Day In The Life Of My Garden- June 16, 2009

I know, I know ... it is already June 20th and I am posting pictures from the 16th. These poppies are pretty much gone by now but every morning this week I would look out the back window, through the rain, and look at them.

I came to the conclusion that orange is not much of a team player. It just doesn't go with anything and it is an awfully insistent color- Look at me! Look at me!

I do think the Husker Red Penstemon foliage manages to lend it a little elegance by toning down the whole display. There is also a dark purple lupine growing behind. (Oh yeah- I TOTALLY planned that!) I also just ignore the fact that the poppies are too loud and just love them for what they are.

Looking up the length of the garden is lovely right now. The Baths Pink Dianthus and Veronica are lovely and the Coronation Yarrow will be pulling up right behind it- probably by the end of June.

With all the rain my Tim Rowan platter has been chock-a-block full. It is Henry's favorite watering station. I am not sure why. His bowl is always full in the house but he will go out for a spin around the yard and absolutely have to stop for a sip from this particular location. The platter looks good with the Snow In Summer in full swing.... creates a softness to counter the hard lines.

And an artsy fartsy photo of me in my new reflecting ball. I bought the silver globe at a yard sale for $1. This pedestal previously had a clear yellow lamp fixture globe.

This is my tongue in cheek approach to garden ornamentation. As a child I always loved these globes. Their beautiful colors (pink! blue! purple!) were so enticing. I associated them with wealth & taste- funny concepts for such a young girl, but being a Capricorn I am all about social climbing. And what better way to scale the social ladder than with tacky lawn ornaments? (Read about LYC's recent brush with garden ornaments here.)

This particular one was purchased 13 years ago at what my husband thought was a yard sale, but was really some one's zealously decorated yard. The owner finally parted with it for $25 claiming it was hand carved granite. The money was worth the right to retell the tale of our cement pedestal with affixed electrical fixture.

Like my poppies need any more tarting up......

Day in the Life of My Garden- June 15, 2009

I returned to my gardens today to find them waterlogged and over run with weeds. It seems like it has been raining non-stop for two weeks ... which is only a slight exaggeration.

The big news in the garden is that the hole for the foundation of the windmill has been dug. It will be situated in our orchard for relative geographical proximity to all of our kitchen appliances which will want what it is making.

As you can see the trench to the house has been started and it is aimed towards my silver brocade artemesia- precipitating a vacation to the east for it for a few days while the electrical lines are put in- then right back to its previously scheduled growing program. I think it can handle it, but I will have words with the electrician about coming anywhere near my
monster Baptisia- the envy of many a gardening friend.

This a picture of the boyfriend who supervised and did quite a bit of the finish digging. It took him away from the important task of getting plantlings into the ground, but also took his mind off the most recent infestation of Rose Chafer Beetles.

Despite the sogginess and weediness there is also a certain loveliness to a very green, lush garden. A side benefit being that the coolness has extended the lifespan of my peonies & poppies. Pictured here is my Lady's Mantle- incomparable in bouquets and for the way water forms the most perfect little droplets on their leaves.

This is an unidentified Veronica that I inherited. It might be Crater Lake Blue. The color is stunning. I have it next to Lamb's Ear and Bath's Pinks.

Here is my Scarlet O'Hara Peony- a lovely single with a broad yellow center. This beautiful plant has made a few moves with me... graciously I might add. She tends to fade a little if it is too sunny while she blooms.

And finally a shot of the Diablo Ninebark I bought two years ago... with my Seashell Peony. I hate to trim the Ninebark's graceful arches so I think I will be forced to move the peony. The colors are great but the forms are competing.