Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: July 2008

On the 15th of every month, Carol over at May Dreams Gardens takes a break from planting plastic spoons and filing quarterly gardening reports to host Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. I am usually late to these gatherings, so this month I decided to get ahead and post a day early instead.

Walking out into the garden this morning, I realized 2 things almost immediately: 1) My garden is showing the effects of having gone for 3 weeks without any attention from me, and 2) "July" and "Jungle" may have a few different letters between them, but they are one in the same in my main backyard garden bed:


Yikes! Crazy, huh? Ligularia, eggplant, blueberry shrubs, creeping thyme... no wonder my garden has a bit of an identity crisis going on! Most are foliage and edible plants, but there are a few things in flower. Like this 'Yubi Red' portulaca and light purple Russian sage:


And at the feet of the Russian sage, this cute little Hardy Ice Plant from Mulberry Creek Herb Farm is a color echo for the portulaca blooms:


Walking further back, I am reminded that I have not yet dug up the little strip at the side of the driveway, in order to start my lavender hedge, by these 'Grosso' blooms:


The bees (and I) enjoy the drumstick flowers of allium sphaerocephalon:


And I wonder why the butterflies continue to ignore my bronze fennel, and my butterfly weed:


'Cinderella' asclepias, wintersown with seed shared by the wonderful Colleen, isn't even enough to tempt them, it seems:


At the end of the garden, my 'Copper King' lilies brighten up one of the grape arbor posts, although they appear a bit washed out in this early morning light. They are just about done blooming:


Around the corner, the first of these pretty lilies--which bloom like stargazers but stay dwarf--has just become fully open:


Nearby, a shrubby little clematis weaves its dainty blue blooms amongst the strawberries and sedum:


In the front yard, the garden is mostly quiet. The Spanish foxgloves are finished, and there are only a few snapdragons and verbena to keep the lovely oakleaf hydrangea blooms company:


Containers carry their weight here, though. In addition to the big urn, chock full of stuff, and the porch planter with New Guinea impatiens and lots of coleus, the rescued crown of thorns plant is happily blooming away at the bottom of the steps:


Since my digital camera is so old, it doesn't take good pictures at dusk... so I didn't get good shots of the other containers this time. Here is where our tour of July's blooms ends in my garden--but check out May Dreams Gardens on the 15th to see what's blooming around the world!

-------- My full July Blooms List:

Shrubs, grasses and climbers: Oakleaf hydrangea, clematis integrifolia, lonicera sempervirens, 'Rotstrahlbusch' panicum virgatum

Perennials and bulbs: 'Caradonna' salvia, Spanish foxglove (almost finished,) 'Chubby Fingers' sedum, 'Fuldaglut' sedum, 'Marcus' salvia, hardy red ice plant, Russian sage, various hosta, NOID artemisia, asclepias tuberosa, 'Cinderella' asclepias, drumstick allium, NOID dwarf lilies, 'Copper King' lilies, linaria, Mom's dianthus, 'Walker's Low' catmint, various heuchera

Annuals, herbs and vegetables: 'Bonfire' begonia, 'Totally Tempted' cuphea, 'Black & Blue' salvia, various snapdragons, purple verbena, everbearing strawberries, all tomatoes, sweet peppers, salvia officinalis, 'Infinity Orange Frost' New Guinea impatiens