Deep Green World
Sunday, July 17, 2016 at 5:00PM The shady areas of my garden are lush and restful. In July they have become a deep green world with accents of white and an occasional pop of pink, orange or burgundy. The woodlands are a welcome shelter from the white hot sun. It is not the time of year for heavy or even moderate gardening, but for languid strolls, embracing the moist tropical air and keeping a bottle of cold water at hand. I take my time. I pause to take in the overall view, then slowly search out details of individual plants.
Here are some images from my deep green world. Some views will be familiar to those who regularly follow my blog, but I like to provide images through the changing seasons:
This very old birdhouse in the Trident maple has acquired a mossy patina.
Ligularia
Hardy begonia
Stromanthe 'Tricolor' is a potted tropical plant that spends the winter indoors.
Variegated toad lily
Zantedeschia
Hepatica, also called liverwort
Autumn fern peeks between leaves of Hosta 'Francis Williams.'
Dracaena marginata is another tropical plant that comes inside for the winter.
A potted ivy hangs from a decorative bracket beneath a birdhouse near the entrance to the woodland garden.
The sun glinting off this fern was almost too bright, until I turned it black and white:
Hydrangea 'Lady in Red' remains one of my favorite woodland plants:
Cercis canadensis ‘Whitewater’
Clockwise from top left: Pieris japonica; Hosta 'Sum and Substance' bloom; Snowflake hydrangea; Variegated hydrangea; Limelight hydrangea; A summer-blooming native azalea.
I hope you enjoyed these views of my deep green world. Have a great week! Deb
Reader Comments (17)
Just beautiful! You can almost feel the cool, refreshing atmosphere of your garden and the tranquility it imbibes!
I wish I had some of the deep shade you have. It's in all too short supply here and the pressure remains to keep my trees thinned so as not to block my neighbor's view. My old garden was mostly shade and, although when there I wished for more sun, I wish we'd found more of a happy medium in our current location.
Your photos are fantastic as always!
I very much enjoyed looking into your deep green world! Thank you for sharing! xo
I enjoyed the tour very much. It is refreshing to get out into the woods and explore, especially on a hot day. You got some very pretty photos on your walk.
Lovely. Liked the moss on the birdhouse roof.
Although I would find it very hard to live in your humid world I can see how it changes the planting possibilities. Yes, everything is green and lush whereas in my garden which may even be slighter cooler than yours (this year at least); mine is now mainly golden brown and silver with just a few evergreens making that green statement. Enjoy your green world Debb.
I can imagine how beautifully cool your woodland is, it must be a wonderful place to wander or just sit and enjoy the bird song.
I know if I were actually in your garden at this time of year, the heat would make me wilt. But it looks so cool and inviting. ;-)
You're right, I felt cooler just looking! My summer garden has plenty of green, as all gardens do, but more bright colors this time of year. And you probably already know that my garden is almost entirely sunshine, so we have two different worlds!
Your woodland garden is such a nice place, I can just imagine the smell and sound and the slightly cooler feeling out of the blazing sun. Today we have hot weather in London too, 92F and strong sunshine. I haven’t been out yet as I have no shade in my main garden so I am waiting for the evening to go out and tend to the garden.
Not much shade here, Deb.
With temps in the 90s and blazing sun every day, I'm afraid I don't have much of the deep green world you showed in your post. More of a hot, dry, parched world ;-)
I've been watering actually - last night, this morning and then tonight. It'll be my first watering in about a month! Not bad! I'd say that's fairly self-sufficient for the garden, especially in this unusually (new normal?) hot and dry year.
That said, as the crape myrtles around the back patio grow up, I do have some shade there and growing more and more each year. It gives me hope! ;-)
And with the orientation of the house, I'm able to sit on the back patio in the morning in relative comfort up until 10 a.m. or later. Not too bad!
Is that an anise shrub (Illicium?) in the upper-left photo right below the stone rabbit? It's beautiful.
I thought at first read that your redbud cultivar was called "Whatever", but "Whitewater" probably makes more sense! :-D
Deep green indeed! I can almost smell the chlorophyll. You really learn to appreciate a shade garden on a hot sunny day.
I love that you have captured the overall feel of your garden at this time of year, but have also focused in on so many exquisite details.
I love the quiet peace of a green garden. Yours is lovely. Thanks.
Dear Deb, deep green is what I am longing for! Here in Southern California, because of the drought and the heat, everything either seems to be brown or at least has a brown hue to it. Your lush green garden feels so refreshing in comparison to that. Well, I better go out and to some spot watering on the vulnerable plants, so that at least they have a chance to recover to green when temperatures will cool down. The only open question is when that will be the case this year.
Enjoy your green paradise!
Warm regards,
Christina
I love your deep green world. So peaceful.
Deb your garden is just such a delight! Thank you for that lovely walk around your shady oasis there. I love all the different woodland plants that you are able to grow and their lovely textures and shades. I have just come back from Scotland and I am finding the humidity today just unbearable so this was such a lovely respite - thank you!