From the Front Porch, August 15, 2014

I looked to see what things looked like in July, when I did a post showing photos taken from the front porch.  There have been enough changes to do another post.   This post has been a few days in the making.

The Butterfly bush is now blooming, smaller than the last few years, because I kept cutting it back so it doesn't take up so much space.

Rattlesnake master looks good all season.  This is the second season for the Sweet black-eyed susans.  The pollinators and I sure like them.  The Hibiscus is kind of out of place now, but I let it do its thing, and have seen some insects on the blooms.

I love where the Kiss me over the garden gate plants seeded this year.  They sure are tall, too!

The Joe pye weed is one of the favorites of the bees and butterflies, as are the Liatris ligulistylis, which you can see in the background here.  This Joe pye is 'Gateway'.

I trimmed back the lower stems of the Joe pye weed, so they will be blooming a little later than the upper ones.

Next, come Wild quinine, Mountain mint, Allium, Liatris, and Meadow rue.

These are the same plants as above, with some volunteer Stiff goldenrod, not blooming yet, and Coneflowers.

Oh, there are also seedheads of Golden alexanders.

I sure included some repeats!  In this one, you can also see a bit of yellow from a Mexican hat plant and the leaves of the cup plant.  Birds have been eating the seeds of the Coneflowers.  It's fun to come out and see them before they fly off.

The Purple prairie clover is finished blooming.  I'll keep the cage around it because the rabbits have been doing lots of munching, and this is one of their favorites.

We'll cross the sidewalk to the west side of the front yard.

I'm thinking the grass here is Sideoats grama.  The white is Wild quinine.

Whorled milkweed is one of my favorites.  This is a Switchgrass cultivar.

This Liatris is later opening than the others.

The Cup plant sure is tall.  I love it!  Illinois bundleflower is in front of the porch, with the yellow blooms of Gray-headed coneflowers on the other side.

I love the seed pods of Illinois bundleflowers.  The blooms are in the next photo.

Back to the Cup plant, the pollinators are loving it as much as the Joe pye weed.

There are two or three Monarchs that have been flying around the yard, nectaring mostly on the Liatrises, Joe pye weed, and the Cup plant.

I keep forgetting the names of the bees, but I'm pleased there are a number of different kinds.  These lovely blooms are Sweet black-eyed susans.  This is their second season here.

That may be Stiff goldenrod almost ready to bloom in the background.

I am sad that the Wild sennas are finished blooming.

I had a number of seedlings come up this spring that I was able to share.  I hope there will be some next spring as well.

The Prairie dock is blooming this year.  The blooms look a lot like Cup plant blooms.

We've been continuing to the west.  The grass is another cultivar of Switchgrass.  The strawberries have done pretty well in this spot.

I am glad the Joe pye weed that I was able to divide from the original clump is doing OK in this dryer area next to a sidewalk.  I didn't get the Beauty berry plants cut back this year.  The yellow blooms are Helen's flower.

I forgot what kind of Helen's flowers these reddish ones are.

The Rudbeckia laciniata hortensia plants have needed to be deadheaded and tied up so they won't flop over as much.

I hope you have been enjoying the views from your porches, too!  Enjoy what's left of summer.