gardeninacity

The first of the asters and goldenrods are blooming, and that means fall is coming. The heat and drought made for a difficult summer, and yet I hate to think of it ending so soon. Anyhow, here’s what’s blooming: Agastache foeniculum (anise hyssop). Late to bloom this year, but now at its peak. Asclepias curassavica …

OK, I have deliberately stayed away from politics on this blog, and I intend to continue doing that. However, I just want to take note of the news that Scott’s Miracle-Gro has given $200,000 to the Restore Our Future super PAC, which is supporting Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. We are all free to draw our …

I cannot live without gardening catalogues. In fact, I divide my mail order plants among many retailers not just to access maximum variety and good price, but also to assure a diverse array of catalogues for bedtime perusal.  By now I know some of these catalogues almost by heart. Nevertheless, I get the same comfort …

 There are those who disdain black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida), also known as orange coneflower, simply because it is so common, especially the varieties ‘goldsturm’ and ‘fulgida.’ I do not share their disdain, and consider black-eyed Susan to be an indispensible flower for any sunny Midwestern garden. However, black-eyed Susan has an older sister, brown-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia triloba), and …

I’m very fond of flowers that are vigorous and tough, almost thuggish. But there are a few fussy plants that I still find worthwhile. One of these is cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis). Cardinal flower, a North American native, blooms in a clear, vibrant shade of red that you find almost nowhere else. The tubular flowers have a …

I have a lot of containers filled with flowers. I did not plan for that to happen. The thing is, the containers that came with the bigger plants I’ve purchased were usually not recyclable. And it seemed wrong to just throw them away. So the logical solution was to keep them and use them as planters. Of course, …

I’m definitely a flower person first when it comes to gardening. Edibles come a distant second with me. However, Judy feels that a home is not a home without some kind of vegetable garden, so I try to oblige. Since the backyard is just too shady, I tucked a little vegetable garden into the front …

I was very flattered to learn that Cheryl at Gardenhood  has nominated me for the One Lovely Blog Award. Like most people, I like to get compliments and I like to get recognition. Of course, I understand that this is one of those awards given for the purpose of increasing awareness and readership of garden blogs in general – …

So mid-July is here, and it’s time for Garden Blogger Bloom Day. I like this custom. Anyhow, we have really entered the season of high summer. And when I say high, I mean really tall, as in really tall plants mostly with yellow flowers. At least, that’s how it is in the American Midwest. So, here’s …