Stunning Hibiscus, Clay. Do they grow well for you over there, or is this the first year you’ve had it.?
@Sjoerd first year of bloom grew from seed last year. @Daniel W I give you major props ....there is no way I'd eat anything insect based
Hummer at the monarda patch Pappa the ‘Big Cheese’ out scouting for safe passage for the 20 or more little chicks. It’s so hot umbrella are needed to shade the hydrangeas. Belladonna surviving the heat Cleome ‘spider flower’ reseeds everywhere. Thank goodness the birds seek out most of them. Russian sage at its peak. Fragrance is enchanting in the hot days of summer. ‘Red Hot’ Lily says it all…temp 98 F today. Hot hot hot….
@Pacnorwest beautiful photos! Is that a Guinnea hen? I saw them at the Tillamook cheese factory, fun but noisy. Based on your recommendation, I was looking at Russian Sage. They had some at Freddies so I bought one. It was lanky and weak due to the low light there so I pruned it back. The leaf scent is interesting - camphor? Reminds me a bit of Vick's Vapor Rub. Plant names are interesting. Now it's considered an actual sage (Salvia Yangii and not Perovskia atriplicifolia now) also native to Central Asia, including parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as Tibet, but maybe not native to Russia. (Also Rosemary is included as a Salvia now. I didn't know that Salvia rosmarinus) Me blathering . Your photos are beautiful!
@Daniel W happy to hear you have one . They are an easy care plant. I know isn’t it funny a lot of plants have changed names. Even Rosemary. It is now Salvia Rosemary. I still manage to repeat the older common names. And yes like (Russian sage ) easier to remember than Perovskia antriplicifiloa and in the salvia genus too. The color of leaves ia a soft grey dusty blue and fragrance is very nice. I like the light lil blue and shrimp color blooms at the tip of the stem spikes. Wispy movement in the afternoon winds.This plant is a real gem.
That’s impressive Clay. Chapeau. Pac— i can’t tell you how much I enjoy seeing pics of the animals and plants in your garden. If I lived there, I don’t think I would ever get any work done. It is all just so lovely and interesting as well. I have never seen a Perovskia that colour. I only know the blue ones over here. Nice plant, though.
@Daniel W. Quail birds are quite honestly running thru the pastures and garden. Always popping in and out, & in the birds large water feature. They are the noisiest birds , no wonder their feathers were scattered thruout the pastures before I started on my mowing rampage. And now when I go outside I look up and search surrounding trees for that sneaky bobcat before I even decide where to go. Since the gopher incident. https://myodfw.com/game-bird-hunting/species/californiavalley-quail Two characters that play a roll attracting bobcats. Most of those pesky squirrels and chipmonks have disappeared. So I guess having a bobcat around isn’t all that surprising. They are better than any prevention method to keep deer away too. Just a bit scary and I always try to be on my guard for them when outside .They are small here but can be dangerous.
Long list of lilies exposing a few hungry pests. This guy caught on the Casa Blanca lilies. A stare down… he’s not budging… I wiped him out. Hello preying mantis Summer daffodil doubles. Grosbeak bird cooling off in water feature. taken thru window . Another grasshopper on the Star Gazer lilies. We had a stare down. He lost …
@Logan you have a very nice lavender crop! Here are some of the flowers today. The Four o'clocks at 9am. They can't read the time! In the "deer border" Mini Dahlias grown from seeds. I think I'll dig up a couple in the fall, to overwinter in the garage. Also in the "deer border". The old bunch of Alstroemerias. Container roses and others David Austin "Bring Me Sunshine"
Daniel beautiful garden flowers all looking happy and always a colorful addition in any garden. You pic out the coolest plants and flowers. Now it’s time to sit back and enjoy your beautiful garden just for today.
Pac— more beauties from your garden. Is that large insect a katydid? He would make quick work of your plants. Daniel— Those Mirabilis really are looking good. I like the smell of them. Impressive dahlias, mate.
That last pic a katydid, staring right up at ya bug eyed what a face, determined to set up open house. This is the time of year for them . This is when I wish I still had my ducks.
Pac, I bet that Casa Blanca lily is very fragrant. One of my favorites. So are praying (and they are preying too ) mantis. in the Ancient EgyptianBook of the Dead, the "bird-fly" is a minor god that leads the souls of the dead to the underworld. I wonder if they have always been native here, or introduced. I enjoy seeing them, lady bugs, and spiders because they eat the bad insects. I like sitting on the back patio and watching the insects pollinate the flowers. The ducks run around there too. Sjoerd, I like the Mirabilis' fragrance too. Few pollinating insects feed on them here. I don't know why. I also haven't seen hummingbirds tasting them.
You all remember the ‘Firefly’ petunia I purchased a while back, that illuminates at dusk for a few minutes. The other night I opened the door to step outside on a covered patio enclosed with 3 walls to take a pic of the white buds glowing …. Surprise…. Surprise , a couple of bats came flying right past my head so close I could feel the wing breeze. I decided to look out the window next time. I know we have bats here . i like them and they keep many flying enemies at bay and fun to watch the aero-bat-ics at dusk. It’s just too creepy when I feel like they are playing dodge ball (I’m the ball) in a small enclosure . Curious if the illumination could have helped attract the bats on the small patio surrounded by a jungle of greenery.
@Sjoerd I owe you a big thank you You are correct Perovskia from my garden pic is labeled incorrectly. It had been bothering me and of course knowing your opinion is important and your respectful reply turned out to be a nagging lil voice in my head. “That’s a good thing” . It’s not the first time I’ve labeled a plant incorrectly and probably won’t be the last. Apologizes I had to figure this out. Turns out it’s a culinary herb, but I use it a lot in mass floral arrangements for the long wispy stems. I just knew when you gently pointed out it was an unusual color something was amiss. Your kindness and patience paid off and the ticken in my brain went counterclockwise until a lil light bulb suddenly went off. The answer came to me out of the blue . It sometimes happens that way , like watching a movie and viola something clicked. It is not Perovskia. Actually it’s a Hyssops. Thanx again. Threadleaf Giant Hyssop (Agastache rupestris) Giant Hyssops, white yarrow, wheat grass plumes, spiraea clusters , penstemon’s. A mass floral arrangement.
