Midwest GREEN gardening is Nature's crapshoot!
This year we, like much of the country, Chicagoland suffered beastly heat, humidity,
then drought, then drowning, then rinse and repeat.
Yesterday I cleaned up clippings and chopping from a week ago, because this is the first real break in the weather we have had to finish that task.
This morning, I took advantage of the early light and ran around the garden taking pictures during
35 mph wind gusts. It is the Windy City after all.
Leaves were flying everywhere.
Our stressed trees, are revolting and losing leaves before any color appears.
The bees, don't seem to know Fall is on it's way.
Small flags still decorate our planters.
Soon to be replaced by pumpkins and gourds.
I cleaned the shell pond yesterday, dead leaves already floating in there this morning. Our backyard is shade except for the main garden. Some plants did well, others are sparse, leggy, bug eaten and straggly.
But, the pot next to it, lush and full filled with Springerii and Ruby Coleus.
Our Lemon Grass pots went crazy---perfect mosquito protection during the summer.
Impatiens still blooming, the colors so vibrant.
Leaves everywhere from our Silver Maple, many are spotted?'
My vintage lady lurking in the tropical growth of houseplants gone wild on our deck stairs.
Caladiums, still lush and big, they loved the heat as long as they were watered.
The DIY trough pond with the bare trellis behind, I pulled all the Morning Glories a few weeks ago, so they wouldn't seed. I'm training a new climbing rose and hoping for blooms next year.
Dahlias were huge with Purple Asters in the background.
I took maybe 10 pics of the Asters--all out of focus due to the wind. Here is a near ground pic of our Goldenrod (great for butterflies and bees) and the purple Asters.We try to plant drought resistant perennials and permanent greenery for a GREEN garden for minimal watering.
In the main garden, Ruby Chard grows tall in the morning sun.
Zinnias were brilliant this year shown in these unaltered colors.
Ruffly Giant Marigolds are getting straggly, but still blooming.We plant flowers in the center of the vegetable garden to encourage bees to pollinate our plants.
This Zinnia appeared to have cross pollinated with a Cone flower of some sort.
We have some Morning Glory issues, they are gorgeous:WARNING, be careful where you plant them. One package has swallowed all the garden trellises and invaded our neighbors' yards.
Ruby Chard and Yellow Chard ready for picking. The tomatoes are done, and so are the peppers, I think. We will have more broccoli and chard. I picked the last Buttercup Squash (4) and all the others were buggy or rotting. No Pumpkins this year, sigh. All rotted or boiled from the heat.
We had lots of rotted produce. Too hot, wet and moldy this month and last.
The decorative fence shelf on the fence. This is a shelf my dad made in the 1990's that I painted to match my pottery. We sold many pieces of furniture he made and I painted.
I have several pieces on our porch which I haven't shared yet.
I named the design pattern after "Giverny" after Claude Monet's Garden.
Quickly the sun was blinding---on the east side of the house. One geranium still going strong.
Along the east fence, Marigolds, Sunflowers and invasive Morning Glories...perfect with the Dragonflies.
More Morning Glories, so pretty, but I can't wait to pull them before they seed.
On the fence, the OLD iron bedwith a NEW orange wall planter filled with fuchsia Impatiens.
I'm surprised this survived the whole season. It's now imbedded with falling leaves.
The front pond, where I had hoped to catch a picture of our REAL frogs, mostly only one now..., I hope he didn't eat the other two because he is really big.
Pond is a bit low, with the wind...it just blows out from the spouting fish.
I will refill when the wind cooperates.
Yes, those are Iris blooming in late September in Chicago. I also had a white one, which broke in the storm the other night before it bloomed.
Darn! I wish they all would bloom again, as Iris are my favorites.
Such a pretty deep lavender next to the Lemon Barberry bush.
This one has at least 4 more blooms on the way, can't wait.
An upside shot of the pond. Still no froggy, and I have been out four times
looking for him since this morning.
Coleus and Impatiens are happy now after the hot summer. The pond is in shade from the shadows cast by the garage. The angle of the sun dips low quickly this time of year.
The sky, with the winds feathering the clouds.
Our neighbors' hundred-foot American Elm danced in the wind.
At 2PM the front yard was in shade with the sun's low angle.
My pink Dahlia grew over four-foot high.
My OLD blue watering can, the squirrels probably have buried the walnuts in there and thrown my plants to the side again, sigh! The NEW planting bed has done well this year. Only one Hosta seemed terribly unhappy under the Cinnamon Maple Tree.
In the Maple are birdfeeders and this birdhouse I have adored. Mr. Gnome had a walnut inside, that must have been a squirrel gymnastic trick.
Backside of the new front bed, Zinnias and a Giant Hosta were gorgeous all season.
Our Planter on the front walk, getting thin, a Pumpkin will look great in here, soon.
We grow all our Marigolds and Zinnias from seed. This really helps the cost
of keeping blooms in the yard for the whole season. With the cost of the kitchen, I may forego mum plants this year. Only one came up from last year, so it seems a waste.
West side, Giant Sedum drooping from the weight of the flower fronds.
Under the trellis, over grown pots, now missing their yellow focus flowers and the trailing geraniums scattering in overgrowth.
Our front pot of Coleus on the driveway under the Hawthorn which was deep shade until...
...two weeks ago, now very bare and very unhappy?
Maybe, too hot this year for a Hawthorn, or not enough water?
Yes, a Midwest Fall is on it's way in Chicagoland.
How was your summer garden? All my Dragonflies, want to know, LOL.
Thanks always for visiting.
I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.
All the opinions and photographs in this blog 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 without my permission. Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle
Sandi
