I got the last of the pansies planted. They will bloom until Thanksgiving and then come back in April. One year they bloomed in January, thanks to a snow cover in December.
We were in Kansas City two weekends ago and found a wonderful greenhouse on out way out of town. You should have a favorite greenhouse in every major city in driving distance of your house.
So we got these pansies and a blue Rose a Sharon which we had been looking for without success in Iowa City.
And we found a zone 5 crepe myrtle. (I think it also can be spelled crape) We had seen several blooming at a friends house earlier that weekend so we knew they did well in Kansas City, which I guess is the same zone 5 we are. Well we are 25 miles away from zone 4 but the zones were done before global warming anyway. For those of you who do not know crepe myrtle they bloom in the south and more importantly bloom in August. They are sort of a combination of lilacs and crab apple trees. They come in a variety of colors- from red to white to purple. I guess you know the bottom line. We brought the crepe myrtle at the nursery and I planted it yesterday.
There are things to move around. I have been moving some of the more interesting Siberian iris down to the area where the castor beans have been this summer.
There are areas to clean up. It is not just the continuous leaves to rake up. There are also the beds to clean. I cut back the perennials, all the better to weed the areas. I will then top dress the areas with composted manure.
Then of course there are more plants to order. I will discuss bulbs at another time entirely.
So what is blooming?
This is a turtle head. Maybe you can see it.
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This is another toad lily. I do think that many toad lilies are in my future. I just ordered some more.
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Here are some pansies that will adorn the wall shelf for the next two months. It is not enough to garden for October. You should think about November.
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The castor beans have been a success this year. Here is a new leaf.
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The calla lilies continue. Sometimes the contrast between the bloom and the leaves is good.
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This is a type of corydalis lutea. It blooms throughout the year, but particularly in the spring and fall.
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Then there are astors. Some tend to flop around which is not what I want in my garden. I just don’t have time to stake things. This astor is reasonably compact. You can’t beat the color.
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Here is a picture of the family house in Chincoteague Virginia with the crepe myrtle blooming in the back yard.
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2 comments:
Hi, Mears people!
I was pleased to see the shot of the turtleheads. Only 2 weeks ago Stewart and I were taking a walk when we spied a cluster of what turned out to be white turtleheads growing in our wetlands! In our 10 years of living up here in NW Connecticut, we've diligently cataloged the wildflowers on our land but we've never before seen turtleheads. The blooms really do look for all the world like turtles shyly extending their heads. You should know that you've inspired me to order toad lilies and they should be arriving in the mail any day now. If I can't have my favorite reptile (turtle) or amphibian (toad) as a pet, I can at least have its namesake in a flower!
We love the blog. Keep it up! Cheers, Pat O'Conner (& Stewart Kellerman)
Pat. We were once at a nursery in Minnesota this time of year. They were selling dwarf turtleheads. If there was ever a name to attract a person that was it. I have been on the lookout for that flower ever since.
Philip
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