September's Purple Rain

The favorite color in my garden palette in Early Fall is Purple.

Datura among Tithonia.

Duranta and a Spicebush Swallowtail.

Persian Shield on the left, Salvia leucantha coming into bloom on right.

Loropetalum flowers are  more pink that purple but the leaves turn purple in fall.

Purple Heart and Salvia farinacea 'Victoria' from seed in its third year.










Last, a little preview of coming attractions: Gulf Muhly Grass is forming blooms.

-- Purple is favorite at the moment as nights cool down and days are cloudy. We had a quarter inch of rain today.

A Squirrel in the Greenhouse and Planting in the Rain.

When I opened the greenhouse this morning, there was a squirrel inside. He considered rushing me, then turned back and hid somewhere. I went for the cat and put him inside. The cat doesn't like being told what to do. I left him in there with the door open only far enough for kitty to exit if he chooses.

At the far left edge of this pic, there were clumps of Pandora's Box daylily which were overtaken by an Althea and some Gardenias. Too shaded to bloom, they've struggled.

If it isn't cold, I enjoy planting in the rain. Most plants transplanted in rain will take hold right away. [Be aware! If you garden in clay soil, this is not for you. I garden in loamy sand, which will not harden when it dries.]

At the end of the Front Garden bed that has mostly yellow and white blossoms, I planted Pandora's Box around a white Crape Myrtle. There were enough pieces for 5 clumps. As the Crape Myrtle gets taller, I will prune off bottom limbs so Daylilies will have ample light.

I broke off good-sized pieces of Purple Heart to plant between and slight to the front of each clump. The limbs that had nice little shoots at the bottom, I broke into two pieces. Purple Heart almost always roots when treated this way.

This is the post I wrote about planning to do this task: Planting in a Found Spot

Pandora's Box, 2011

 

Maybe I'll give Pandora some rooted Persian Shield cuttings and a bit of  Chartreuse Joseph's Coat.

I'll Need a Purple Crayon to Draw my Garden

Purples and Blues abound in the late spring garden.

Larkspur with California Poppies and Mexican Hats.

Hydrangeas, Cycad and Purple Coneflower

Stokesia

Agapnathus and Purple Heart

Vitex and a Butterfly

Laura Bush Petunias

All June in the Garden

"Wisteria woke me this morning,
And there was all June in the garden;
I felt them, early, warning
Lest I miss any part of the day.
- Ann McGough, Summons

Wisteria bloomed abundantly here in April. I hacked at the vines all through May.

Despite my prunings wisteria is blooming again. It grows up through a box hedge so

mowing keeps it from spreading along the ground, but the vines grow longer and longer.

Gloriosa Daisies or Black Susans Rudbeckia hirta have taken the stage with Purple Heart.

 Madagascar periwinkles just coming up with take the place of BES as they fade. You can't see them, nor the purple Daturas. I'm gathering seeds of Larkspur barely seen at right.

I've pulled most of the Larkspur.

 Daisies have taken over the Yellow Rose Bed while the roses rest.

Persian Shield with a small lavender Pentas.

Pentas are slow to get started blooming well this summer, or is it just early?

I kept some cuttings through the winter and bought two new red recently.

Butterflies find them a real treat, once they get going.

 Red Hot Poker Kniphofia is finally starting to bloom.

Lantana and Purple Heart are good companions.

Brugmansia cutting isn't very big yet and wilts from too much hot sun.

I never cut back all the Vetiver grass. The tan canes make good place markers when

I'm making plans. I just cut them as I need them.

Yesterday I planted out some salvia farinacea cuttings to bring the number of plants back to

last year's 18 I think. Today after we had 0.3 inch of rain last night I scattered some

orange dwarf marigold seed among the salvia.

Flowers and text are from the garden of Nell Jean blogged on Dotty Plants Journal in hot, humid Southwest Georgia.

Blog Pictures from Prior Years; Helpful for Planning

August last, when the plants grew large and all my mistakes were obvious.



Too many purple Daturas, too much melampodium and no crisp edge in front of the Purple Heart.
Freezes in the winter took out the Daturas. Melampodium freely reseeds and can be pulled where it isn't wanted. Purple Heart has put out nicely again. Tonight I started it an edge of chartreuse alternanthera.

Alternanthera was tucked in behind the violas which will be

soon removed, just in front of the line of Purple Heart which was hardly

visible when this pic was made back in March.

A Mrs. Cox at Lake Seminole told me some years ago that if you had a good stand of Madagascar periwinkle to stir the soil the next year when it warms and you'd have a nice bed again. I stirred the soil today behind all the big stones everywhere there wasn't a poppy with pods or a larkspur standing.


Chartreuse alternanthera is visible along the edge of the far bed,
this also from last August. I have more pieces to root from two
good plants in pots that I held over the winter.

The other planting I did today was to prepare a line across behind the Esperanzas and Pride of Barbados for planting Castor Beans, the dark kind that do not grow very tall.


Pride of Barbados and Castor Beans from 2007. I'm so glad to see
P of B foliage emerging.

He-who-mows mowed today. "When all the weeds are the same height, it looks like a park," he said.
The upper garden has unmown islands of maturing daffodil foliage.

I didn't make a separate post today for Native Plant Day.
This is one of my favorites, Calycanthus floridus.
Common sweetshrub, uncommonly fragrant.