The timing of our latest vacation was such that right before and after, there was an explosion of color going on in the garden. The growth patterns and colors in the landscape this time of year really start to burst, and things fill in nicely. I waited until the first weekend of June, after we returned from vacation, to plant my containers. The following is a pictorial post of the overall look of the landscape garden and perennial blooms the first week of June, along with my selections and arrangements for my garden annual container plantings for 2015. I hope you enjoy the visual presentation with few words.
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| Bee balm |
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| Detail, bee balm. Hummingbirds love them! |
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| Lavender blooms at base of climbing roses |
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| Harvested lavender - the start of a good year! |
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| Drunk in love - bee on lavender |
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| Landscape view, early June, front to back. Hoping for hydrangea blooms this year (behind right bench) |
This next section is all about my annual container plantings for 2015.
Changing things a bit this year in the courtyard near the sunroom doors, where it is full sun, the selection combos were made from tall and filling plants of pink pentas and variegated burgundy sun coleus, shorter fillers of mahogany red celosia (cock's comb), and trailers of eucalyptus, along with both burgundy and chartreuse sweet potato vines. Rectangular cherub planters on the steps were filled with blue alyssum and trailing petunias. All containers had to be emptied and cleaned, and new soil purchased to fill them.
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| 2015 Container Planting Supplies |
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| 2015 Courtyard Containers (full sun) |
Additionally, more annuals for the three large containers placed within the landscape were purchased (plus one daisy perennial to replace asiatic lilies that rabbits ate two years in a row). The landscape containers were each a bit different, using (in order of appearance below, respectively): 1) sun coleus, pink pentas, mahogany celosia, chartreuse potato vine, and purple queen (ground cover that also cascades); 2) purple fountain grass, pentas, celosia, and yellow calibrachoa; and 3) purple fountain grass, celosia, calibrachoa, and purple queen.
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| 2015 Landscape Containers (full sun) |
Also in the courtyard, bordering the hot tub and centered between one seating arrangement of two rockers, I bought cheater containers (pre-planted by a local nursery and Lowe's). The hot tub planters include spike plants, fillers of salmon geraniums and euphorbia (diamond frost), and trailers of blue lobelia and white bacopa. A gorgeous, single container could not be resisted at Lowe's - with red tropical canna lily, peach calibrachoa, blue lobelia, and white petunia. I love those colors together!
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| 2015 "Cheater" Containers (full sun) |
The front porch urn is a part-shade area (my only!). I replaced a faux hydrangea wreath with orb that had been filling in, along with the squatter nest that had moved in while we were away for a week's vacation. I bought a fern, repeating last year's look, but needed a 1 gallon size to fit, only to find a 2+ gallon size. I took my Japanese digging tool with double serrated edges and simply cut the center out of the 2+ gallon size (Lowe's marked it down to $10, same as the 1 gal size, so no loss there).
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| 2015 Porch Fern in Urn (part-shade) |
My annual landscape beds in front of the house and front gate (both sides) include red geraniums, white vinca, blue angelonia, along with some anchoring purple queen and euphorbia (diamond frost). These are the only annuals I had help in planting, replacing my pansies.
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| 2015 Landscape Annual Beds |
After all the annuals were watered in and zapped with their first dose of steroids (Miracle Gro), you can bet I took some time to chillax in the landscape chaise and enjoy the view. Whew, that was hard work!
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| After the Plantings (poison ivy is entirely gone - yay!) |
If you have any questions on my plants, perennial or annual, feel free to ask. Gardeners love sharing the dirt. If you'd like to see more on my gardening topic, just type 'landscape' or 'garden' in the search field above my profile picture and more posts should appear.
As always, thanks for your visit!
Rita C. at Panoply
(A special thanks to Kathy at A Delightsome Life's 'Home and Garden Thursday' for featuring this post!)
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