Memory Garden Displays. .

Hello, Hello!!

We have had the most spectacular June. .after all that miserable droughting!

I was a little worried the SECOND time we hit 100 degrees in early May. .

about how our summer would go.

But. .it has been great!

We even received another 3 inches of rain a couple nights ago!

WOO HOO!

I'm amazed at how well the plants are doing. .

and how many blooms we are getting.

For the first time. .

I was able to take some landscape views that looked nice. .

with big, green plants. .

complete with flowers!

Moonflowers are already blooming prolifically!! Though my mother in law has a great stand of these. .THIS bunch, actually came about from some shared seeds from Garden on Sherlock Street!!

All the photos today are taken of the Memory Garden. .

which I had started the fall before my dad died. .

and then proceeded to plant in. .

with horticulture gifts and plants that I bought from the generous memorial gifts given to me in his honor from family, friends, and neighbors.

The Blue Atlas Cedar at the far right (a few branches of it anyway) was put in during the fall of 2011.

And continues to anchor this garden with grace and blue beauty!

The lilies have just lit up their little section!

Here they are again in back of the miniature hollyhocks that have gone totally MAD in the back part of the garden!! The original couple plants came from my mom's garden at the farm!

The light pink flowers in the foreground (the hollyhock madness continues in the background) is a more drought tolerant Bee Balm or Monarda.

The hostess of the blog Gaia Garden. .

met this blogging girl in the parking lot of one of my favorite antique places a few years ago. .

and swapped garden plants. .

Oh for the LOVE of technology!!

And plants. .

And sweet people who aren't afraid of strangers!!

You can see. .

that it is doing well in my garden. .

and in the past, has been feeders to my favorite Swallowtail butterflies.

The daisies were purchased last summer. .

and there are both shorter ones as well as some taller ones.

The shorter ones have double petals. .

which I tend to prefer.

I was a little surprised to find this coneflower. .

Obviously it didn't bloom well last summer if at all. .

cause I didn't even remember seeing it. .

let alone planting it!!

I love the pom poms of petals on it!

Speaking of coneflowers. .

This bunch came from a few that I started from seed in the greenhouse several years ago.

I leave the seedheads on at the end of the season for finches to feed on. .

And this patch has mostly self-seeded and looks stunning in real life!!

Truly, the photos do it NO justice!!

You can get a little peek of goldenrod in the background. .

It blurs out the changes that we made to that bed last month!!

Will be bringing those photos soon!

But please don't judge my laziness. .

for putting up a bottle tree. .

without removing the labels from the bottles!!

I figured that they would come off sooner or later. .

really expecting them off SOONER. .

than later!!

Sigh!

Black eyed susans are another favorite of mine. .

which haven't done well in my garden until now!!

Sometimes, a mere change in location will fix the gardening issues. .

I have started all these by seed. .

But have had them in a location that they HATED. .

and subsequently died out in!

These lil guys are pretty tolerant. .

And so I hope. .

that they will flourish and be beautiful in their two new spots.

So far. .

So good!!

Though not officially part of the memory garden. .

My little veggie plot has moved locations and is now directly across the sidewalk from it.

There isn't a lot of room there. .

BUT. .

I have to walk by it multiple times daily now. .

and so the care has improved greatly!!

The three tubs up front hold herbs. .

Sage, chives, thyme, and dill. There is also lemon balm, rosemary, tarragon, and basil (along with some more dill plants) in the ground up front.

The guys built me 4 raised beds this spring to go with the one that we moved last fall and planted garlic in. .

The one to the left has potatoes, some onions and two eggplant bushes. The one on the right has cucumber bushes, several varieties of peppers, and a few more onions. In the back. .there is garlic, onions, spaghetti squash, more basil, and watermelon plants in one bed. .

Various types of tomatoes ranging from early tomatoes to grape tomatoes to heirloom tomatoes to yellow tomatoes. .as well as more watermelon, a few cucumber vines that the cats and chickens haven't ruined, some beets and snow peas.

 

Everything looks so much better than it has in the past. .

I'm sure it is because they are right under my nose. .

and watering is getting done with some regularity. .

The influx of GOD'S natural water. .

has likely helped as well!!

If you kept walking straight through this photo. .

you would walk right into the herb and kitchen garden. .

It's a GREAT view. .

from those two red lounge chairs in the distant background. .

FINALLY. .

I can sit. .

and relax. .

and enjoy the fruits of our labor!!

Until I notice those renegade weeds brought full on. .

by all the rain!!

BUT. .

you won't hear me complaining!!

Enjoy your week!