Thursday, July 21, 2016

July Garden in the Upper Midwest

Well it has been hotter than Hades these last two weeks. Chicagoland has humidity and higher temperatures out to the west. We are about 45 miles from the Loop, just far enough from the lake to not have the benefit of Lake Michigan cooling.

WELCOME to our GREEN Garden!

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At 8 A.M.this morning it was already 80 something under a blistering sun. The only tweaking I had to do to these photos was darken some. Yes, I said darken--never had to do that before, lol.

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On the front of our garage an OLD fishing creel basket battles a lone sunflower for attention.

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At the front of the walk, my greenhouse marigolds with nursery petunias and 
something red, I don't know the name of. This container came with the house in 1984..so it's OLD and vintage at this point. Most of the vining(potato vine) and spiking plants were frozen in three frosts in late May here, and were very hard to find. 

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We have three large pots along the garage walkway with mixed flowers. 
These vines were grown from seeds and have yet to get their red/orange flowers.

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Our front yard has morning sun and afternoon shade.



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Temporary fence to corral the Grand from running into the street. Phlox and Day Lilies survive the heat and shade.

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Unaltered picture of seed zinnias. Colors are so vibrant this year.


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The Dahlias are just beginning to bloom.

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We have 6 varieties of Day Lilies, but they disappeared quickly with the heat.

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Peppermint Zinnias started from seed, can't wait until these all bloom.

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Under the maple tree, the NEW shade bed built into the stairway.

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Coral Bells, we have so many varieties of these, and I love the crimson leaves.

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New plant, hubby transplanted and threw away the labels? Shade and sun, is all I remember.

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This geranium I wintered over in the house. It exploded about the 10th of July 
and has continued to bloom and hold, despite the sun.

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Another Dahlia, these tubers came from a mixed bag from the lumberyard.

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The pond fisher girl and boy busy trying to catch something. Not much is blooming here right now but a few Black-Eyed-Susans behind.


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except under the shade of my very tall (4foot+) Phlox 
which are blooming early this year. The Clematis on the trellis is still blooming.

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No fish in the pond, but we have a new resident frog who patiently let me take his picture from about 8 inches away. He loves the lava rock for some reason.



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Dragonfly invasion.

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"Aren't you done yet with all the photos, already???"
Poor little guy, but he doesn't dive into the pond everytime we pass by now.


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To the east is our fence with flowers, lettuce (which has bolted), tomatoes, zucchini and more flowers.

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Impatiens and Pansies in an orange pot hung on the bed frame. 
The largest Marigolds haven't bloomed yet.

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My Hollyhocks are sparse right now---but the blooms are huge. One thing about hot, wet weather is the bugs. Almost everything has been nibbled on.

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Another artisan Dragonfly with white Achillea, blooming through its wire body

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The Hollyhocks are almost transparent in their delicacy.

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Colors are un-altered...amazing! These Pansies do't look real, except for the nibbles.


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My Sunflowers are starting to bloom. This is rich and dark red.

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Around the patio we have natural bug deterrents, Lemon Grass for mosquitos and 
Peppermint to repel bees. I'm going to make a huge batch of peppermint tea, maybe even some jelly.


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An old watering can filled with mini Snapdragons, Impatiens and more Pansies.

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The Fairy pond bright with morning sun on the Coleus. Mostly this area is in shade.


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Pansies have held despite the heat and also has the burgundy Coleus.

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Lemon grass swallowing the patio. I put up all the umbrellas to shade the 
plants today. We have three more days of this forecasted.

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Ivy, Caladiums and mixed Marigolds, Impatiens, and Coleus.

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The vegetable garden birdbath and a sprinkling can with geraniums. 
We've had beans, cucumbers, broccoli. We've already made a gallon of refrigerator dills.

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I got some mixed Geraniums and they turned out to be pink.



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The backstairs is almost always in shade. The metal 'thing' is waiting for some 
doodads to get hung from it.


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Back by the shed, Coral Bells, Hostas===ENORMOUS HOSTAS.
 This is the largest they have ever grown.

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Under the big tree, more Coral bells, Impatiens and ground cover.


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The heat continues to climb rapidly, it's time to go in...and on the stairs, M'Lady dozes in the comfortable shade among my houseplants that are growing-crazy outside.

How is your garden doing in the hot summer?

Thank you for sharing your time, comments, or questions. I will try and get back to you all.

All the opinions and photographs in this blog post are my own, I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions or posts. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog. 
Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle

I will be partying at these fine blogs:





Sandi