all beautyberry

I've been all about the beautyberry yesterday and today. So here's a ton of pictures! Vivid color is beading the graceful drooping stems; of course I went out to take pictures.

I really like how it's growing over the fence on this side.

On the other side- facing the large sideyard, the drooping stems were dragging on the ground. I propped some up from underneath with sticks.

It was kind of smothering and crushing spiderwort here on the other side-

And then I was shoving leaf mulch underneath, and found all these straight stems growing up just under the skirt edge of the branches- the main clump of stems is way further back by the fence. These forward stems were there last year but I wasn't sure if more beautyberry or some other volunteer. Now I compared the foliage closely- it must be more beautyberries grown from dropped berries.

I was thrilled to dig up/pull out seven substantial young plants-

plus four tiny ones which I stuck in pots.

I promptly planted two on the other side of the holly, and two more further up the slope, flanking the euonymus (where I yanked out a ton of yellow salvia- that plant is going rampant everywhere I put it years ago!) - not pictured- and then another two here on the lower end of the bed alongside the back lawn. It's behind the second rue, between pannicle hydrangea (bare stems where the deer have been eating it!) and false indigo- and the pale artemesia behind. The beautyberry will fill all this space, so I'm going to have to move most of these smaller plants- but I don't mind at all.

The last one I put between a bunch of stuff- there's the other hydrangea on the left, patch of turtlehead on the right, 'autumn joy' sedums in front. And a hosta kind of buried in there too. My plan is to dig up and move the sedums and half the turtlehead patch in spring, to give this beautyberry room to grow. But for now I've just left it tucked in there.

Here's that space from a wider view. Most of that turtlehead clump I'll be shifting over to the right.

some flowers

It wasn't as hot today, so I actually got some work done in the yard. The nicest surprise was finding this lily in a corner by the driveway- I thought that plant was long dead (photo from yesterday after rain)

I mowed, pulled crabgrass and other weeds around the garden and milkweed patch. Still no sign of monarchs. But I did see a swallowtail on the turtleheads which are finally blooming, 

and not so poorly as I expected- and a hummingbird buzzed close by!

I found quite a few swallowtail caterpillars on the dill that self-seeded all over bed 4

Here's a younger instar and an older one together-

The blue sage is outdoing itself with color still- and I'm glad to see a younger clump of the same plant nearby. Going to mulch them and clear out the space between to sow with more seed.

Sad that my rhubarb suffered in the recent heat- it's almost completely disappeared just one leaf left

heat wave

End of summer, beginning of fall, leaves starting to change colors- and we're suddenly getting a hundred and one temps at the height of the day. I take a walk after dark because it's so hot. My yard is parched- the grass yellow and brown, the younger hydrangeas severely wilted, the little maple hybrid on the sideyard leaves turning crispy. I water what I'm able to, with fishwater from the tank cleaning, and dishwater from the kitchen. Still prefer to recycle that, rather than turn on the hose. Red-hot poker is getting priority treatment- I deadheaded and it sprouted a new flower stalk!- plus all the potted plants. Most of the rest is just left to survive if it can. 

Some things are doing great in the heat- sedums in the front yard, celosia around the mailbox, canna lilies (still no flowers though) and the cardinal climber has begun to bloom all over the place- 

so I get glimpses of the hummingbird more often, and have to go out trim off the reaching vine tendrils every other day, or it will take over. 

And here my sad (empty) garden has given me a nice surprise: that vine was a butternut squash!

I wasn't absolutely sure until I cut it open: yes.

Roasted it with some brussels sprouts for dinner- and it tasted good. There's two, I'm saving the other for a later day. Still baffled how it grew in my garden- my best guess is still that a squirrel put the seed there. I sure didn't plant it. Rabbit or deer has eaten all the leaves off by now- and even chomped on my 'kiwi fern' coleus nearby! but it doesn't matter, I got my squash.

They (deer) had also mostly chomped the flower buds off my turtlehead and the gladiolas on the larger sideyard- I never saw them eat glads buds until this year. But now I do have some turtlehead blooming, from further back in the patch against the fence, on one side of the yard. Where I guess the deer don't bother to reach. So there's that. 

I might get a picture, but it's too hot to bother going outside again now.

days of grey

and drizzle, perfect for planting out the new stuff. I got all of them in the ground except the new england aster, and the solidago rugosa (below) which I gave away, as I realized it's in the goldenrod family and makes sprays of yellow flowers. Just not my favorite flower color.

