Welcome

Nothing says welcome like color in the front garden.   There is a fine line when using perennials in the front of your home, so easy to lapse into messy and floppy.  Staking, deadheading, cutting down and general tidiness are important tasks during the growing season, whoever said perennials are carefree?

Amaranthus green and Love Lies Bleeding are in the raised bed on the south side.  They seem to like the heat and add a little interest as one walks the path.  I will begin cutting them soon for arrangements.

Heliopsis Sweet Lorraine is also along the south side.  It is about two feet tall and blooms all summer, love the variegated leaf!

Zahara Zinnias are doing very well in the hot south side border.

Two borders intersect with Limelight Hydrangea as the anchor.

Becky has center stage right now but soon Limelight will take over.

Miss Amelia Daylily

This is a rebloomer if you cut the stems to the ground.  I do not shear this one back until later because of the reblooming.  Orienpet lilies bloom in the background.

Starlight Let's Dance Hydrangeas along the walkway

Southern Comfort, Pistache, Mocha and Villosa Purpurea flourish under the Chanticleer Pear.

Ninebark Summer Wine with Silver Tidal Wave Petunia

It looks like I have an apparition in some of the photos.  Let's hope it is just a smudged lens!

Well, I have cleaned off my lens and am headed towards the back garden again just to catch up with a border I missed and some changes since the last border post.  On the way back on the north side I see another border that is often not appreciated for its beauty.

Astilbe Sprite was brought from my last home, very delicate color and doesn't seem to multiply for me in this location.

Astilbe Chinesis Visions

The veggie garden is a raised bed border along the back driveway with daylilies at one end, Vera Jameson Sedum and Nasturtiums.

Even the eggplant puts on a beautiful show with its secret lavender flowers.

I have a bountiful harvest of peppers this year.  I had better get busy picking and making hot peppers, onion, tomato and herbs in olive oil.

The nasturtium seeds were from last  year but they all germinated and add some color to a vegetable garden.

Believe it or not, this is my Bronze Sweet Potato Vine in my concrete planters by the garage,  I have never seen this vine bloom before!

The island border in the back garden has popped with lilies and phlox, Orienpet Lavon and Bubblegum Phlox.

Bubblegum Phlox

This was an expensive phlox last year and I even wondered this spring if it was going to come back.  Wow, it was certainly worth it, looks like a three year old specimen!