August 16, 2016
Things are slowing down, the exuberance is waning, as expected as we head towards summer’s end.
At the center, the blue globe thistle (Echinops ritro) has been chopped down, the orange and red daylilies are gone, the lemon yellow daylilies (Hemerocallis ‘Hyperion’) are waning, and the spires of Astilbe taquettii are nearly done.
At the rear, pink and white cleome (C. hassleriana) mix with a smattering of pink cosmos (C. bipinnatus ‘Sensation Mix’), the last of the sunflowers (Helianthus annuus), beloved of the birds and destroyed by squirrels; through the middle, pink and white phlox (P. paniculata); along the front (left and right), white flowering tobacco (Nicotiana alata), pink coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea), and lamb’s ears (Stachys byzantina).
Below are closer shots of the front of the border.
A view of the far left, the calendulas (C. officinalis) mixed with zinnias (Z. elegans ‘County Fair Mix’) and cosmos.
In the back, more cosmos, the sweet peas (Lathyrus odoratus) are overrun with vines of the sky-blue, ivy-leaved morning glory (Ipomoea hederacea). I won’t be planting these two together again. The morning glory is too vigorous and really needs a leaner soil to bloom better. Its weight actually snapped the wooden posts I had and toppled the fence so we had to insert metal fence posts and wire the fence to them. Gardening is an endless learning curve.
I’m linking with Cathy at Words and Herbs, joining participants taking weekly photos of the same garden over the course of the growing season to note its evolution.
Below are some of the previous views for comparison:
April 1, 2016
June 11, 2016
June 28, 2016
July 26, 2016
August 2, 2016
August 9, 2016
Eliza Waters 
It has been so interesting watching your garden grow, reach a peak, and now begin to wind down – just when gardens in the southern hemisphere are becoming interesting once more! I have gained several ideas of new plantings from you and am looking forward to putting them into practice once the weather truly warms up.
Glad to hear my gardens inspire. I’ll look forward to seeing what you create!
How lovely it is Eliza! Before even reading anything, from your first photo I felt a hush has come over your garden and I can feel/see that stillness and quiet that comes with late summer. But in your close-ups it is still full of glorious colour! Those coneflowers just go on and on don’t they. 😉 Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Cathy. You’re right, it is a quietness that settles over the landscape as Nature draws into herself.
Thank goodness for annuals that don’t know frost is coming and aren’t preparing for it! 😉
I trimmed off dozens of older coneflower heads to try to keep the plants going, though you can hardly tell it. It really is a wonderfully long bloomer. I will be moving most of those along the front this fall as they have become too big. The field is just the place where they can go wild.
At this time of the year that garden corner of yours is such a delight, Eliza!
Thank you, Anca!
I dread the end of summer. I am hoping gardens like yours hang around just a little longer. Wonderful atmosphere in your photos.
Same here, though I’m trying mightily to be philosophical about it. 😉 I find myself saying things like, “Only 3 more weeks until… only 6 more weeks until…” all temperature and plant related. Can’t help myself. Dormancy is depressing!
Thanks for your visit and commiserating, Victor!
What a lovely drift of purple!
🙂 Thanks, Laurie!
Beautiful photos Eliza! You are a very clever gardener 🌺🌸🌺🌸🌻🌻
Aw, thank you, Karen! 🙂
Eliza, how I long to have a garden like this one! Gorgeous and why I LOVE it so much is how everything blends in together with one another. The fullness and the riot of color and contrast … Wow you did an outstanding job planting and planning this garden. I’m still trying to get some of my gardens looking like this. Good for you and YES I know the work involved. Beautiful!!! ❤
We are seeing the same waning of summer’s growth. It is part of the cycle.
It is. It’s accepting it that is the challenge! ;-D
It looks pretty darn gorgeous to me! That August 9th picture!! All that lush color.
Thank you, Lisa. I do believe Aug. 9 was the zenith. It’s down hill from here. 😦 But it sure is nice while it lasts!
I sent pic’s of the ‘bowl.’
Delicate and beautiful colors, even if we are into August, the garden is wonderful.
Thank you, Gigi. It is something that we enjoy every day. I love all the colors!
I like the phrase, “the exuberance is waning”….some times that is sooo needed. What a great to look at heading into Fall.
I always miss the warm weather, but dormancy has its rewards, too. 🙂
The color of the beds really do change quite a lot from week to week!
It is fun to see the changes. This is the first time I’ve done this and I like watching the progression. I’ll look at th
Dang…hit the send button in error. To finish> This winter, when the snow is knee deep, I’ll look at the photos I took and remember these halcyon days of summer! 🙂
It is amazing how quickly everything reached its peak and has now settled down, but there is still masses of colour, much more than in my garden at this time of year.
Thank you, Christina. Yes, the downshift is subtle, and there is still plenty of color to come. The zinnias have only been flowering for a couple of weeks. Maybe next year I will start them earlier inside to try for an earlier bloom. There are two big asters coming in Sept. so there will be plenty to see for a while yet. 🙂
Winding down? Looks exuberant to me! I have Morning Glory all over the garden but have never heard of ivy-leaved – sounds more pretty than thuggish. I have to admit Eliza I am ready to wind down – summer is so tiring. I am having a really difficult time getting going again after my little vacation. I feel like I should be deadheaded!
😀 I laugh, but I know just what you mean. You do way more garden work than I do, so I can imagine your exhaustion.
I’m starting to let the weeds slide (I’m so good until mid-August, then I run out of steam). It’s a ‘why bother?’ attitude, when you know the end is near.
Things still look beautiful in your garden, but Fall is certainly in the wind.
That it is – it’ll be here sooner than we think! Thanks, Belinda.
Its what’s happening all right in our gardens, things are quietening down, still quite lush but even colours on the trees are changing slowly. Enjoyed your pics and writing.
Thank you very much, Agnes. So glad for your visit.
This is so pretty Eliza! What a wonderful green thumb you have, coupled with diligent hard work. How colorful!
Thank you very much, Mary. 🙂
Awesome photos!!! What a wonderful garden Eliza! I can look at these photos all day!
Thank you very much!