Category Archives: house bed

First Freeze and Snowfall

annuals, backyard bed, fence bed, gate bed, house bed, loki bed, perennials, the Lot

Brr. That cold snap is turning into a day of snow. This morning I looked out the back window into the garden and noticed what looked like white blooms on the anemone.

111916_anenome

Upon closer inspection, the white “blooms” were the seedheads of the plant. This is the first year the anemone has been on the Lot, so I didn’t know that about this plant.

111916_anenomeseedhead

The first hard freeze has come and gone. The random volunteer gourd plant growing from the house bed has been zapped.

111916_squash

As well as the handful of begonias I was gifted this spring.

111916_begonia

And the hostas in both Loki’s bed and the gate bed.

111916_hostalentenrose

The maiden hair fern and Japanese painted fern both were bitten by the frost as well.

111916_hostafernsgrass

We feel the Lot is ready for the weather cooling and the plants (at least above ground) shutting down. Everything is put to bed for winter to arrive.

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – July 2016

backyard bed, bloom day, containers, fence bed, front bed, gate bed, house bed, perennials, sidewalk bed, the Lot

Happy Bloom Day! Every month May Dreams Gardens host Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day, a day in which gardeners from around the world share what is blooming in their gardens.

First up is a shot from the Lot’s gate bed which is in the shade the majority of the day with just a touch of afternoon sun. The astilbe is in bloom, nestled among the hosta, maiden hair fern, and maiden hair grass.

071516_astilbehostafern

This next bloom is a dwarf coneflower, Echinacea purpurea ‘Butterfly Kisses.’ This little guy helps to keep the roots of the clematis cool in an area exposed to full day sun.

071516_butterflykisses

And out front in the south bed are the standard purple coneflowers. I noticed these plants aren’t as prolific as last season. I will have to get in there later and see if there is any disease or other factors stunting the growth.

071516_coneflowerstand

Here is one of the hanging baskets from this season, containing zinnias, snap dragons, and kale. I really dig how the blue green foliage of the kale is working out here.

071516_hangingbasket

Here is a container put together by my gardening friend Miss A.

071516_hangingbasket2

In the north bed by the house, the ligularia is blooming.

071516_ligularia

And on the east side of the house, the masterwort and lady’s mantle are both showing color.

071516_masterwortmantle

This next bed I’ve struggled with ever since beginning to garden on the Lot. Who knew common milkweed grew so tall! Blooms include tall garden phlox, balloon flowers, and coreopsis.

071516_milkweed

I picked up this mix of succulents, great as a ground cover,  from a neighborhood plant exchange. I used them to fill in some gaps here and there in the full sun bed in the backyard.

071516_mixedsedum

Finally, here is the ornamental oregano just added to the Lot this spring. It is near the purple coneflowers in the front, south bed. I saw this plant draping over a rocky border during the 2014 Portland Garden Bloggers’ Fling. I’ve wanted one ever since!

071516_ornamentaloregano

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day – July 2015

alley bed, backyard bed, bloom day, fence bed, front bed, house bed, southwest bed, the Lot

It’s bloom day again, so that means it’s time for another inventory of what is currently blooming on the Lot. May Dreams Gardens is the blog host of GBBD. There you can view gardens around the world and see what is blooming.

Beginning in the alley bed, the asiatic lilies are finishing up as the dragon’s blood sedum is just beginning to hold aloft its fuchsia blooms.

071515-dragons-bloodThe daylilies in the back have finished up, but the second flush of the bachelor’s button (Centaurea montana) is beginning to bloom. About midsummer, this plant will bloom, the stalks collapse outward, and new growth will begin from the center.

071515-bachelors-button

In the backyard of the Lot, there is plenty going on right now. Just finishing is the Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ and the lavender (Lavandula). In the west fence bed the dwarf sea holly (Eryngium planum ‘Blue Hobbit’) is still blooming, along with a second display of yellow columbine (Aquilegia chrysantha) and some rose champion (Lychnis coronaria).

071515-blue-hobbit

071515-yellow-columbine

071515-rose-champion

Back by the rain barrels, the swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)is doing well in its second year on the Lot.

071515-swamp-milkweed

The backyard bed includes blooms from the himalayan cinquefoil (Potentilla nepalensis), jupiter’s beard (Centranthus ruber), and the tickseed (Coreopsis verticillata). The black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia) blooms are just beginning to open.

071515-threadleaf-coreopsis

The east fence bed is blooming with tall garden phlox, balloon flowers (Platycodon), and tickseed (Coreopsis).

071515-tall-garden-phlox

071515-baloon-flower

The dwarf coneflower (Echinacea purpurea ‘Buttefly Kisses’) is peeking out from underneath an exuberant clematis.

071515-butterfly-kisses

Another unidentified clematis has given up waiting for its trellis it was promised this last spring and is now crawling across the lawn.

071515-clematis

The house bed is glowing right now with the leopard plant (Ligularia ‘Britt Marie Crawford’). The foamy bells (Heucherella ‘Sweet Tea’) is still sending out blooms and some native cardinal flowers (Lobelia cardinalis) are beginning to bloom for the first time.

071515-ligularia

071515-SweetTea

071515-native-cardinal-flower

In the southwest bed, the bee balm (Monarda) is on its way out while the south bed is in full bloom with a palette of violet, red, yellow, and orange.  Multiple varieties of tickseed (Coreopsis) are blooming as well as purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) and blanket flower (Gaillardea).

071515_south-bed

071515-coneflower

Finally, here are a few of the annual containers I put together with leftovers from the GIG’s container planting day.

071515-containers