Soft Edges

I am particularly fond of blurring the sides of paths and beds. Not much for straight edges although I love the well maintained park look when my husband edges the lawn, it looks so loved in a conventional way. The gravel driveway gives me plenty of room to indulge my want for the 'natural' look.

Above Scutellaria 'Texas Rose' makes several large cushions of flowers & foliage.

It loves this hot well drained site as does the grey succulent Orostachys iwarenge (close up at right)

with pink rain lily.

Below a very vigorous white flowered Rosemary, that I got from Plant Delights many years ago, is perfect by the front steps you hardly have to go outside for a sprig or two when cooking. At it's base the Santa Barbara Daisy (probably a more attractive name than Mexican fleabane), Erigeron karvinskianus took 3 tries to 'take' in my garden is shown with the Zephyranthes 'La Bufa Rosa' poking through. Both plants start somewhat pink and fade to white.

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Lavender & Driveway Work

In reading about pruning I have learnt that summer pruning is for reduced vigor. So I determined to prune some over enthusiastic shrubs & trees & grasses that invaded the driveway. Results are rather neat & hopefully will succeed in slowing some things down. 

I am renovating the largest lavender by cutting it back to the ground if there is   new growth down there. Others I have just created holes to allow air & light to reach in and hopefully start new growth. I have found it important to harvest the flower stalks and cut holes in the plants to allow air flow especially when we get 4 inches of rain in one day, as recently. Lavender starts to rot quickly so mulch with gravel or stones. I wonder if all those old stalks at the bottom help by keeping the rest of the plant above the ground. So many people want to grow lavender here in our not so suitable humid climate I feel lucky to have been able to keep mine alive for many years.

(Lavendula x 'Provence')

Over the years the lavender layers itself rooting into the gravelly soil this helps to keep it young and viable.

There is a new lavender cultivar (developed for the south)

my friends are trying this year. Let's hope they have 'phenomenal' luck.

(see the link below)

http://thedailysouth.southernliving.com/2014/03/27/a-real-lavender-for-the-south-sweet/

Blueberry Update

I photographed the Ira blueberry on June 15th. Here it is today July 7th.
 The berries although some are blue they are not yet sweet.
 I have picked at least 5 lbs from Premier the first to ripen and there are still some to come despite Harry Houdini Mockingbirds.

The mockingbirds are blueberry mad. They had figured out a way to get into the cage between the chicken wire & the plastic bird netting. After much chasing and capture & releasing we got them out and stitched the two fences together. One is still guarding the cage & fighting off intruders even though he/she can't get in. I saw it bouncing on the plastic netting ceiling as if a trampoline.

The Circle

New things have come into bloom while we were away.

The common but uncommonly beautiful native garden phlox 

(Phlox paniculata) is in full new bloom. The white variety 'David' is eye to eye with me in the circle. Coneflowers are in abundance and the Shasta Daisy 'Becky' (Leucanthemum x superbum 'Becky') is in it's first flush.
http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=r550

 

Hibiscus moscheutos or crimson eyed rose mallow was blooming along highway 64 at the edge of the marshes when traveling back from Nags Head. The native is white with, wait for it, a crimson eye and it's flowers are smaller than the all crimson variety you see here.

I grew this from seed called 'Disco Belle' many years ago. Amazingly easy. There are many more varieties now but my husband loves this very red splash in the center of the circle.