Annuals

Finally, some of the annuals I planted in late May are beginning to look good! Not sure why they took so long.....Summer is almost over!

New Rose

I have a confession - I can't seem to grow a Winnepeg Parks shrub rose!  In my old neighborhood, someone had one that was about three to four feet tall and always full of blooms. Mine always looked like it was on its last leg.... That didn't stop me from putting two front and center in my current rose garden. (What was I thinking???)  Once again, they struggled.  So I gave up - dug them up and replaced them with these Music Box roses.  They are Easy Elegance roses and are guaranteed for two years.  The plants look nice and healthy.  The roses are a bit smaller than what I thought they would be, but I love the color!  Hope they do well. 

Lilies & phlox from the garden

Aster Yellows Disease

I had to remove this huge coneflower plant because it had developed aster yellows disease.  See the center of the coneflower and how it has tufts of green where the brown seeds normally are?  That is one of the symptoms of the disease.  Unfortunately, the entire plant has to be destroyed.  I found a couple of additional smaller plants that were also affected.

One of the things I love about coneflowers is that they attract goldfinches, especially in the fall.  I don't cut them back before winter so the birds can feast on the seeds. 

Swirling waters day lily

I love these Swirling Water daylilies - the flowers are huge and such a pretty combination of purple and yellow.  I planted a Stella D'Oro in front, thinking the yellow would serve as a nice accent, but she is done blooming.  Add to my list of plants to look for - a different yellow daylily that blooms closer to mid-season. 

Oh, and the shrubs around these daylilies are Twist and Shout hydrangeas.  Not a flower (or even a bud) on one of the three plants - how disappointing!

Tiger eye sumac

One thing about sumacs is they spread!  I don't want them taking over the front border, so the new sprouts will be removed.  It is best to cut the root that joins the baby plants to the mother a few weeks or longer before moving them.  Since it has been so hot, I won't be moving these until fall. 

Container

Fell in love with this twisty trellis at the garden center! You can't see them in this picture, but it has little birds perched on the branches.  I planted an annual vine in the middle and added some daisies and petunias.  And a little stone bird as an accent in the front.