The Game Called Gardening

Today was blessed with blue skies, pleasant temperatures, and low humidity.

Around the garden, foliage is lush and late summer flowers are blooming, though some plants are already preparing for dormancy. Dogwood berries are turning red. Hydrangea blooms are beginning to dry.Top: 'Cherokee Chief' dogwood. 2nd row: Variegated artemesia ' Oriental Limelight' is blooming; Hydrangea 'Limelight'. Third Row: Hydrangea 'Endless Summer'; Glossy Abelia . Bottom: Bees love Caryopteris, also called Blue Mist Shrub.Nevertheless, the woodlands are still green and are luminous when golden lights shine through them. Late afternoon is a magical time to be in the garden.

It was a great day to spend on the patio, resting my sore muscles upon the chaise lounge while watching hummingbirds and butterflies.

My muscles are sore because two days ago I transplanted four hostas, four heucheras, three holly bushes, and one very large snowball viburnum. Oh, and also one hydrangea. Then I planted nine new shrubs — including azaleas, gardenias, and upright boxwoods — watered everything well and then put a fresh layer of pine straw around all of it. I haven't quite recovered. But September starts our best planting/transplanting season, and already I have a new list of to-do items, scheduled for my next couple of off days. 

The fact is I am never satisfied and am always striving to make my garden meet the visions in my head. The weather, the plants, the critters, and the budget don't always cooperate, but that is the challenge that makes the game fun.

Speaking of critters, I have a new opponent, who sneaks around at night, digging in my garden beds, often uprooting small plants. I suspected but wasn't sure who the culprit was, until he left his muddy paw prints across my patio, coming straight from new holes dug next to recently planted verbena:

Lou, who knows his animal prints, informs me it is a raccoon. 

Another, more welcome critter, is a dragonfly. We don't have a pond, so I was thrilled to see a newly emerged dragonfly, resting on a log while he was still drying.

We have a had a lot of rain the last couple of months, so maybe there is water in the creek bed at the bottom of the valley behind our house. Usually it is dry, but sometimes it does get some water in it. I think that is where the dragonflies are coming from.

Plentiful rain has also brought lots of mushrooms, including a dark, warty one I have never seen before:

If I hurry, I may get back outside to enjoy some more of this beautiful day and to plan my next move in this game called gardening. I hope you are having some nice weather, too!

Creature Feature

All creatures have a purpose and a place for being. I sometimes catch stray insects inside my home and, lucky for them, return them to the outside world. Nevertheless, I don't love all creatures and don't regret when some become part of the food chain. Chipmunks, for example, dig holes all over the yard and also raid the bird feeders. I feel no remorse when one of them is caught by the hawk or even the neighbor's cat. Good riddance! There are many more chipmunks, and one less is a good thing. 

Really?

Now, how can I feel that way about somone so cute? And I am wondering, since this little guy spends a lot of his time tunneling underground: How does he keep his coat so shiny and clean?

On the other hand, it is easy to love the bluebirds. I watch them every day as they work hard to feed their babies in a birdhouse close to the patio. They seem to know us and are not too shy to allow a few photos.

Papa bluebird often stands guard on top of the house, but he also does his share of chow duty:

And today, for the first time, I saw a little head poking out of the birdhouse. It must be getting crowded in there!

While I was sitting on the patio, I became aware of another visitor. This green anole lizard wanted to join me on the lounge chair. He insisted that he is the most handsome of all and wanted me to take his photo, too. What do you think?

I would also like to send out a special thanks to the Redneck Rosarian, who invited me this past week to view his beautiful rose garden. I enjoyed meeting Chris and his wife, Tina. They have a wonderful garden with over a hundred roses! There were creatures in Chris's garden, too, who seemed to appreciate an environment that is good for small critters, as well as humans.

Happy gardening to you all!