Some 2018 Garden Highlights: Summer Breeze
Today is New Year’s Day. While a patchy blanket of snow lies on the ground outside, it seems a good moment to look through some favorite photos of our garden in summer.
June seems like a month of blue flowers, especially Wild Indigo (Baptisia australis).
And Ohio Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohioensis). Now and then I try to remove the roots of this plant, but it always comes back, so I may as well focus on its good points.
The ‘Betty Corning’ Clematis in the Driveway Border really came into its own this year. It contrasts nicely with the orange Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), my favorite Milkweed.
We found more Monarch Caterpillars on our Butterflyweed this year than ever before, which was highly gratifying.
I thought we had lost the Hoary Vervain (Verbena hastata), but if grew in this year and flowered nicely. It’s nestled between the Butterflyweed and the ‘Eye-yi-yi’ Daylilies.
Purple-Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus) in the Back Garden did well last summer. I look forward to a bigger patch next year.
The books and catalogs say Indian Pink shouldn’t be happy in the Back Garden’s Island Bed – too dry. And yet, it seems perfectly content there, though it spreads slowly.
The blooming of the Clematis ‘jackmanii’ on our west-facing wall has become an annual neighborhood event.
In summer, the Sidewalk Border is dominated by red Bee Balm (Monarda didyma), punctuated by Orienpet and Oriental Lilies.
Here’s a view of our house from the sidewalk. Bee Balm is front and center, with some of my favorite tall plants to either side. From left to right: Sweet Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum), Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum), Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata), and Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia).
Here’s another view of the Cup Plant, with Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) in front.
Goldfinches come calling when the Cup Plant seeds start to ripen.
In recent years the Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) have been plagued by Four-Lined Plant Bugs, but this year wasn’t quite so bad. The Anise Hyssop combines nicely with Yellow Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata).
Alliums are not just for spring. These ‘Summer Beauty’ Alliums (A. lusitanicum) are very popular with pollinators.
These Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia syphilitica) were labeled L. cardinalis when I bought them. Good thing I love blue flowers.
We hosted several House Wren families in the birdhouses in the Back Garden.
As many of you know, my favorite annual is Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia). Every summer it is by best plant for attracting butterflies, and this year was no different. Here’s a Black Swallowtail.
And a Monarch.
In the last days of August, a golden haze seemed to settle over the garden.
Best wishes to all of you for a happy and flowery New Year. When the days are dark and frigid, keep in mind the summer flowers to come.
gardeninacity 
I do love how exuberant and colorful your summer garden is- its perfectly lovely! It is not, however, helping the cabin fever that is slowly taking over my brain! Happy New Year!
Oh, sorry about the cabin fever!
Lovely
Nice to revisit your summer garden in winter, that’s for sure. Thanks for sharing your great images.
Around this time of year I start to have lots of daydreams about summer, helped along by seed and plant catalogs.
Nice of you to share this look back with us. Happy New Year!
Happy 2019 to you, Denise!
I’m nearly overcome by how beautiful this is. It makes me want to garden! But, lacking the ability to do that, I’ll at least make an effort to visit a few gardens this year. I was pleased to see how many flowers I recognized, but there were several that were brand new. And congrats again on those monarch caterpillars. I can only imagine how happy they are to have such great digs (no pun intended).
How far are you from Austin? Have you ever been to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center?
I’m not that far — three hours, maybe. I used to spend a good bit of time in Austin, but in those days I didn’t care a whit about flowers of any sort, except to think them pretty, so I haven’t been to the Wildflower Center. There are several spots in Austin I’ve thought I should visit this year, and that’s one.
These are beautiful summer flowers, Jason. The orange butterfly weed is a favorite of mine.
Time is passing so quickly for me these days. I know spring will be here before I am quite ready for it.
I hope spring is here before we know it! For me it seems to be taking its sweet time.
Lovely to look back on your summer flowers, I wish you lots more for 2019 with more Monarch caterpillars !
Thanks – I’m staying hopeful!
