Weeds that Make You Go Hmm...

Our new home has a very diverse range of wildflowers in the wooded area.  We only moved 5 miles down the road, yet I'm seeing plants that I never saw at my old house, which was almost completely wooded.  The same varieties also grow at my grandma's farm nearly 3 hours south, so I'm familiar with them, and excited to see them in my own backyard.  This just hits home for me that we must be good stewards of the land, because we could accidentally wipe out plants that are rare or aren't found anywhere else.

 

I went on a walk with my mom this spring and we found wild Ginger, Larkspur, Trilliums, Solomon's Seal, Indian Pink, and May Apples, just to name a few.  I continue to discover wildflowers as the seasons change.

 

I believe this is a wild coreopsis.  Each stalk holds many bright yellow flowers.  They are growing near my driveway on 4' or taller plants.  I don't think I have to state the obvious here, but how pretty for free with no labor required.  Not to mention that because it's a native, it is also drought tolerant.

 

 

I'm not sure what this one is, but the flowers are beautiful.  Tyler must agree, because he brought me a handful of these last night and asked me to put them in water.  The stems are thin and tall, reaching 4 feet or more.  Again, a free show, requiring no more work to enjoy than a quick walk around the driveway.

 



 

 

And while we're talking about weeds, I have to give a shout out to Butterfly Weed (Asclepias Tuberosa).  This fabulous Missouri native grows in fields and along the sides of highways and requires full sun.  It has a deep tap root, so don't try to dig one up.  Many local nurseries are starting to carry Missouri natives, realizing many of them are quite beautiful and desirable additions to the garden.  While this one has passed it's peak bloom time, I wanted to show you the cool seed pods that it dons.  Interesting in their own right.

 



 

 

Okay, I know this isn't a weed, but they just happened to be in very good bloom today and I wanted to share a pic.  This daylily is Firestorm, a spider type.



Progress Report for June 2013

As June ends, I have to say things are looking quite good.  There are a couple of gardens that I have yet to get a hold of, in terms of weed control, but I am making progress with the weed situation overall.

Rain has been frequent and plentiful, and nothing is burning up.  It's actually so chilly this evening that I took pictures wearing jeans.  It's amazing that this yard survived last year's drought, without any care.  We did have to take out a few trees, and do a healthy amount of trimming, but the survival rate is phenomenal.

The entry and deck gardens have gotten the most attention the past two weeks.  Neither are done, but the entry garden is nearly full.  I can't believe it, really.  Kind of disappointing that I won't have much room for end-of-the-season deals and the occasional Lowe's clearance rack find next year.

I have also pretty much filled the garden around the raised double parking spot.  It isn't a very big garden.  In my mind's eye, I always think it's wider than it is.  I suppose going to the nursery is sometimes like loading your dinner plate; your eyes are bigger than your stomach, or in this case, your planting space.

You should never have a garden solely filled with in-ground plantings.  Always use potted plants here and there for interest.  Ceramic and clay pots are quite beautiful and add a hardscape element to your space.  The change in elevation is also a great break for the eye, and gives cascading plants a place to relax.

These are some houseplants that I got from my friend Rube.  If you are interested, let me know!  She has a wonderful selection of plants for sale.

My new PeeWee Hydrangea, variegated liriope, and Lemon Lime hostas, all planted in the last two weekends.

Snowflake hydrangea.  Double white blooms.  This is a little shrub now, but it will reach 6' x 6'.

Entry garden



Twisted Rush (top), requested by Eric.

Beautiful glass wasp catcher, compliments of Mom.

Mixed coneflowers.  Don't forget how great long-blooming perennials can be in pots.

Lemon Tree... with lemons!  Also having a second flush of blooms.

A $4.88 hanging basket from Home Depot provides a quick filler for this large pot (the purple petunias and verbenas).  This is a huge pot, and they've consumed about 3/4 of it.  The other pot-fellows are Basil and a perennial grass.

My fig tree is filled with fruit, and joined by new houseplants from Rube.

Deck garden.  Still looking a little shabby, but I've got newspaper and mulch down either side now.  The daylilies provide wonderful color.

A daylily that I brought from my old house.  It was a single fan that I found along the fence line, in the wooded area.  It took a few years to bring back, but now it puts on a great show.  The most floriferous daylily that I have.