Thursday, July 3, 2014

From our Front Porch

I have been putting albums on Facebook showing photos taken from our front porch.  This time, I decided to put them in a blog post.  Oh, wait!  I just went to label this, and saw that I have done a post showing photos from the front porch.  I checked, and it was done earlier in the spring, I'm thinking, May.  There is a big difference in the view from then!


These photos were taken a day ago.  Today, I trimmed back the Joe Pye weed so there will be room to walk in the yard.


The zoom on my camera works pretty well.  I am please that the Rattlesnake master plants are blooming, but I am not seeing as many insects on them as in the past.  I hope more show up soon.


This Kiss me over the garden gate was given to me by a friend.  It's an old fashioned reseeding annual.


Wild quinine, Purple meadow rue, I forgot what kind of Liatris, and Pale purple coneflower


The bees and hover flies have continued to visit the Foxgloves, even though they are almost finished blooming.


This clump of Purple prairie clover started blooming before the others, so while they are just in their prime, this clump is fading.


I am loving this view with the Liatris, various conefloweres, and Mexican hat blooms.


We will head west, to the other side of the sidewalk.


I forgot what kind of Allium this is.  I think the grass is Sideoats grama.


Today, I cut back some of the seedheads of the Golden alexanders so they don't flop as much.  The Cup plant is looking pretty good, even though some of the leaves have aphids on them.  I like having another Purple meadow rue on this side of the sidewalk.  I've mentioned this is the house my husband grew up in, and this light belonged to his parents.


I don't remember the name of this Clematis, but I always have to tie it up so it doesn't flop.  We should probably be painting the railings soon.


A friend gave me a couple starts of Illinois bundleflower last year, after I had mentioned planting seeds that did not come up.  It is one of my favorites.  These blooms will turn into awesome brown seedheads that I posted photos of last year.


There is a path in here, but it is not visible in this photo.


Wild quinine is a plant I like having in different spots.  The Ironweeds are beginning to bloom, but the pink blooms are Swamp milkweed.


Continuing to the west, the pink on the right is a different Swamp milkweed.  The coneflowers in the background are in the curb bed.



Here is a closer view of the Gray-headed coneflowers which have just opened, more Wild quinine, Swamp milkweed, and on the right is Wild senna.


I hope to see lots of bees and such on the Wild senna like I did the last couple of years.


Rudbeckia maxima


The Purple poppy mallows are blooming better than I've ever seen them to this year.  The yellow blooms are Lanceleaf  (I'm pretty sure) coreopsis.


This Wild senna, next to the Switchgrass cultivar I'm not thinking of the name of is not blooming quite yet.  I'm thinking the two didn't bloom at the exact same time last year, either.


I love Clematis pitcheri.



I didn't pay attention to the tag on this, and am thinking it is Tall poppy mallow.  I have enjoyed it iin this area, holding its own with other tall plants.


The Joe Pye weed on the west side of the bed is younger than the one on the east side.  I'm glad to see it is doing OK.  This one does not get as much water as the other one, either.


There are strawberries growing under the bench, and traveling around a bit.  My mother-in-law's Peonies and Lily of the valley, which I sometimes try to thin a bit are in the area behind the bench.


I zoomed in on the tubs that are on the sidewalk, these, behind a Beautyberry shrub.


Love lies bleeding is another one that self sows, and I have some on the east side of the house that did, but I got these already starting to bloom so there would be some good color for the garden tour that we participated in in June.


Well, here it is, July 3!  This will be the first 4th in many years that we will not be hosting a big family gathering for.  I am sad that we are not doing it, but we've had lots going on, including helping our daughter with her baby, Ruby, who will be 2 weeks old Sunday.    I hope you have a safe holiday!

10 comments:

  1. Sue, all your photos are wonderful, but that header photo--just stunning! I love it! And I'm sure the wildlife loves your yard best of all. Great job!

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    1. Thanks for your comments, anyone who subscribed to the follow ups. Sue, I just visited your blog, and see you do not have the comments open. Your vegetables and flowers are looking awesome! Could it be rabbits eating some of your plants? We had a later than usual frost, too. I'm glad to see your garden seems to have recovered.

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  2. I have to agree with you about the view with the Liatris, various cornflowers, and Mexican hat blooms! I'm amazed at your familiarity with all the names. For some reason, I just can't hold on to them in my head. "Busy" is how I like to see flower beds, and your front yard is definitely my cup of tea! I hope you have many occasions to enjoy that front-porch view. Happy 4th to you! And enjoy holding & loving on that new granddaughter♥

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  3. Sue ~ Your garden is so packed with happy and lovely plants. What a joy it must be to wander out there each day.

    Have a great 4th ~ FlowerLady

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  4. Hi, Heidi -- I always think that when I open this blog and see your header. I look forward to the text; almost like coming to visit in person and having an enthusiastic tour, identifying plants and looking forward to those not quite in bloom.

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  5. Sue, I can see why you get awards for your flower gardens. They look stunning as always. It must be a real joy to view all the different areas of the yard and watch the changes as they happen during the year. It's been a tough year for me to keep up with the weeds and grass mowing. My gardening for this year has been limited by the weather conditions. I'm still trying to get some things planted like squash and pumpkins in hopes that they will mature before the frost hits in October. There's still 103 days before the first frost date so I'm not giving up just yet. It's kind of the gardener way, don't you think?

    Have a great 4th of July holiday.

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    1. I should clarify that our yard was on a neighborhood garden tour, oh, and I guess it was yard of the month a couple years ago, again, from our neighborhood association. It hasn't won any awards, David. Thanks for your nice words, though!

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  6. Oh yes, I remember the Illinois Bundleflower from last year. Love it! Your garden looks so pretty, Sue. Congratulations, again, on the new addition to your family!

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  7. You're right Sue, that is a great combination with the liatris, coneflowers and Mexican Hat. But then again, I'm always prejudiced towards the more prairie type look!

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  8. It's always so fun to visit your summer garden, Sue. You have a wonderful variety of flowers packed in to your corner space. I love seeing them and imagining how lovely it must be to look out from your front porch! Hugs, Meems

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