Independence Day

The Flag
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by Kelly, age 10
Submitted June 26, 2002
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The Flag that waves through hard tough times,
the flag that sparkles with light,

and hope flows through that flag

in the sun rain or at night

that is our flag shinning bright

(Posted by http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/more/poetry.html )

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HAVE A GREAT FOURTH OF JULY!

Pinkfusion

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Somehow this year my garden got the pinks. As I worked in the garden this week, I noticed there is a heck of a lot of pink out there.

The coleus cuttings turned out to be many shades of pink and pink accents. A neighbor gave me a left-over flat of pink impatiens so I paired them with the pink coleus.

In pots

and in the ground.

Other annuals - pink cosmos and cleome .

Even the pot of zinnias Giant Flowered Mix and California Giant is predominately pink.

The perennials I’ve planted over the years are many shades of pink. A lot of them were gifts from friendly gardeners.

Saucer sized hardy hibiscus (from a neighbor)

Cone flowers (from a neighborhood school plant sale)

Garden phlox (from a friend)

Mum Clara Curtis (actually bought this one myself).

Crepe Myrtle (from another neighbor).

Pink everywhere. A happy accident.

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Zinnia

(Zinnia pot from 2008)

Every year I plant a happy pot of zinnias on our sunny patio.

On May 23, I planted ‘Giant Flowered Mix’ and ‘California Giant’ seeds. I poked shallow holes in the soil, placed a seed in each one, covered with a little soil and watered. Later in the summer they may get a little mildew or attract Japanese beetles. I fertilize with the other annuals and deadhead as the flowers fade. I’ll have color all summer.

I’ve been watering twice a day since the weather has turned hot. In this 90 degree heat, they tend to dry out but recover quickly.

Here’s how they looked at 11:20 am.

They made a complete recovery by 11:50 am.

After a month, they are ready to bloom - another year with a happy pot of zinnias.

The zinnia story from the University of Illinois Extension.

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Garden Bloggers Bloom Day - September 2009

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I almost forgot about Bloom Day. What happened to the first 14 days of September? I ran out this morning and snapped a few pictures of the blooms in my garden.

Carol at May Dreams Gardens hosts this colorful day on the 15th of each month. See the links to what’s blooming in other gardens here. Thank you Carol!

Sedum Autumn Joy. A common fall plant but a reliable performer in the hot sunny, spot with a ground cover sedum.

One of my favorites, Japanese anemone. I also have a pink one but the rabbits chopped off the bloom stalks before they got a chance to bloom.
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The mum Clara Curtis has a long bloom time. It started blooming in August and will go until frost. Here with the ever present coleus.
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I don’t grow tansy for the blooms. The fernlike foliage and medicinal aroma make it a keeper in my garden.
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Phlox David is looking a little raggedy but still producing blooms (when I remember to deadhead).

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The annuals cleome, nasturtium and zinnia add color to the garden.

Fall is a wonderful time in the garden. Now if I could only get September to slow down a bit.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day - October 2008

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Carol at May Dreams Gardens hosts a monthly Bloom Day. On the 15th of each month, garden bloggers post comments. The comments link to pictures of gardens posted on their blogs. It's a great way to see what's blooming in gardens around the world.

This is my first ever post for Bloom Day.

Since we have not had a killing frost here, annuals as well as fall perennials are blooming. The past weeks have been cool and sunny. Perfect fall weather.

As I worked on fall garden cleanup, I was surprised at the number of blooms I found. But, I know it won’t be long until we’re raking leaves. First frost in zone 6 is usually between the 15th and the end of October.

I've posted some pictures of my blooms.
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Marigold ‘Safari Yellow’ & Petunia ‘Rose Madness’

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Aster Aster novae-angliae 'Purple Dome’ - A dark, spectacular aster prone to a little mildew. This plant was "pinched back" effectively by some critters this year.

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Coleus - may be ‘Solar Sunrise’ or ‘Atlas’


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Coleus 'Pele' - I know it's not really a bloom but the colors are great!

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Pink impatiens ‘Super Elfin Lipstick’ and Bloodleaf. A re-seeded impatiens 'Bright Orange' pokes out of the right side in the picture.

This is the same area last year with an orange theme.

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Zinnia 'Painted Daisy' - in need of dead heading.

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Volunteer mum

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Cleome - sometimes called Spider plant. My grandmother called them 'Lectric Light Plants because they reminded her of a chandelier.

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Another yellow mum volunteer

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Also blooming:

Garden Phlox ‘David’
Snapdragon
Zinnia 'State Fair'
Rose ‘Blaze’
Sweet Alyssum
Cana
Campanula
Nicotiana ‘Fragrant Cloud’
Hardy Geranium ‘Splish Splash’
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’
Japanese Anemone pink and white
Celosia

Wow! That's quite a lot.
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Garden Homecoming

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I was on vacation last week – a very relaxing time away from home. The garden is looking only a little neglected. Fortunately, my friend Cindie watered the pots for me. Without her, they would have been toast!

The hydrangea (Hydrangea ‘Venice’) is blooming. The color this year goes from pink through lilac to purple. I never know what color it will be. Last year it was a bright pink. (see July 25, 2007 post) It is full of blooms. I mean FULL of blooms. The leaves are barely visible.

The Lace Cap is also blooming profusely. They are both happy in their spot – shaded from the hot afternoon sun.

The potted zinnias (Burpee Giant Flowering Mix and Magic Carpet Mix) look good on the patio. It’s too early for mildew.

The ('BrandyBoy') tomatoes are getting round and plump. I picked beans. The cucumbers are growing from their pot. I made cucumber salad. The 2 "Drip-Pro Waterer"s that I bought from Gardener's Supply seem to keep the potted vegetables from completely drying out.

Not everything looks as good. Japanese beetles are feasting on canna leaves, roses and pole beans. Dead looking, lace-leaved cannas are not a pretty sight. I haven’t found a way to get rid of those armored chewers. I never seem to have time to knock them in a bucket of soapy water. Karen Bernhard, Entomologist, Lehigh Co. Cooperative Extension, published Japanese Beetle information in “Penn State Master Gardeners” blog in the Morning Call July 10. http://blogs.mcall.com/master_gardeners/

Weeds that were tiny when I left are now large enough to have seed heads. Crabgrass, ever the opportunist, has sprouted in every unplanted inch of ground. I pulled one clump as big as a head of cabbage. The lilies are finished blooming and seed heads need to be cut off. Same with the hostas. The sweet alyssum needs a trim. Garden paths are overgrown. There’s compost tea to make. Annuals need to be fertilized.

Lots of work to do to catch up but it’s good to be back in the garden.

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More about container planting

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Doug Green’s e-book “Container Gardening” http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/container-gardening-ebook.html is full of successful container-gardening tips. I wish I had read it before I planted my containers.

Over the years I’ve had some container success. The sun coleus ('Pink Chaos') pictured above looked good all summer. The tall zinnias looked good in July but were a sad sight in August.

If you are interested in planting good looking containers that last all summer, Doug is doing a free online seminar series.

Doug says, “We're going to cover how most folks design containers and how we designed them at the nursery to make those big garden magazine-looking ones.”

I believe the seminar details will be in the free newsletter. To receive the newsletter http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/gardeningnewsletter.html and click on “Newsletter” then enter your email address. The following link to Doug's blog will get you to the sign-up page for the seminars (May 22 post) http://blog.douggreensgarden.com/ The seminar will start in about a week.

If you really want to learn how to do containers from an expert, tune in to the seminars. It should be fun.
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