Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - August 2013

Persistence. I think that's the word I'd use to describe the garden right now. So much of it looks the same as it did on July's GBBD, which means that many of the flowers have been in bloom for a month! Other flowers are putting on a second show when I thought they were done for the year. Let's look around.

Front yard
I've largely ignored the front yard this year, in favor of focusing on the back and side. There are still a lot of good qualities to it but I'm trying to figure out a general design for it instead of just little beds here and there.

Russian sage and the ubiquitous Black-eyed Susan

How lucky am I that this view greets me every day when I get home? It is right next to the stairs that go up to the front yard and it is BRIGHT!

Gaillardia - I don't remember the exact cultivar.

I love the seed heads after this flower is done blooming.

Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

 I didn't pinch this sedum back so it's been in bloom for a couple of weeks now. I don't ever remember it looking so good.

Dahlia

I dig this dahlia out every autumn and store it in the basement during the winter. And for the third year in a row, before I can replant it, it starts growing again. There is some rogue dahlia tuber in the ground that has overwintered beautifully and adores this spot in front of my porch!

Euphorbia polychroma 'Bonfire'

Not exactly in bloom, but the foliage is beautiful.

Polygonum aubertii - Silver Lace Vine

My mother gave me two Silver Lace Vines to grow on the trellis we installed on the porch. They're just starting to flower.  Soon, there will be a cascade of white flowers from the porch roof down to the ground.

Black-eyed Susan and Coreopsis 'Mercury Rising'

I first blogged about 'Mercury Rising' on the June GBBD post - two whole months ago. I didn't cut it back or do anything to it - in fact, I've completely ignored it. It doesn't look as fresh as it did when it first bloomed but this plant is persistent!

Butterfly bush

Sadly, this is the last year for my butterfly bush. It is too big for the space and I have no place else for it. Sayonara!

Wide view of part of the front yard

Abeille allée 
What a difference a year makes! I only dug out the side yard last year and at that time had planted tiny perennial plugs along with some divided plants (like the hibiscus). This year it's been a riot of nonstop color. Even my husband, who has appreciated the gardens but never shown much interest in them, can't stop exclaiming every single day, "I can't believe how great the yard looks! It's never looked like this! There's so much color! You think you're done looking at it all and then bam - there's something else to look at!" Thanks, J. Glad to know my hard work is appreciated.

Geranium 'Rozanne'

This baby perennial plug that I just got in May is already blooming.

We've called a truce.

Hibiscus

The hibiscus show has slowed to about one flower a day, but it's still glorious.

Wide view - looking from the back yard to the front

I'm making progress on digging out the sod, though I still have a way to go. This was all grass last year. The light yellow flowers are Coreopsis 'Moonbeam' and have been in bloom for about two months. Why have I never planted coreopsis before?


Back yard
I think most of the pictures from this month's GBBD will look almost identical to July's. I usually see the end of summer as a time when the garden starts looking worn down, but clearly my plants are happy and still going, and going, and going...

Hollyhock

My hollyhock bloomed for the first time this year, though the leaves were decimated by hollyhock rust. I was hoping to harvest some of the seeds so I left the plant as it was, and then... it started growing new leaves (though you can see they still have rust issues) and bloomed again.

Echinacea 'White Swan' and Black-eyed Susan

I thought my White Swan was gone, but it appeared a couple of weeks ago. It's very short so I think I ought to move it, but it's nice to see it again.

Wide view - standing close to the house and looking back

Wide view - from the back looking toward the house

Thanks for checking out my August pictures and thanks to May Dreams for hosting another Bloom Day.