These are beautiful photos; and I love the last photo of your house in deep summer.
Thanks!
Oh such wonderful summer’s flowers, Jason!
Today when everything here looks white (only the sky is light grey :)), I love especially your red/rich pink flowers, like those of the Indian Pink.
Happy New Year!
Right now we don’t even have snow, the ground is mainly frozen mud.
Lovely photos and a reminder of gorgeous colour filled summer days.
A good subject for daydreaming, I think.
Lovely photos, and your garden is an inspiration, in all seasons.. I love the yellow blossoms framing the house, I hope the garden is appreciated by your neighbours. Congratulation on providing a home for the House Wren families, and of course, the Monarch butterflies, what a success.
We do get a lot of appreciation from most neighbors, the ones who don’t like it don’t complain.
Ah, yes – those spiderwort roots! Thanks for the summer memories.
Spiderwort roots will never leave you, which is a sort of loyalty, I suppose.
Happy New Year! Your yard is not only a place of beauty, but one that encourages creatures that flutter and creep. And here is a little something for your listening pleasure. 😉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsW8rXPcnM0
Thanks for the musical interlude!
Lovely retrospective of color to brighten up a dark time of year. Happy 2019 to you and yours!
Thanks, Tina!
Your front garden is absolutely amazing! It’s what I envision having eventually somewhere in my yard. I don’t have very nice soil, so it’s taking a while to amend and build it up, where I can, Most of my yard is un-plantable (in ground) because of large cedar trees and their roots.
Your bee balm is something else! Mine blooms, but its leaves are chewed every year. Only the bee balm leaves, for which I’m grateful, but it makes the bed ugly!
Do you collect the milkweed seeds?
I generally do not collect the milkweed seeds, just let them self-sow where they want. Sometimes I let them grow where they are, sometimes I move them, other times I pull them out.
I love the contrast of blue with orange…I’ll hopefully have the orange if the butterfly weed I grew from seed last year makes it through the winter but will have to work on the blue. A Very Happy New Year, Jason – May the coming year bring you many more blooms and few critters that eat them 😉
Same to you, Margaret. Are you going to Denver this year?
Yes – I’ll be there! So exciting as I’ve never been that far west in the US before (other than a day trip to Seattle) 🙂
Thanks for the look back at your summer garden. It is a bright spot in a very dreary winter day here! I love that last image of the golden August blooms, as well as the photo with the Hoary Vervain, Butterflyweed and the ‘Eye-yi-yi’ Daylilies. Happy gardening in 2019!
Yes, it seems this winter has had very few sunny days and lots of gloomy clouds. But fortunately, we have pictures to look at.
I love all the blue flowers.
That’s probably about the most flowers I’ve ever seen on a single clematis!
It looks pretty good, I’ve got to admit.
Lovely to have a taste of what is to come round again in the summer. Happy new year Jason!
Thanks, Cathy, Same to you!
Clematis ‘jackmanii’ certainly was the star of the year. Just loved all the blues, especially with the oranges. Gorgeous wrens, nice seeing them again, and the caterpillars. xxx
Blue and orange are my favorite colors.
HAPPY NEW YEAR! We are starting the year with weather that is unusually cold, while other are getting unusually mild weather.
Happy 2019, Tony, if I haven’t wished you one already. Winter looks more like winter today, we are getting several inches of snow.
I am in awe of your yard!!! Such a diversity! And with that diversity, I bet you see many varieties move around year to year. I love ‘surprise plants’.
I wish I had a good place for an Indian Pink…. Killed a few already. I do love my cup plants, tho. I mean, the wildlife it attracts is crazy!!
I’ve been into growing fruit & veggies for our pie-holes lately. I’m doing a lot of experimenting with mixing in edibles into ornamental gardens. Cherry tomatoes & Black Eyed Susans look great together, IMO. Have you tried mixing in some veggies?
Not really, but I’ve thought about it. I think you’re right about cherry tomatoes. Easy to grow and the fruit adds a nice ornamental touch.