It’s been while since I showed larger scale pictures of the garden. Mostly because it was such a mess over the summer. Today I’ll share a few photos of the various garden areas. The resiliency of plants is simply amazing. With neglect, wet weather, dry weather, hot weather, and lack of time my plants seem to be doing fine!
The Front Garden Walkway
Right now in the front garden along the sidewalk you will see mums becoming the center of attention. The red mums to the right have been in the ground for several years and have gotten quite large. I didn’t cut them back even once this year and their timing seems to be just perfect. The mums on the left side of the sidewalk are the ‘Clara Curtis’ mums I mentioned in an earlier post. The ‘Autumn Joy’ sedum is going to seed while the gaillardia is still producing blooms.
The Surprise Garden!
In Saturday’s post I told you about my surprise garden. Essentially the spring garden cleanup resulted in the germination of the seed the spring garden produced. It’ snot a bad problem to have but it does make mowing around it a little difficult. Cilantro, arugula and lettuce can all be found in this garden patch.
The Herb Garden
My herb garden is located just off one side of our patio. Oregano stretches itself onto the edge of the patio but you will also find lemon balm, stevia, and catmint here. On the opposite side is thyme, lemon basil, and one of my favorites, sage.
The Birdbath Garden
It’s still without a birdbath at the moment but the birdbath garden is putting on a good show. The ‘Sheffield Pink’ mums are in front of this picture with salvia, red twig dogwood, catmint, and a butterfly bush all nearby.
The Lawn Garden
OK it’s not really a garden but it is a part of the gardens. It connects them all together through a sea of green and is a void of space that allows the gardens to stand out. The trees in the back are well on their way to fall color. The lawn looks pretty good now that some of the oversown seed has emerged. It’s not perfect but I’m not looking for the perfect lawn, just one that does what I need and provide a great place for the kids to play! I don’t use pesticides or herbicides on the lawn.
The Shed
Back by the shed the gardens have filled in fairly thick. It’s time to move a few plants to other locations. I’m looking forward to seeing the two crape myrtles on either side of the pathway grow into larger trees to flank the path. Also flanking the pathway are two ‘Shenandoah’ switchgrasses. The one on the right is significantly larger even though both were planted at the same time and were in the same size pot. The difference is the light. The one on the right gets a couple more hours of sunlight than the other. A few hours makes a huge difference. I was trying to be symmetrical but one of the problems with symmetry is that it can be hard to get both specimens to match for a variety of reasons. In this case they grew at different rates.
The Trees
The trees are well on their way to being naked. While the cooler weather will be welcome for a little while I’m going to miss the growing season. Spring will come along eventually and we’ll get the opportunity to try new things in the garden. For now though we’ll just have to live in the moment and enjoy the colors as they turn.
Join the 2011 Fall Color Project and share the brilliance of Autumn!
I smiled at the thought of a Birdbath Garden with no birdbath. That would fit with our style of landscaping… we have a master plan and have developed areas as budget/time permits. For years we had a patio garden with no patio. I jumped for joy when the patio was finally built. Here's my tip for a beautiful lawn: never bag the cut grass… use a mulching lawn mower instead. It makes a huge difference. Our grass is always lush and beautiful and so fun to walk on barefooted.
Everything is getting really big Dave. Looking good!