In no particular order!
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The 'Golden Goddess' bamboo has really taken off! I'd tell you how tall the trellis is, for a reference point, but I'm not sure... It's taller than I am, at least...
The perennial lantana is blooming amongst a bevy of weeds. (Areas outside of the fenced yarn get the short end of the stick when it comes to weeding-- and pretty much everything else, too.)
A couple of lantanas (maybe 'Bandana Pink'?) that Mom gave me last summer have come back, as well. I thought they were annuals in this zone, but maybe they are cold-hardy in 8b.
I'll probably try to move them outside the yard. There are many (many, many) plants in the garden that are toxic to dogs, but for whatever reason, I'm more "scared" of lantana than most others. Maybe because the berries they make seem so appealing. Both our dogs have been known to forage for blackberries (and blueberries, pineapple guava, and cherry tomatoes), so it doesn't seem too far-fetched that they might sample lantana berries, too. When I thought the plants were annuals, it was easy to just keep an eye on them, but if they might come back year after year, I'd feel safer with them growing elsewhere... It sounds like this variety doesn't set seed as much as the species, but still...
My biggest, happiest blanket flower flopped over after some violent wind and rain. I propped it back up and am hoping it will recover. They are prone to flopping... Here it is in happier days.
Tropical milkweed, right next to the blanket flower, was still standing tall, the morning after the storm. I guess that, being tropical, it's used to rough weather. ;o) (Blanket flower seems like more of a semi-desert plant.)
Not all of the (new-this-year) Triteleia 'Queen Fabiola' has bloomed, but some have. Though the flowers are significantly taller than Ipheion (spring starflower), there's a fair degree of resemblance between the two.
Baptisia 'Purple Smoke' (false indigo) has more flower stalks than ever, this year, as far as I can recall. It's still shorter than I expected it would be, though, so the place I planted it (behind a rose bush) keeps it a bit more hidden than I'd like. Short of moving the rose, though, there's not much I can do. False indigo has a taproot and doesn't like being transplanted! Maybe it will grow taller in years to come.
Lots of marigolds volunteered in one of the vegetable beds. I've left as many as possible, but some of them really should be moved. They're crowding the squash plants.
We have some tomatoes coming along nicely, though one was toppled by the storm and is still recovering-- and at least one more is suffering from a mystery ailment. Tomatoes do seem prone to a lot of problems.
I have some seedlings of the 'Dark Opal' basil which need hardening off and planting out. (Hardening off is my very least favorite part of starting things from seed.)
Raindrops on roses...
The blooms of Curcuma elata (giant plume ginger) have been gracing their corner of the garden for a while, now. When I moved the clump over to make way for a new elephant ear, I planted divisions in a few other places. One is way down at the back of the garden, and I've been surprised at how visible the flowers are over a significant distance. They certainly stand out!
Lunaria 'Corfu Blue' continues to flower. Well, one of them does. The other has yet to begin.
Red, white, and blue. (And green. Lots and lots of green.)
Mexican bush sage, assorted orange-y daylilies, and a purple coneflower on the cusp of blooming:
In the Oval Bed: Daylilies, a couple of grasses, crocosmia, gladioli, and more.
The unknown pink shrub roses, when they began to bloom, almost couldn't support the weight of all those flowers!
If you recall, I pruned these roses in late winter/early spring. All this is very new growth, and the tender "branches" (is that the correct technical term? canes?) haven't had a chance to harden. They're struggling under the burden of so many blooms-- especially when the flowers are wet with rain or heavy dew-- but I'm sure they'll strengthen with time.
I still haven't processed the photos from the last garden survey, and it's already time to think of taking photos for the next one! Soon!
