Garden Ideas for September Color

September Colors That Pop

"I've been looking at so much dirt and mud I forgot to look at why I garden in the first place ... pretty flowers in bloom!"




The variegated liriope is sending up lovely purple spikes in the September garden. And this stone has moss that is blooming from all the crevices.  Quite lovely.



Asters in shades of lavender are just coming on. I find asters are more reliable than mums in my garden.  I wouldn’t want a September garden without them.




The clematis has never bloomed this late in the season, and I saw several more buds yet to bloom.  (Hoping the weather doesn’t get too cold before they do.)




The few roses I have left are getting in one more show.

Eupatorium rugosum ‘Chocolate’ is a real bright spot in the garden and it has dozens of bees visiting. This is a relative to the native known as ‘Joe-Pye Weed’.

The yarrow, Achillea, is a ferny perennial that held up well in full sun, and little water.   After cutting it back by about half in mid-July, it is full of buds and color again.





Japanese Anemone (varieties unknown) are in full sun and are 4’-5’ tall.  They typically bloom in autumn and, they too, are loaded with bees.

  
 Sedum, Autumn Joy is simply gorgeous.
 
 The blue of the plumbago is not as full as previous years.  This is one plant I severely cut back in the garden renovation.




Black-eyed Susan are adding color here and there.  The Caryopteris is a shrub with a dainty blue blossom. It is getting more sun now that we took down a big ash tree, so I’m hoping that next year is will bloom more. 




Chelone lyonii, Hot Lips, or Turtlehead has a bloom that reminds folks of a turtle’s head and resembles a snapdragon.  Preferring moist locations, I am happy to see ‘Hot Lips’ looking so well after this hot, dry summer.  The spirea was quite satisfied with the summer sun., however.  I pruned about a third of the plant off earlier in the summer, and, as you can see, it is a  show-off!



The plant world never ceases to amaze me – this weigela ‘Wine and Roses’  a spring bloomer, is reblooming in mid-September.



Fading blooms of hydrangea are elegant and a beautiful shade of mauve.

Trictus, Toad Lily is tiny, about one inch in diameter, but I’ve seen humming birds hit on them all week. Dainty blooms are very pretty, and the foliage holds up nicely too. 

I really needed to see the garden.  Too often I get bogged down in the chores, and forget about the payoff of all the work – the flowers!
Thanks for visiting my September garden.  What is blooming in yours?

New Landscaping Ideas

A Landscape for Our Current Needs

The madness is not really mad – disappointment and realism, maybe, but not madness.  Let me go back – twenty years or so.  I had recently been down-sized from my job, and Hubby and I down-sized, as well. We moved here and with my days more unstructured, I set out to design a great garden.

Skip forward twenty years…..and looking forward to the next chapter in our lives.  This chapter is still being written, but the elements have lined up like this.  We are older.  The backs and knees do not appreciate the bending and stooping.  The income stream is more streamlined. The grand kids want to kick soccer balls, and play tag. So we planned a new backyard design.

We are reverting the large perennial beds back to a more manageable endeavor.

  
Many coneflowers and penstemons have been moved and creeping jenny has been sprayed with an herbicide.  (I’m still scraping some out.)  The raised bed with daylilies, and  plumbago has been dismantled.

And we needed a few design ideas. The yard landscape is changing.

The edging stones have been rearranged to create a more manageable border along the back property line.





As you can see, the design is coming along.  The cleared soil areas shown here are going to be seeded with grass in mid-to-late- August.  Just waiting for cooler nights, and hoping for rain to resume. 

This decision has not been made easily.  I LOVE to garden.  I really do, however, most folks do not find 2-3 hours a day, 15-20 hours a week, in the yard something they want to be obligated to do.    And the prospect of selling this house, to down-size once again, means we needed to rethink the yard design so that the gardens and lawns are less imposing.

The fussy plants are gone.  I've kept the easygoing guys – yarrow, coneflowers, daisies, Hosta, and grasses. 

Still more to do, but I’m confident this new backyard design idea is on the right track. I find these changes are bringing a calmness and the landscape is more reflective of who we are now and is meeting our current needs.   

Drought Tolerant Plants–Very Pretty

Perennials That Need Little Water

Perennials that can stand the heat can help redeem the otherwise scorched landscape.
Stunning may be exaggerating this season considering the heat and drought.  However, as I inspect the garden, several areas seem to be holding their own.
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Silver Scrolls, Heuchera, is vibrant.  Located in full shade seems to be ideal.

The blue fescue still has a great color.

The Lavender, Hidcote, is right at home in the dry, hot south side of the house.The blooms have faded already, but may rebloom later in the fall.

  
This silver leaf of the Lungwart still looks fresh. 

Sedum is thriving.  The silver succulent loves this weather. Two varieties here, with one blooming yellow. 

These Hosta get watered regularly and they are hanging in there.

Lungwort, again, gets water.  They tend to wilt and get powdery mildew, but they are surprisingly resilient.

The Russian Sage has full sun this year. We took out an ash tree last year that had been shading this area. So the Perovskia atriplicifolia, or Russian Sage has never looked better. 

Liriope , Silver Dragon, is stunning.  This silver/green grassy plant is drought tolerant and looks ‘cool’. 

The Painted Japanese Ferns in shade, do get supplemental water. The silver fronds and deep burgundy veins are a favorite of mine.

Shasta Daisy and Daylilies have a cheerful attitude!

Yarrow, Achilliea, and Coneflowers, Echinacea, make a great pair.  Even better since their need for less water is the same.

The Monarda, Bee Balm, (unknown variety) is hanging in there with some powdery mildew, and blooms that are reemerging after a good drink. 

The white allium is just blooming, as is the Casablanca Lily.  The white is refreshing in this heat. The lily has an awesome aroma as an extra bonus.

The Sedum, Autumn Joy, is blooming several weeks earlier than usual.  It’s pale pink will deepen into a dark rose by autumn.  This, too, does well in low water situations. 
Heat and water have really been issues this summer, but with minimal supplemental water, these plants will serve us well.