a Salvia x nemorosa 'East Friesland' is sending forth a second round of blooms.
The Mimulus cardinalis in the paperbark maple bed are still going strong. I haven't watered these all summer. The soil brought in to form this bed is just full of uranium or something. The other scarlet monkey flowers are taking a break now, though they are gearing up for another round after I watered them.
Iris domestica 'Gone With the Wind' continues to pump out yellow flowers that almost match the yellow of Cistus 'Mickie' in the background. Oops, mixing my GBBD post with Foliage Follow-up.
My yellow Kniphofia seedling continues to bloom, while the oranges all seem to be done for the year.
Echinacea purpurea, represented below by 'Magnus' continue to be magnets for bees and butterflies, though the number of fading blooms is starting to outnumber the fresh ones.
Rudbeckia fulgida is a powerhouse of blinding yellow. Almost too bright to photograph in the middle of the day, the glowing flowers are visible long into the evening. I need to figure out where to put the darn things, though. I don't want them in the driveway island, where they currently grow. I've been thinking of taking out a strip of turf along the dry creekbed on the far side from the house and planting some of the excess Carex comans there. Perhaps a few bunches of rudbeckia will find there way over there, too.
Lobelia cardinalis 'Queen Victoria' is coming into bloom. She's been rather droopy in the heat, so I finally gave her some water and she's perking back up.
Aster x frikartii 'Monch' is starting its long season of bloom, contrasting nicely here with the dark Japanese maple leaves in the background.
In the greenhouse, little Abutilon 'Hot Pepper' is producing one bloom after another. No, literally. It's just a little thing yet, and it only has one flower at a time.
While I grow Fuchsia 'Autumnale' primarily for the foliage, I do enjoy the simple, classic blooms of this fuchsia. I'm so happy to have this plant again. This time, it will be wintering in the greenhouse rather than the uninsulated garage.
And I'll round out this Bloom Day with Streptocarpus 'Waterbug' blooming happily indoors. Poor thing was wilting in the greenhouse. Streps don't like heat. I can sympathize.
