It's All About Small Stuff

Details are important. They often determine the quality of an object, a home, a relationship, one's life. In the end, I think it's all about the small stuff. This is true in a garden, too. Little elements can bring joy to a gardener, even when the over all vision for the garden is incomplete.

I like to look at photographs of my garden. I especially like close-up photography; it allows me to appreciate details in the garden my eyes may have missed. The patterns and colors could provide inspiration to any fashion designer. So, take a closer look at my garden with me, and enjoy!

Above is a gray hairstreak butterfly, a small and often overlooked beauty, on a zinnia. Fellow blogger, Donna of Garden's Eye View presented me with zinnia seeds as part of her Save the Bees project. They have grown well, and I appreciate how attractive they are to pollinators.

Dusty Miller, shown in the top photo below, grows in a planter in front of my house. Like zinnia, it is a commonly grown annual, but I love its fuzzy texture. Below the dusty miller are two varieties of crepe myrtle. Pure froth!Gardenia and Calla lily add creamy white notes to the garden, so welcome in the summer heat.

Below, clockwise from top left, are annuals with bright color: A pretty petunia that reseeded itself from last year's plant; Persian shield; Stromanthe sanguine 'Tristar'; Japanese bloodgrass.

Coneflowers produce abundant seeds for the birds:

A tiny ant explores the center of a 'Tropicana' canna lily bloom:Clockwise from upper left above: 'Tropicana' canna lily; Swiss chard, my new most favorite veggie; a marigold grows in my vegetable plot; portulaca - see another ant!

A balloon flower rejoices in a recent rain:

Spores cover the undersides of autumn fern:Above, clockwise from upper left: 'Moonbeam' coreopsis; Variegated liriope; Asclepsia tuberosa, also called butterfly weed; 'Annabelle' hydrangea.

I hope you have enjoyed this 'detailed' look at some plants featured in my summer garden. Have a great week!  Deborah

Rain!

For several hours last night we had what we call a "gully washer." Around eighty thousand gallons of rain has fallen on our property during the past twenty-four hours. That's about three inches over our three and a half acres. This afternoon I was able to get out in the mist to take a few photos. 

Here is an interesting sight in the Lady Garden: 

It is tree branches reflected in the bird bath!

Wet brown leaves still cling to some oak trees. Winter does not want to go peacefully. The air is very cold.
And the sky is dreariest gray, but if you look carefully fresh buds are swelling along the branches of these trees. The rain helps these little buds grow.

The earth is sodden and foliage dripping everywhere I look.top: foliage of climbing rose Zephirine Drouhin; clockwise from above: loropetalum; columbine; nandina 'firepower'; autumn fern

Some parts of our state to the north of us had snow today. I am glad ours was only rain. It's time to go back inside the house, where Lou has built a nice fire in the fireplace. 

Eighteen days till spring!