Welcome to my zone 9 garden. My roots are deeply planted in the sandy soil of sub-tropical central Florida, where the summers are long and hot, but the rest of the year is paradise!

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

August at a Glance


~ ~ Notes from the August garden ~ ~                                                                                                  Along with the hot weather that typically accompanies the "dog days" of August we were very fortunate to receive a generous amount of rain. The zinnias loved it and reciprocated with an abundance of colorful blooms. The veggie garden has been planted with high hopes ~ as usual ~ for a bountiful harvest, and now I eagerly wait for the days of lower humidity that I know are right around the corner. What a joy it will be to work in the garden without sweat running down my face.

The month started off rough for the yard. Some much needed tree trimming was on the agenda but, YIKES! those guys were rough on the turf and the plants. Fortunately, the yard is bouncing back quickly. The trees look great and are hurricane ready...as ready as they can be, that is.


Not a Pretty Sight


The Flowers of Summer
Rose of Sharon - a practically maintenance-free plant


Lorapetlum Ruby - Fabulous year round foliage color

Candlestick plant - A favorite of the cloudless sulphur butterflies


An Unexpected Bloom
The bloom on this Abelia 'Kaleidescope...planted earlier this spring...was a complete surprise, but a very pleasant one.

The American beautyberry has completed its transition, and is sporting a nice collection of  beautiful purple pearls that the birds will soon be devouring. You might wonder why a piece of shovel is in my garden. Every broken shovel ~ ~ the workhorses in my garden ~ ~deserve an honored spot in the garden for all their dedicated hard work. 
What can I say~ ~ I'm a sentimental person. ; )

Faded Glory
I can see that the summer flowers are winding down. More and more seed heads are beginning to show up. The seeds are from left to right: stokesia 'Omega Skyrocket, blackberry lily and agastache 'Golden Jubilee
Anyone want seeds? Let me know.



My daughter found the creepy looking bug above on our dock post. A few days later she made the I.D. while looking at a framed collection of insects at our local extension office. Quite a coincidence don't you think? 

We were amazed but not that surprised since an army of dragonflies dart back and forth over the lake on summer evenings scooping up mosquitoes. An amazing and entertaining sight!

Life's Simple Pleasures

I'm still sitting in the shade taking it easy. Hope you are, too!

8 comments:

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

I am so glad your gardens didn't suffer too badly from the tree trimmers.

Your caladiums are fantastic and I would be happy to have some seeds of your Omega Skyrocket.

I see that you have the blackberry lily, that's great.

Have a great weekend ~ FlowerLady

Antique ART Garden said...

I loved seeing the remnants of your shovels in your garden. Too darned cute !

Meems said...

Such a 'hot/humid' August! It's a wonder anything can flower. I always dread tree-trimming time as there is (by default) lots of damage control... BUT so nice when it's all done. Loving all your summer garden... those bright berries make me so happy to see... birds are already finding them here.

daisy g said...

I love the fact that you save every broken shovel as a testament to your hard work!

I wish you the best with your veggies! All this rain has got to help us along, dontcha think?

Unknown said...

I love your shovel idea! I do the same thing with garden tools that have become trustworthy faves.I just can't bear to part with them.

Lona said...

Hi Susan. Girl your garden is just beautiful. I simply love the blooms on that Rose of Sharon of yours.Such great photographs of in and around your garden. Just fantastic. Have a wonderful wee or what is left of it.
Lona

Susan said...

Hi Flowerlady...I'll be happy to send you some Omega Skyrocket. The plant fades away each autumn but returns in spring. Please send me your address again.

Hi Gina...It's hard to part with an old friend. :)

Meems...Tree trimming is a nasty job but they sure do look nice now, and we have a little more dappled sunlight shining through on the grass.

Daisy...Yeah, we have been getting rain just about everyday. I love not having to water the potted plants.

Chris...I hear you!

Hey Lona...Thanks! The rose of Sharon's flowers remind me of hollyhocks. Very pretty and like I said the plant doesn't require anything from me.

NanaK said...

Tree trimming is hard on the landscape sometimes but it looks like they did a pretty good job of sparing your plantings. My poor trees are overdue for a good grooming. I understand completely about the shovels. I think they are charming.

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