Summer Views From the Patio

Fallen rose petals lie at the feet of an old rusty rabbit near the patio. Summer is here. Today the official heat index was 98 and felt hotter than that. I don't like summer. Voles have been snacking in my garden again. Today I lost two mature Nandina 'Firepower' shrubs to them. Mildew has found my dogwoods and crepe myrtles. Every year I try to persuade myself to love summer, but the best I can do is to tolerate it. 

Despite my perennial complaints, the garden doesn't look bad. We have had enough rain, and the plants are lush. The landscape is layered with deep greens and jewel tones. Even in the mornings it is too steamy to venture outside for long, but here is a report of what is happening on and near the patio:

Okay, I love summer, after all. Look at my red banana plant!

Above: Pink 'Anthony Waterer' spirea, blue flowering 'Lady in Red' hydrangeas, and common day lilies, which have grown here for over a half century, provide some nice color in the garden adjacent to the patio.

Hydrangeas are blooming now. 'Endless Summer' has striking blue color, proof of our acid soil! The variegated plant in the pot is daphne.

Some more hydrangeas — 'Waterfall' is an unusual one growing at the base of a dogwood tree:Annuals on the patio will provide color through the season, as long as I remember to water and fertilize them.The Talavera lizard above is a nod to the real anole lizards who inhabit the patio every summer. I took the first photo of the lantern below before I realized there was a lizard lookout perched atop the pole. Lou tells me he is there every day.

Something of an oddity, a white poinsettia, left over from the Christmas season, is spending the summer on the patio. It still has its bracts and is now putting on new growth:

One more thing from the patio: I have a little iron bowl ornament, and I have had a hard time finding the perfect place for it. Then one day recently I set it on my penny table, and now it has a home. It looks great with the pennies, and it allows plenty of room for a book and a very cold drink when I am sitting in the adjacent lounge chair.

 Be cool!

Good Riddance Cancer Tree, Hello Kitty!

We cut down a malignant tree in the front garden this week. It was only a foot tall when my husband bought it for me years ago. It was labeled Viburnum Augustifolium, but I am not convinced that is what it was. Its evergreen leaves were quite attractive and some of them had pretty fall colors, but this was its only redeeming quality.

Its white springtime flowers were insignificant and did not produce berries. It grew large, over twenty feet tall, and that was OK with me. But its cancerous growth pattern was not. It spread from vigorous underground suckers, invading nearby paths and taking over a daffodil bed. Recently Lou and I examined the thicket of stems spreading out from its base and decided the massive plant had to go.

The viburnum had a strong presence in that part of the garden, and its removal left a large gap.

Opportunity! Now I have a sunny place for some deciduous hollies, which lack sufficient sun to produce their famous berries in their current woodland location. I will also move some coral berry bushes from another part of the front garden, for the same reason. A Japanese maple and a weeping blue cedar purchased during the bargain days of summer have been patiently waiting for a home, and they too will be welcomed to this area. 

I am never afraid to change things in my yard. If I had to live with all my mistakes, I would have a miserable excuse for a garden! But the lesson learned is to know what one is planting and what its future growth is likely to be.

I will post photos of the new planting area when it is completed. Meanwhile, here are a few photos I took in the garden this week. I'm not sure who is enjoying the fabulous weather more, me or the creatures who inhabit the space.Clockwise from top left: Fritillary on zinnia, oxalis growing through artemesia, moon vine, another zinnia in the wildflower area.
Buckeye butterfly

Gulf Fritillary butterfly

Long Tail Skipper

Close-ups of two leaves growing simultaneously on my Red Banana Plant

I'm not the only one drawn to the Red Banana plant! There are many anole lizards in my garden.

Finally, does this kitten belong to anyone out there? She has adopted us. We haven't had a pet since our last dog passed away last year. She is very friendly and likes to chase squirrels. If we don't find her owner, I think she will stay. Lou has never liked cats, but she won him over by following him around and helping him work on the house the other day. She put on sophisticated airs for this photo, but she is quite playful.All of my animals have had garden or flower names. Any suggestions?