Friday, September 28, 2012

Nice Plant Combinations for Late Summer/Early Fall Gardens

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Let's talk late summer combinations and garden design. Here are a few I found in my garden you might like.

'Sunny' Knockout Roses and Black and Blue Salvia (Salvia guaranitica)

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Rudbeckia hirta and Salvia
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Hostas, Japanese Roof Irises (Iris tectorum), Bouncing Bets (Saponaria officinalis) and Nicotiana sylvestis
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Phlox pilosa, Lambs Ear, and Daylilies
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Sedum, Iris, and Mums
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Santolina and Sedum
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Camelia sasanqua and Japanese Holly
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Gardenia, Artemesia 'Powis Castle', and Creeping Juniper
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Amsonia, Daylily, and Catmint
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Goldenrod and River Oats
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'Guacamole' hosta and Creeping Jenny
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Hydrangeas, Coneflowers, Ornamental Grass 'Adagio', and Sedum
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Zinnia and 'Diamond Frost' Euphorbia
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Ruellia and Celosia
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Pink Double Knockout Rose and Variegated Miscanthus


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Angelonia and sedum.

What are some of your favorite late summer/early fall plant combinations?

in the garden....




Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team,

In the Garden



Wednesday, September 26, 2012

The Bees and the Sunflowers


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Don't bees and sunflowers go together well?
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One cool morning I awoke to discover several bees sleeping on the sunflowers.
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I thought it was darling....

in the garden....


Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Easter Lily revisited

BY SKEETER
I like to experiment here in my Georgia Gardens. One such trial was started over a year ago. I found Easter Lily's on sale and decided to stick them into the ground and see what would happen. Click HERE to see how the Lily's became.
I am happy to say I had success with all the Lily's!
I did nothing more then stick them into the ground and walk away!
Of course they did not pop up by Easter but they did arrive in mid May.
I was tickled to see the lily had survived their first year.
I hope to see them again next year. I just love my EASTER LILY, In the Garden...

*Note: I shall be MIA on Thursday. Everyone enjoy this beautiful Fall weather. I know I am.....

Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Monday, September 24, 2012

Cool Looking Fungi In the Garden-Aliens Perhaps? And the Empress..


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After the long hot and dry periods of May and June, July through September have brought us some fairly decent rains in Tennessee. Along with the rains, and heat, came some fungi in the garden. The one pictured above was about one foot wide and about six inches tall. It was quite a big old thing. I found it growing  in complete shade alongside a newly planted redbud. The grass blade you see sticking out is actually growing in this fungi. I cannot identify this fungi but think it may be a type of cauliflower fungus. If anyone can positively identify it for me that would be great.
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Here is a longer shot. I touched this and it was quite firm.
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This particular mushroom made me think spaceships.
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It was probably seven inches across and about four inches off from the ground. I mowed it down but it came right back....

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One last thing that is more fun than fungi to most. The Empress of China evergreen dogwood has buds on it!  I don't know if these are flower buds for next year or if they are flower buds for this year. Only time will tell....

in the garden....



Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Friday, September 21, 2012

Our Final Post on the Beautiful Luthy Botanical Gardens and FIVE YEARS!


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Wrapping up our visit to Luthy Gardens we start not in Luthy gardens but in a splendid nursery Mr. Fix-it and I visited while I was in Peoria. This nursery is called Hoerr Nursery (pronounced hair-a good German name). Mr. Fix-it is awesome with spotting nurseries for me. Wherever he goes he scopes them out for when I come to visit. 

This nursery was hard to miss because it was immense. I actually thought it was just the growing fields but was pleasantly surprised to find it open to the public. I purchased several plants to bring back to Tennessee and I'm happy to say they are all doing well. Next year I am sure you'll see some on this blog. I am not normally a nursery type of gal but this one had some good sales and nice plants that are hard to find in my southern garden area. Illinois is, afterall, in the north so the plants are a wee bit different. Nonetheless I think the native plants that I purchased will adapt well to my garden. 

This wagon was a super cool thing and displayed nicely inside of the retail area. I took the picture to remind me of how it was done so that if I ever get the time and energy I may make one too. I think the print on the outside of the wagon was decoupaged on and the rest painted. Isn't it sweet?
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Now we are back at the Luthy. This walkway had lots of interest and full, happy, and healthy plants. Note the grasses and the fact that there are very few blooms yet this walkway will hold your attention the whole way.
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Another shot of the conifer collection. I love conifers but don't grow many here. Most don't like my conditions (shade and tough summers and not so good drainage).
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Joe Pye weed is something that grows well here though. I love this flower but its barely one week of bloom leaves it lacking a bit. I do, however, grow it here as it likes my natural style of gardens and does well with only part sun.
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I think these were crabapples but I could be mistaken. There were tons of berries in the gardens even in July. They were also all ripe-in July-which is rather early I think.
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More of the Joe Pye weed with the bonus of amsonia (Amsonia hubrichii). If you don't grow amsonia you are missing out. It is an easy to grow perennial that has a great texture and fits in anywhere in the garden. Be sure to give it three-four feet of room as it will grow large, though it takes a few years. It turns a golden wheat color in the fall and simply shines. It is drought tolerant and will self seed a bit; which is most welcomed in my garden. The blooms are not very noticeable but it does indeed bloom in the spring. The seed pods look like a cleome seedpod; long and narrow like a pea. The amsonia in my garden and others I've seen are loaded with seedpod this year. Everyone should be checking for the seedlings next spring. Either let them grow where they sprout or move them to better spots but be sure to do this early. Amsonia is extremely difficult to transplant successfully once it gets going.
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Cute garden are-a whole family called 'The Shovels' (a name I gave them).
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Lastly we finish in the Children's Garden. I am sure children made these simply little concrete designs. The designs were then placed in the garden in such a way that all of the circles formed a large flower. It was simply and beautiful at the same time. 

