Extended summer

I thought the limas and cowpeas were done for, and maybe the limas are, but the cowpeas seem to be having a rebirth.  Tomatoes are still performing, and the weather has gone from scorching to mellow.

Purple hull cowpeas

Pink tomato varieties:  Missouri Pink Love Apple (delicious) and

Mrs. Maxwell's Big Italian (so-so)

Fall peas - 'Improved Maestro'

So....here's another photo dump post.

I've been planting bulbs and more bulbs in the tulip beds.  I'm excited to see how they look in the spring.  Knowing I was going to be planting so many bulbs this year, i purchased a bulb planter.  The difference between using it and digging holes is immense.  It was a great investment, even if I never plant another bulb.  Which, of course, I will!

I've also added (right sidebar) Breck's to my list of places where I get my plant material.  While I've received some things that didn't make it, they have lots of desirable plants (not just bulbs), and they're very good about guarantees (lifetime!) and customer service.  They also send lots of pretty pictures in ads...beware. The drawback is that most of their bulbs are shipped direct from Holland, so they can be in transit for a month or so, which probably explains why some things don't survive.

The perennial bed is filling out.

Gaura and 'Blue Spire' Russian Sage

Roses are struggling, but producing some beatiful blooms.

'Pat Austin'

'Razzle Dazzle' rose bud

Red 'Grande Amore', yellow 'South Africa', godenrod, 

'Strawberry Fields' globe amaranth and lavender

This is the first time I've ever seen a wolf spider carrying her babies.  They're the only spider that does that.  Why aren't they called possum spiders?

Don't see her? 

Here...

 Enjoy your extra summer.

Early foggy morning in the garden

Late summer lull

With the removal of the spent melon cages, the snack peppers are finally getting the sunlight they need.  Maybe they'll produce something now.  

I've planted peas in the space left by the melons from which I hope to get a bigger supply of seed for next spring.  (If I can refrain from eating them raw when they're juicy and small.)

The purple hull cowpeas have virtually finished producing, but the plants still look pretty.

Same goes for the 'Henderson's bush' lima beans.

Over in the purely ornamental sector, the perennial bed is starting to actually look like a perennial bed.

I'm getting anxious to get in all the tulip and daffodil bulbs I ordered, but in the meantime, I did get a bleeding heart in the mail.

I'm feeling a bit skeptical.  But I planted it.  We shall see.  I've gotten other things by mail that looked doubtful, but which nevertheless grew.  So far, the only thing I ordered didn't make it was a fern.  They always seem to be iffy for me, even when I buy them in pots.

The roses, finally having been relieved of the Japanese beetle scourge, are blooming without the buds being "bagged".  It's not been a good year for them at all, but a few are doing well in spite of it.  Not the 'Razzle Dazzle', unfortunately, but it recently did produce this beauty:

 'South Africa' is one that has managed to fair well enough: 

And 'Grande Amore' is growing to an unusual 7 feet tall again this year. 

Unusual as far as the literature for them goes. I guess for this one, it wasn't a fluke last year when it grew to such heights when the weather was perfect for the roses then.

Now, what's this all over the milkweed pods? 

Why, yes, it's milkweed bugs.  Juveniles.

When I was seeing one or two of the adults around, from my old memory banks I was seeing them as boxelder bugs.  Here's a Wikipedia picture of an adult milkweed bug with a couple young:

And here's the boxelder bug:

My memory was a bit off.  As it may often be.

Til next time.

Faery rings and other things

'Queen Lime red' zinnias

I've harvested the last of the cucumbers, beets, carrots and melons.  I'm only sad about the melons.  

There are still tomatoes ripening on all the plants, including the cherry tomatoes and the volunteer whatever it is - appears to be a cross between a cherry tomato and a full sized one I had planted last year.  I'm going to save some seeds from it and see whether it reverts to a different type or if maybe it got planted by a bird or other critter from someone else's garden.

There's about one more light harvest possible from each the cowpeas (black-eyed peas) and the lima beans.  Both have produced a good deal more beans than I've gotten from them in the past.

Purple hull cowpeas

'Henderson's Bush' lima beans

After all the tribulations getting cabbage growing from early cold, wet soil to rabbit and insect dining, there are one of each variety I planted left and making heads.

'Violaceo di Verona' (l) and 'Kalibos' (r)

'Violaceo di Verona'

Next year, I'm going to plant a fall crop of cabbage and skip the spring planting.  I'm also going to try something I saw online about ways to combat cabbage moth (and thus cabbage moth caterpillars).  Suppposedly, the moths are territorial, so if you hang decoys, they'll go elsewhere. I don't know if it will work, but it's worth a try.

Speaking of insect pests,  aside from my new grapevine, which seems to be a pest magnet, I had very little in the way of problems in the vegetable garden this year, perhaps because of the hard cold winter we had.  Normally, I've had quite a few tomato hornworms and oodles of grasshoppers.  This year, I only caught three hornworms and saw less than half a dozen grasshoppers.  I'm not complaining.

'Golden Muscat' grape 

The Japanese beetles were also much reduced this year, thank heaven, but I did still have to spray Sevin and bag my  raspberry and rose buds for a couple months.  They seem to have moved on for the season - fingers crossed.  

'South Africa'

I found this guy on my celery, but I don't think it could do much damage by itself.  It's the larva of a black swallowtail butterfly, so I'm happy to leave it alive.

 It's been a frog-filled year.  They've been hopping about my garden all spring and summer.  Here's one at the water hydrant:

Last year, there was one large toadstool in the yard.  This spring, there were two in its place.  Now there's a whole fairy ring.

Till next time...

Happy trails.