Nearly Naked

Last year I began I very short lived series of posts called The Full Monty, British slang for 'the full amount' or as we Americans sometimes put it, 'the whole shebang'. The Full Monty also refers to the title of a British movie about a group of men who strip completely nude to raise money. Only two posts were created. By July, I realized I was too frustrated with the garden and all the areas in need of repair to show the whole thing. Instead, I focused on the spots that made me happy and seethed about the rest, renovation and redesign plans simmering all summer.

My front garden isn't part of this post. It was redesigned but still needs time to fill out. A badly pruned dwarf abelia and 200 soggy, wretched annual vinca, lovers of heat and drought, aren't feelin' the love from the 8 inches of rain we've received in the last month and the loropetalum that replaced three huge, nonflowering hydrangea look like like little purple blobs. You're welcome to come by and gawk, but be prepared to be underwhelmed. This month I'm not going the full monty, just nearly naked.

Welcome to the garden!

Clematis crispa, daylilies, lamium, and graniums

This long stretch of perennials starts at one of the entrances to the dog run and ends at the rain garden. It's packed with plants that attract hummingbirds and pollinators, as well as four roses.

The first trumpet creeper blooms opened this morning.

I love the feathery foliage of liatris against the agastache, rue, and Night Owl roses.

The coneflowers are beginning to bloom. I love the soft pink of this cultivar. I didn't expect it to be so delicate.

These are 'Rocky Top' coneflowers. Their flowers always face east.

The top of the bed looking towards the gate. My Nano-Farm is on the edge of the patio.

From that same spot, if you turn to the right, a long stretch of perennials and trees creates the spine of the garden. These shasta daisies are some of the toughest plants in the garden. They thrive in bone dry soil.

Hidden behind the daisies is the frog pond. The variegated water celery has grown so much you can't see the muck buckets any more. Hooray! A little frog lives here and loves to sun itself on the rocks.

Instead of trying to find plants that would grow in some of the gardens driest spots, I opted for a creative solution, instead. I love the shadow of this iron trellis against the ash tree. The ceramic urn is filled with variegated vinca vine.

I used a couple of big rocks set at an angle to create a small shelter, an old toad house, and a ceramic mossy green urn to create a toad abode. Diervilla grows behind the green urn and will eventually fill this space.

The monarda and joe pye weed (eupatorium) are enormous, thanks to all the rain. The monarda will be blooming soon. 

The back garden receives partial shade. Several areas have very dry soil that has been a challenge to work with. A network of soaker hoses keeps the plants watered but I've discovered numerous plants that do well in dry partial shade such as kalimeris, sedum, linaria, amsonia, porteranthus stipulatus, Solomon's Seal, and northern sea oats.

Porteranthus stipulatus is a native wildflower also known as Western Indian Physic.

Red and pink knautia pop up all over the garden. I love the contrast of the red knautia against the creamy yellow variegated sedum.

Kalimeris and 'Autumn Joy' thrive in dry partial shade. I love the juxtaposition of the delicate pale blue daisies against the big thick sedum leaves.

 This was another trouble spot so I filled it with a potted birdhouse and creeping bramble.

 This bed ends at the other entrance to the dog run.

Standing in the dog run and looking to the right, the garden becomes moister the closer you come to the crepe myrtles. Coneflowers, asters, non-herbal oregano, phlox, and heliopsis, among many others, thrive in this bed.

I don't know the name of this coneflower cultivar but I love its peachy color.

Heliopsis

Looking back towards the daisies

After a very stormy night, the sun was neon bright this morning and we enjoyed incredible weather all day.

I don't know the name of these little daylilies, but I love how vibrant they are. Spigelia grows in the corner.

Spigelia marylandica and 'Chocolate' eupatorium grow near the blackberries.

This corner is packed with 'Chester Thornless' blackberries that are always devoured by the birds.

The garden circles an elipse of grass and contains native laurel oak, ash, hornbeam, and cedar trees as well as a beautiful little viburnum lenato or nannyberry tree. We added a 'Heritage' river birch, three crepe myrtles, and a dogwood. The builder planted a 'Yoshino' cherry tree in the middle of the yard.

Last fall I added  'River Mist' sea oats to brighten up this dark little corner. I love how elegant it is and am really looking forward to seeing it grow to three feet tall.

Staychs 'Hummelo' are popular with the pollinators and are super easy to grow.

Staychs 'Hummelo', 'Summertime Blues' campanula, native mint, phlox, and black eyed susans fill this bed near the variegated sea oats.

Looking towards the river birch garden

Thalictrum, Bowman's root, euphorbia, anemones, and epimedium

Part of the river birch garden is shady while the side jutting out into the lawn receives sun and filtered shade. I added this section of the garden last fall. Most of the plants in this garden were part of the original design and had to be moved as the garden became shadier. I call it the Founding Flowers Garden.

Most of these hosta came from a friend and I have no idea what their names are. 

The phlox are all seedlings that should range in color from white to hot pink when they bloom. I'm really looking forward to seeing them bloom since their color is a surprise. 

Dwarf heliopsis, 'Peggy Martin' climbing rose, variegated sage, coneflowers, rudbeckia, and Persian cornflower are just a few of the perennials in this bed. The Persian cornflowers are a favorite of the goldfinches who devour their seeds.

Vareigated iris and nepeta

This picture was taken a few days ago when the iris was blooming. Red knautia and rue are also in bloom.

Looking back towards the rest of the garden

A row of massive Prague viburnums grow against the garage wall, just past the gate. The dogwood garden is just across the grass path from the river birch/founding flowers garden.

Pink yarrow

Tradescantia seedling

Stoke's Aster (Stokesia)

Coneflowers and more heliopsis grow near the yarrow.

Patio side of the dogwood garden

An enormous Rose of Sharon grows along the back of the house. I don't know why, but it's outrageously hard to photograph without a weird glare. You can see a bit of it in these photos. Pennisetum 'Karley Rose' grows in the urn while two small honeysuckles have been planted in the big gold pot. I'm hoping they will cascade out of the pot and along the steps. A pink rose and more clematis grow near the rose of Sharon.

This is my Nano-Farm! A tomato, sweet potatoes, a ground cherry and purple carrots grow in pots near the fennel and jade plant. The Rose of Sharon grows nearby.

Ground cherries!!!