Saturday, July 18th, Lookin' out my back door.

I have spent a huge amount of time in the yard this year; moving plants, mulching, weeding, trimming....mostly because it was sorely neglected last year as I wasn't home and poor Chuck usually doesn't know the difference between a weed and a flower. The hard work is starting to pay off and we are benefiting from a show.....Enjoy.

The price of annuals this year was staggering, so I just bought a few different ones and stuck them in pots on the patio. The large green ones are starting to bloom again. They are white and daisy like with a purple center.

The large yellow flower is called a false sunflower, but I wanted you to notice the purple flower. Those were given to me by my friend Diane and they are balloon flowers. The bud actually looks like a balloon about to pop.This is the "problem" bed directly behind the back door. Right now the Coreopsis, Shasta Daisies, Bee Balm, Purple Cone Flowers, False Sun Flowers, Balloon Flowers, Hostas, Lilies, and Bachelor Buttons are all in bloom. I needed to spend a lot of time in this bed as it was sorely overgrown and needed weeding. We have an invasion of Chokeberries, which are very hard to pull, so I have to get out there frequently to eradicate them.
I so wish I had more time for gardening. I would be out there every day in the summer. I love the smell of dirt and the results of hard work. Soon I will show you the front of the house.