I’m happy to say that the phlox that were chomped on by the deer have come back. Some of the plants will take a bit longer to bloom because of that. This particular plant somehow managed to escape the ravenous deer. I count on the color of the phlox as we get into mid to late summer. I planted them the first full summer we were here and they never fail. They also self-seed and plants that self-seed are my favorite things in a garden.
I did way too much work outside yesterday. It was rather coolish in the morning, but the humidity was there and by the time I was throwing in the towel, it was overwhelming. Nevertheless, I cut back the catmint, which was quite overgrown, cleared around the stepping stones in the big garden bed, pulled weeds, cut back some wild roses, and started to take a whack at pruning the burning bush. That bush is so darned big now that it’s taking up a lot of the that garden bed. It’s spectacular in the fall when it turns red, but the rest of the time, it shades too much of the garden.
There is also another bush that has taken over – a wild honeysuckle. We have them all over the property, but this particular one that is between the burning bush and a pricker-type bush has to go. It’s taken over yet another spot for flowers in that bed and I’m tired of it. So I’m going to cut it back at the end of the summer and dig it out. Wish me luck!
I like a wild-ish look to my gardens, but not that wild.
Anyway, it felt good to get a good start on cleaning up that bed.
Oh, and the burning bush is scheduled for a big old pruning very soon – what I’m doing now is relatively minor. I did manage to see the now abandoned robins nest that was tucked inside that bush. It’s a perfect place for a nest as it’s completely hidden from predators. Smart birdies!
Next up, the boxwoods in front of the house, which are looking sort of sloppy.
It hasn’t been an easy summer for garden maintenance, what with the endless rain, the smoke from the fires, and the humidity. I am definitely playing an extreme game of catch-up.
Stay safe.
Happy Thursday.
good luck with the upcoming removal of that unwanted bush. and with the rest of your gardening … even though you enjoy it, it’s still work, especially in hot, humid weather! hope you are taking it easy today.
i love flowers, but to actually garden is not one of my things. maybe because i haven’t consistently had a good place to garden and don’t now have one. but if i had a garden, i’d be going for a wild-ish look, too. and it would be filled with self-seeders. ease … :)
late start here today due to not sleeping well. i stopped listening to an audio of a thunderstorm at bedtime, but need to try that again. anyway, need to get going. oh, but we did get just over two inches of rain very early yesterday … loved it!
hope you, don and everyone else have a lovely day. stay safe.
kathy
Lately, we haven’t needed to listen to the audio of thunderstorm. It’s been happening as we go to sleep!
Stay safe, Kathy.
dear Claudia/Don — your phlox pix is very beautiful — we have one bunch that is about 3 yrs old, this year blooms are stunning, same color as yours — I also like reseeding plants — good luck with your removing honeysuckle bush — we have found it very hard to get rid of and we also have them all over — sometimes root systems are extensive. very humid here this week which may cause severe storms so we are watching wx reports. don’t forget to be careful and drink lots of water. stay safe
I don’t kid myself that removing that bush will be easy. It may be something I have to cut back every year.
Stay safe, Linda.
We did trim up our Burning Bush a couple of weeks ago. I had some Alium growing next to it and it wasn’t getting any sun. So we cut that area back and the Alium bloomed within a couple of days. We need to do a better pruning on it. Also my Spirea is going crazy and that needs some serious pruning, also. We finally had about 2.5 inches of rain yesterday. It was a beautiful rain. We hadn’t had any since May 8th except for a couple of .10 “events” which did nothing. Didn’t have to water last night which was the first time since we planted. Crazy year!!!!
It is fun to watch the animals and birds out in the yard. Don’t you wish there was a way to identify them. I often think it is the same squirrel doing something, but we have sooooooo many squirrels!! I wish I could identify who is who!! Same with all the rabbits, and we must have at least 20 groundhogs, too.
Stay cool today. It is really humid here today as well. Take care!
Not groundhogs…… I was still thinking about Buddy. I meant CHIPMUNKS….or as our wee one calls them ~~ Chip-a-monkeys…….
Oh, I love that name for chipmunks!
xo
This bush is so massive (and it’s on a downward slope) that pruning it substantially is going to be hard. So happy about your rain!
Stay safe, Chris.
You are an intripid gardner, Claudia. Kudos to you and Don for keeping things under control. We got a severe thunder storm around 5:30 this morning. It did get rid of a lot of humidity. Stay cool. Hugs, Elaine
We are having lots and lots of thunderstorms. All night long last night and we just had one as I was writing this comment.
Stay safe, Elaine.
Hats off to you to garden with all that humidity. You’ve had lots of growth due to all that rain. My son trimmed our yews out front, for old times sake. He is a terrific gardener. I trimmed our catmint too…it had really gotten away from me. We got a good rain the other day….and it’s raining again. It was supposed to be lawn mowing today, but guess it’ll have to wait til the morning. It hasn’t rained significantly since May as Chris said, and now it rains every other day as we’re trying to prepare for an outdoor wedding? Jeesh! Fingers crossed!
Hope you have a good evening! ;)
Is the wedding this weekend, Donnamae?
Yes…on Saturday. Rehearsal and dinner at our house at 5 this afternoon. Wedding tomorrow at 3. Reception at a hotel. Wish us luck!! ;)
Much, much luck and joy!
xo
Donnamae, I just saw this! Hope all went well for the wedding! We were soooooo happy to have the rain. We had less than 1/2 inch since May 8 and then we had 4 in over the last few days. It is amazing how the grass and plants react to (finally having) rain!! Just amazing.
I hope your magical day went beautifully and you took enough “pictures in your mind” that will last you forever. Congrats, MOG!!!!!
You have a very ambitious schedule of working in your garden. Makes me tired just reading about it. We like ours to be on the wild side too (I prefer to all it a “cottage garden” LOL).
Now it’s so cool after all-day rainfall yesterday. We’re not complaining. Not when so much of the country is suffering with heat. Such a weird summer.
Take care,
Kay
Well, it’s only ambitious because I’ve had to let it go so long due to weather and smoke and heat. It will get entirely away from me if I don’t get on it.
Stay safe, Kay.