There were so many more photos I took that I have not posted. I tell you this garden was very small and could easily be seen in less than an hour or two but it is worth the $2.50 admittance fee for sure. What a bargain....

in the garden....

Yesterday was the five year anniversary of this blog. Where does the time go? Over the five years this blog has changed a lot. I have also changed a lot. Change is not a bad thing at all. This blog helps to document it all for me along the way and that is why I still blog. 

Some stats from the blog say that we have had 1338 published posts, over 32,500 comments, and nearly a half a million visitors. I can tell you when I started this blog I never ever dreamed I'd still be doing it five years later and that I would be joined by some friends (Thanks Skeeter, Dawn, and Lola!) along the way and that we would have readers. Thanks everyone who follows along and and helps to make this blog rewarding for us by sharing in our trials and tribulations...in the garden. 
 
Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Thursday, September 20, 2012

New Garden Toy

BY SKEETER
A pink Knock-Out Rose blooming in my Georgia Garden...
After 11 years in this house, we finally have a year round resident Mocking Bird! I have seen them every spring but they always depart by Summer. Not a great picture I know. It was snapped during the evening and he/she was very far from me. Mocking bird males and females are a like so you cannot tell them apart from each other.  
Here is a Bargain I found today! I happen to be at the Christmas Tree Shops when this $50.00 garden bench was marked down to $20.00. The stores motto is, "Don't you just love a bargain". And yes, I do. Not sure where this bench will end up but for now it is sitting by the fire pit.

Here is a new toy I recently picked up. It has yet to be used but I plan to give it a work out on Friday. I plan to take it to the Giant Plant Sale at McCorkles Nursery's.  in Dearing, GA. The sale is Sept. 21-22. Janet, the Queen of Seaford passed along information about another Plant Sale. Layman Nursery in Trenton, SC will be open to the public Sept. 20-22 and again on Sept. 27-29. I am lucky enough to be located only 30 miles from Layman and 20 miles from McCorkles. I have never been to Layman's but their website says it is the largest nursery in the Southeast! So I plan to give my NEW GARDEN TOY, a work out this weekend. In the Garden...


Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Another Day Visiting the Luthy Botanical Gardens


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We continue our tour of the Luthy Botanical Gardens in the fantastic sunny borders. Mr. Fix-it and I visited the Luthy in July--in the middle of a fairly long drought period, yet the gardens looked great. I think most of the plants in this area are drought tolerant plants and are well adapted for the location. This garden above flows nicely and has lots of textures and no ground showing. It is very interesting to me.
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In another part of the gardens we found giant concrete chess pieces. Mr. Fix-it and I got a kick out of these because whenever we visited our favorite park in Germany (Luisen Park in Mannheim) we enjoyed playing life sized chess on the lawn. All of our kids know how to play chess and I think it is an important game for everyone. Playing it outside makes it fun!
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I believe these berries were Cornelian cherries. They were awesome and if I recall correctly they did not taste bad, but they were tart. I hope to find a spot for a Cornelian cherry tree in my garden one day. They are very lovely small trees.
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Garden art was a big part of Luthy Gardens.
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I believe these nuts to be beechnuts. My sister Dawn posted on her beechnut trees years ago on this blog.
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A beautiful viburnum. There was a whole viburnum collection at the Luthy. It was the first time I have ever been able to see viburnums en masse up close and personal. Viburnums are one of the most diverse plant groups in the category of shrubs and I haven't found one yet that I did not like. This collection was a very nice one.
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I leave you with one more long shot of the tropical house. Friday will be our last post at the Luthy Botanical Gardens....

in the garden....



Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Fern poop?

BY SKEETER

 We have found humidity once again in my Georgia Gardens. My sinus tells me a front is coming and soon the humidity will be gone again. Hopefully, for the remainder of the year. But I am not holding my breath on that one. I am however, going to enjoy the rain this front brings with it.
 
Above you can see the Butterfly Bush Island still giving us color. The Butterfly Bushes are the best early summer to late fall bloomer in the yard for me. You also see Volunteer Perwinkle and Susan's giving me color. If this photo went higher up, you could see Angel Trumpets in bloom. So we do have some blooms hanging around for the Hummingbirds, bees and butterflies to enjoy.
 I walk out onto the front porch and find a strange thing happening under the Ferns. Can you see the mess on the railing and the floor of the porch?

Zooming into the railing, you see the tiny round balls of dirt/mud or something else. I just don't know what is causing this mess. I have not really taken the time to try and squash them or investigate as I see the mess at the wrong time and just grab the broom and sweep it off the porch.  
This mess is occurring under each of the 4 hanging Ferns. I had a posting titled "Vinca Poop" back in 2008. (Click HERE to see) That posting had me on my hands and knees looking for a critter as I knew I had found its poop. The end of that Story had me discovering little tiny black seeds rather then animal poop. Since I have not had time to really get to the bottom of this matter, I am just going to ask you bloggers if you have ever seen this before and what it could be. How ironic, I don't have time to investigate the mess on my porch but have time to write about it. Oh, gee, I think I may need to rethink my priorities. Ha, So What say you? Do I have FERN POOP, In the Garden....

Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team, In the Garden