Category Archives: backyard bed

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – November 2014

backyard bed, fellow gardeners, house bed, the Lot, winter

On this chilly Bloom Day, temperatures in our Zone 6a reached a whopping 30 degrees Fahrenheit. This seems to have been the weather theme for 2014. Everything has been cooler this year. This type of chill in November reminds me more of the Zone 5a where I grew up in the countryside, not in our current urban microclimate. Our trick-or-treaters had red noses and snowflakes in the air this year.

We’ve had our first hard frost already and the majority of the colorful Fall leaves are on the ground. Most of the perennials in the garden are looking quite fatigued if not completely wilted from the cold temperatures. I only have a handful of pictures to share, but thought it’d be a good idea to log them anyway.

This first mess of color is of an old-fashioned spirea we have in the backyard bed. I pruned this one back hard after it bloomed in the Spring. The growth was old, overgrown, and collapsing from the center. The shrub sprung back throughout the season with healthy new growth.

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Here is a bit of Lamium that is sheltered by the fence and house at the southeast corner of the backyard. Behind it is foliage from a Heucherella ‘Sweet Tea’ and a little Labrador Violet to the left.

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And here is our single pumpkin the raised veggie bed decided to grow this year. We were going to carve it for Halloween but never had time to do so. It’s currently under the bird feeder as a snack for the squirrels. You can see they have already started to nibble on the back corner a bit.

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So, only one plant is blooming right now on the Lot. Everything else seems to be settling in for the Winter. Head on over to May Dreams Gardens and maybe you’ll find a few more blooms from the more toasty areas of the world.

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – September 2014

backyard bed, fence bed, front bed, loki bed, sidewalk bed, southwest bed

Today is Bloom Day where gardeners worldwide share photos of what is blooming in their gardens. The cooler summer is beginning to transition into the beginning of this Fall. That hasn’t stopped the blooms on our Zone 6a Lot.

Sedum

The sedum in the south bed has begun blooming. This is the first of the sedum cultivars that blooms on the Lot. This could be due to the full sun the plant receives the majority of the day.

Cosmos

Here are some cosmos which found their way over to the Lot from the neighbor’s to the west side of us. Last season I had planted some annuals in her front flowerbed to welcome her to the neighborhood. Then Nature returned the favor this season. I had almost lost hope with this plant, believing I was mistaken and it was instead a weed, when it finally bloomed.

Potentilla

Also in the south bed, the Bush Cinquefoil – Happy Face® (Potentilla fruticosa) is still blooming. We planted this little shrub last season and it has adapted well. Potentilla is winter hardy, tolerates poor soil, and displays butterfly-friendly flowers from spring through early autumn.

Toad Lily

Fall means toad lilies on the Lot. This plant is situated in the east bed beside the foundation and is sending forth a lot of blooms. The flowers are small, but stunning nonetheless.

Sweet Autumn Clematis

This sweet autumn clematis is blooming for the first time since it was planted on the Lot. I had debated this past spring whether or not to add it. This month I found out I had already done so in a previous season. And that is why I should keep up more on this journal and new plant introductions to the Lot! Though considered an invasive in states south of here, this plant has not been placed on the invasive list for Michigan.

Mum

Though the black-eyed susans are fading in the backyard bed, the mum still blooming.

Fence-Bed

The phlox, coreopsis, wandflower, and black-eyed susans are blooming in the fence bed.

Pumpkin

And even though it is not in bloom form, I wanted to include this lovely pumpkin the pollinators and the volunteer pumpkin plant have provided us.

Other September Blooms include the coral bells in Loki’s bed, the plumbago in the backyard bed, and all forms of coreopsis, the blanket flower, coneflowers, and black-eyed susans in the south bed.

Visit May Dreams Gardens to view many more blooms for September.

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – August 2014

backyard bed, fence bed, front bed, gate bed, loki bed, native plants, pollinators

Today marks another Bloom Day as garden bloggers worldwide share what is blooming in their gardens. Our pleasantly cool summer has continued as I strolled around the Lot to see what was blooming here in Zone 6a. Looking back on the Bloom Day post for August of last year, I noticed many of the same plants are blooming.

Coral Bell

The coral bells in Loki’s bed are doing their August thing.

plumago-butterly-bush

This season there were some renovations and additions to the beds near the back of the Lot at the rain barrels.  Some chartreuse plumbago on the north side of the house was not receiving enough sun. I moved it to one of the rain barrel beds and now it really looks great with the cascade of blooms from  the butterfly bush.

Lobelia

Another addition to the same bed is a Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica), a blue counterpart to the traditionally red cardinal flower. This plant was purchased with others at a native plant sale this past April. It’s looking a bit peaked, though it still produced blooms. I’m wondering if the seasonally wet bed doesn’t have consistent enough moisture for it.

Hardy Mum

The mum in the backyard lot is larger than ever this year and in great need of being divided. It’s blocking a lot of light needed by the aster behind it.

blackeyedsusan-sage-plumago

And here is another one of those serendipitous seeds sowings Mother Nature provides. A sprig of black-eyed susans sprung up beside the plumbago and sage on the other side of the backyard bed. She has quite the eye.

coreopsis-sedum

In the fence bed, the coreopsis is looking pretty against the purple foilage of the sedum.

blackeyedsusan-savory

And more black-eyed susans are cozy with the winter savory that is in bloom.

hosta

The hosta in the shady gate bed is blooming.

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Around front in the south bed, many of the same plants are in bloom as last month. Though the monarda has passed, the coreopsis and cone flowers are still going strong. Joining them this month are (even more) black-eyed susans and the blanket flower.

081514_hibiscus

Also in the south bed is this lovely hibiscus. I’m not sure if there is enough moisture in this hot bed for the hibiscus. However, since it is just recovering from being moved so often, I’ll give it another season here and see how it does.

081514_summer-planter

Finally, I thought I’d include a snapshot of a container from the front porch. It’s just a simple combo of some annual lantana and pentas, providing a summer treat for pollinators. This container may or may not have been a result of my dear Other Half forgetting to water the petunias while I was away in Portland.

That is all for the Lot this month. Visit Carol’s August post at May Dreams Gardens for more photos on what is blooming in other gardens.