Veggie Garden Update

(From upper L-R: Cucumber 'Sassy x', Tomato 'Celebrity x', 'Bonnie Grape' Tomatoes, 'Husky Cherry' Tomatoes, 'Opal' Basil and Green Bell Pepper)

Look what the garden is producing so far this month.  I’ve been harvesting the cherry tomatoes for a few weeks now.   Their great in salads, but I love to eat them straight from the garden sun warmed and pesticide free.   No cukes or squash yet, but blossoms are always a good sign of things to come.  Glad to see the larger tomatoes are starting to ripen as well, love them on sandwiches and hamburgers.  I planted two of these Green Bell peppers in blue plastic tubs and two in the raised garden beds.  The ones in the tubs are twice as big and full of tiny peppers.  However they both get the same amount of sunlight and the soil is similar.  It’s a real puzzle to me, but the ones in the bed are starting to take off so only time will tell I guess.  I love this ‘Opal’ Basil not only for the flavor it adds to salads, but the deep burgundy color it adds to the garden.   What kinds of veggies are you hoping to harvest from your garden this season?  🙂

Fall Bloomer

Gentiana is a perennial herb that blooms in the fall.  A couple of years ago I dedicated a post to it which you can read about here.  I love this shade of blue and the speckling inside the bloom.

note:  Sorry I’ve been out of the blogasphere for a bit.  I have been busy completing some unfinished projects indoors since it has been rainy for the past couple of days. 

Bloomin Tuesday

It’s good to be back in the blogging world again.  I took a week off while my Mom was in town visiting.  Don’t worry you didn’t miss much, the garden is about worn out from this non-ending heat. 

(From upper L-R across & down: ‘New York’ Asters, Pansies, ‘Kents Beauty’ Oregano, ‘Bluebird’ Asters and ‘Rosy Glow’ Sedums)

Fall blooms are starting to show off in my garden this week.   From the short 6 inch ‘New York’ Asters to the tall 3 foot Aster ‘Bluebird’ I’m pretty convinced I need more of these perennials.  They stood up to the heat, drought and whatever else this summer threw at them.  I might of jumped the gun planting Pansies in September but they have done fine with a bit of water in the morning.  Their all in containers which require more pampering anyhow.   This ornamental oregano ‘Kents Beauty’ is kicking into gear again now that summer is about over here. The actual flowers are the purple tubes between the colorful bracts.  Finally my Sedum ‘Rosy Glow’ has been a trooper putting out sporatic blooms since the first flush last month.  To see what’s blooming in other gardens or to join in, please visit our host Jean @ Ms Greenthumb. 

note:  We’ve been getting rain since Sunday night.  Last time I checked the rain gauge it was over 2″.  🙂

Bloomin Tuesday

This week for Bloomin’ Tuesday I have mosty shades of pink and purple with a dash of blue, white and yellow thrown in for good measure.  

(From upper L-R across & down: Zinnia oklahoma series, Salvia 'Coral Nymph', Ornamental Oregano 'Kents Beauty', Salvia 'Mystic Spires', Sedum 'Rosy Glow', Penstemon 'Pikes Peak Purple', Hydrangea 'Pinky Winky' and Nasturium 'Peach Melba')

 One of the new things blooming this week is the Salvia ‘Coral Nymph’.  It’s an annual type that The Queen of Seaford  shared seeds of with me during one of our visits last summer.   Don’t you love this soft pink & white combo?   I do!  Definitely will be collecting seed and/or ordering to plant next season.   Currently it resides in a large container with the dormant Snapdragons that will bloom again in the fall.   After a much needed rainfall this past week the Salvia ‘Mystic Spires’ and Penstemon ‘Pike’s Peak’ are in full bloom again.   Both of these are very easy perennials to grow.  This Zinnia (oklahoma series) is a volunteer from last summer and is really do well.  Maybe it will reseed again for me. The ornamental Oregano ‘Kent’s Beauty’ almost succumbed to the heat last month but has bounced back and is blooming now.  ‘Pinky Winky’ still isn’t looking pink to me but the white blooms brighten up the shady corner where it resides.  My sedum ‘Rosy Glow’ that  I mentioned late last month is in full bloom now.   And I finally got a photo of a Nasturium ‘Peach Melba’ flower fully open.  I love the little orange spots on the face of it. To see more Bloomin’ Tuesday posts or to join in this week on the fun please visit Jean @ Ms Greenthumb.

Bloomin Tuesday

It’s another Bloomin’ Tuesday and this week I have some yellow and blueish purple blooms to show you.  My favorite color combinations in the garden.  🙂

(From upper L-R across & down: Four o'Clocks, Catmint 'Walker's Low' center photo, Solidago, Society Garlic, Balloon Flower, Green Coneflowers and Lantana 'Miss Huff')

I’m just so thankful to have blooms in the garden this month, August can be a beast.  But we’ve been having some occasional rain showers which has perked things up a bit.   The Balloon Flower bloom was a surprise since they finished up their flush in June.  My Green Coneflowers or Rudbeckia laciniata are open now and I love their green center that changes color with age.  Solidago is getting ready to come into full flush.  I could of sworn this cultivar was ‘Fireworks’ but after seeing that variety in other gardens I’m not so sure what mine is now.  Society Garlic has been blooming on and off since the end of June.  This is the second season for it in the garden and I really like it.  Couldn’t imagine my beds without this fabulous Lantana ‘Miss Huff’.  The butterflies and hummers have been flocking to her this summer.   Catmint is a new addition that is still sitting in it’s nursery pot on the patio.  Hope to have it planted next month.  Last but not least is these yellow and hot pink Four o’ Clocks.  Their a bit of a weed in my garden sometimes with the abundance of seeds they drop.  But I love how you can have pink, yellow and mixed all on one plant.  To see more Bloomin’ Tuesday posts or to join in today please visit our host Ms Greenthumb.