A few random pictures of the garden
I followed this busy Swallowtail Butterfly around trying to get a shot of it.
It was going crazy feeding on the Dianthus.
This Robin nested here on our light fixture and lost her eggs to a crow. We went away for a few days and came back to find out her nest had been ravaged. I had run off the crow before but I think it figured out we were gone. She came back and this time was more successful in raising her brood. She wasn't very happy with me taking pictures. I suppose the big black camera and lens seems a bit imposing.
The Rose Breasted Grosbeaks and Cardinals are constant visitors.
The kids gave me this little garden/tea cart that was green. I painted it black and finally got it outside to use. The little clay pot guy was found at Cracker Barrel. I was always going to make a life sized one but never did so this little guy will have to do!
The planter with the impatiens has really taken off. Loving the look of this and I'm sure I'll repeat this look each year.
Empress Wu- sooooo slow to get going. I heard it could take 8 years to be mature. I'm thinking I might dig and move some of the nearby hostas to give it more room in hopes it will start growing more vigorously. My other hostas have filled in quite heavily so I can move them with little feeling of loss.
You can see Empress Wu on the right size just barely taller than these. There is a mix of Bright Lights and Gold Standard hostas grouped together here.
All of these I had dug and split and spread around back when we created this area for the fountain.
You can see my post about that "here" Our pump for the fountain pooped out and is being replaced. We just opened it up but haven't got it running yet.
I put in this Astrantia (Masterwort) Star of Fire several years ago and love it. I enjoy each phase of the flower and it blooms into August- can't beat that!
In the early evening the sun reaches this back area for a brief time.
This year I opted not to put the flowers all the way around the fountain area because the hostas were covering them up so much it didn't seem worth the effort. I popped in some of the orange wax begonias that I used in the planter up on the deck on the right side but only a few feet worth.
Lastly we added a shepherds hook with two lanterns for a new accent to the garden. I got the idea when I saw my friend Linda's blog. She did a walk through of the gorgeous landscaping around her home in California as seen "here"
I've got a bun on to move this arbor several feet down the garden path to the entry of the patio. This year the clematis and rose that grow on it have barely started so I won't be destroying much of anything.
Well that's all for now- wishing you a wonderful weekend!