Near the top of the second sideyard hill, where I'm trying to establish groups of flowering plants, I put the little brown-eyed susan on the side, uphill from the new daylilies.

Further downslope, the Liatris spicata.

Opposide side of those, flanking the gladiola bed, some obdient plants. I put a few near the garden in the backyard, too. Some of these not sure if I've spaced them out enough . . . 

Here's the top of that sideyard hill. I'm very pleased with the clary sage, it really stands out when nothing else is really blooming yet. That's older daylilies to the left of the pink clary, and turtlehead filling in between and behind. In front of them are the lyreleaf sage (shorter plants) and a bunch of volunteer violets. I also put in two or three coreopsis, but the foliage is so fine, can't hardly see them.

Here's a closeup of other coreopsis I planted on the first sideyard, near the steps.

In the back near the camellia, I put the late thoroughwort, or boneset.

These are the lady ferns, in where took out the small-leaved holly.

While doing all this, I found a small baby stinkin' hellebore on the second sideyard! It's probably too sunny for it there now, so I dug it up and moved to grow behind the lady ferns above. 

Also dug some sensitive ferns where they were encroaching on the walking space. Yanked out grass that always grows tall in this gap between the basketball hoop and the little patio, that I always have to cut by hand. Put them there. I think ferns will look nicer.

There's more pics and things to say, but another time.

end summer blooms

Last week with the cold, hummingbird quit coming to visit. The cardinal climber flowers lingered a bit longer.

Sharing space on balcony railing with cowpea vines again

Around the mailbox I've started trimming off the heavy heads of celosia, I'm sure there's already an overload of seed on the ground there. They were pretty good this year!

Joe Pye I also cut down before it could scatter too much seed.

Sedums are starting to look their best

Rear side bed is pretty messy, but turtlehead still makes some color

My black-and-blue salvia did well again this year,

but the lilac next to it appears to be dying. One half has no leaves. Overshaded by the neighbor's tree? Crowded out by the salvia? I'm not sure. Maybe it's just sick or attacked by some insect pest.

Cranesbill is starting to falter in the cold, less flowers now- but it was great just a few weeks ago:

Not sure how the mums will do, I didn't pinch them more than once this year so maybe they will flop over. But lots of buds right now!

And there's not nearly as much of this blue sage as I would like- the color is so stunning when everything else is beginning to go drab.

yard plants- in flower

I walk across the yard just to look at the 'little kim' hibiscus. It's like pale blushing crepe paper.

The other one has bolder color, not as pretty form (and this one particular flower is a bit ragged).

My sedums are lovely too, in a different way- these on the smaller sideyard are quite green still

while those further down the slope flanking the hydrangea have more bluish leaves, and reddish stems. Not sure if it's just from the difference in sun exposure, or are they different varieties. (The green ones I bought from the nursery, the reddish/blue were a gift from my mother-in-law).

First turtlehead bloom!

Joe pye weed going crazy with flowers, but the midnight salvia I moved (just in front of the stump) looks dead.

things happening among the plants

My 'Lavendar Magic' african violet bloomed and it is so pretty.

The runners on my plain spider plant have tiny babies now, and another one is sprouting. 

The 'wandering dude' plant (haha) is growing upwards against the window- I am wondering at what point the stems will become too heavy for themselves and fall over to make the trailing habit. 

Outside I thought the sweet peas were done since I left some pods to go to seed, but there's another round of flowers blooming. 

Zucchini and the others in the melon bed are getting big fast, so I hope I actually have a decent amount this year.

The unknown plant in my garden is getting huge- it's up to my hip now. And cardinal climber behind it have wound all the way up the trellis, so lovely, but I still haven't seen a hummingbird visit.

Some of the rumex I moved look shabby, but others are growing new leaves!

Monarda and echinacea are blooming-

Cicada noise is diminishing, and though the oaks and maples have lots of "flagging" with dried leaf bunches hanging down, all my smaller shrubs seem okay- even the youngest rose of sharon

and the two-year-old ones- have taken no harm.

Summersweet-

Bay laurel-

Oakleaf hydrangea- all okay!

Daylilies are blooming on the top of one sideyward by the driveway,

and on the opposite side, turtleheads are making a nice thicket,

and gladiolas coming up strong- though I do need to go out and pull some weeds