Summer Butterflies

Every summer we have tiger swallowtail butterflies but this year was a bumper crop. In the afternoon we easily have 20 or more in the garden bouncing from plant to plant. This season we have quite a bit of hyssop, buddleia, phlox, bee balm and ascepias to keep them happy and coming back for more.

 

Heat, Humidity and Hardy Hibiscus

Peppermint Schnapps Hibiscus starting to bloom in the summer heat. For my money this is the most prolific winter hardy hibiscus available. Its also probably the largest. It easily reaches 8 feet every year and consistently blooms into the fall months. As you can see the blooms are large and showy. Hardy hibiscus take quite a while to emerge in Spring. Don't be alarmed. They don't sprout until you get warmer days in early May. We don't stake them but we do wrap with twine when they reach about 4 feet to keep them contained. As always with hibiscus, the more sun they get the better they bloom. Lastly, hardy hibiscus die back to the ground each year. Just cut the stalks off at the ground after it dies back in early winter.

Another image of Peppermint Schnapps Hibiscus.

Hibiscus Kopper King is a worthy 2nd place to Peppermint above. It doesn't grow as tall (about 5 to 6 feet) but the blooms are a little larger. Its has a similar color profile so they are complementary if planted together. The foliage is a little darker as well.

A duo of Kopper King. These blooms are 10 inches across.  

Hibiscus Luna White is pure white with a red core. A striking contrast against the green foliage. This variety only grows to about 3 feet and stays compact making it perfect when you want hibiscus without the height. The blooms are about 6 to 7 inches.

Scarlet Canna Indica continues to bloom well this year.

Variegated Canna Lily Pretoria is a showstopper. The foliage alone is worth it. The bright orange bloom is icing on the cake. Give it lots of sun, moist conditions and when the summer heat and humidity hit, it explodes with new growth. As with other Canna, it spreads quickly underground so you can divide the clump in a few seasons and have spots of color throughout your garden.

Beautiful Gladiolus kleinbloemig Glamini is the new variety that's only about 2/12 feet tall. It still requires staking due to our heavy rains but they are much easier to manage because they are so short. Basically you get the same bloom as a standard tall Glad on a shorter stalk.

A nice Tiger Swallowtail butterfly sipping nectar from golden jubilee hyssop.

Gotta Love the Lilies, Part 4

This is a group of Double Oriental Lily Soft Music that has finally matured. What a contrast to the blooms from last season. This is absolutely beautiful. Not as fragrant as other lilies but once established they are quite bold.

A group of Salmon Stargazers starting to open. They are very fragrant and showy but require staking if not planted in full sun. The stems just don't get thick enough if planted in too much shade. This group gets about 3 to 4 hours of sun (not enough really) and still blooms well but must be staked.

Another image of Salmon Stargazers.

This year the Nippon Oriental Lily bulbs finally bloomed well. This is a rare breed that isn't seen much anymore. These were planted about 4 years ago.

A duo of Nippon Oriental Lily.

A group of Sweet Rosy Double Oriental Lily caught up in a butterfly bush.

This is a really nice Bight Eyes Phlox. You really cant go wrong with Phlox. Its easy to grow, lightly fragrant, likes sun and butterflies love it. Groundhogs find it irresistible though.

This is Mardi Gras Rose with Bright Eyes Phlox in the background. A perfect pairing I'd say.

This is a Pink Phlox that has been sitting there for two years, woke up and finally bloomed.

Platycodon grandiflorus or Balloon Flower is always a summer favorite. It has intense purple flowers and prefers lots of sun. These will be moved to a new bed next season because they are shaded most of the day.

Gotta Love the Lilies, Part 3

OK, I take back everything I said about Double Oriental Lily Lodewijk. It took three years to finally bloom as nice as they have this season.

Sweet Rosy Double Oriental Lily is another three year experiment. It looks much better this season.

A nice cluster of Lilium Conca D'or.  This group blooms a little later because they only get afternoon sun. These are 7 feet tall. I'm looking up to take the picture.

An odd couple to be sure. This is variegated Canna Lily Phasion with fern, Peppermint Twist or Spinner Phlox and a single stalk of while Phlox David.

This is stem of Buddleia Evil Ways that flopped over into the bee balm. I thought the foliage and bloom contrast was interesting.

A nice group of Bright Eyes Phlox.

A pair of pale pink Cleome starting to open.

Golden Jubilee Hyssop in full bloom. Hyssop is a magnet for butterflies and pollinators.

The are blooms of an unknown species of Hosta.

Buddeia or butterfly bush flowers have a very sweet scent. Butterflies can resist this plant.

Gotta Love the Lilies, Part 2

So, you are asking yourself, "Self, where are the lilies in this image?" If you look at the back of the yard just above the red bee balm you will see a blotch of yellow. Those are the lilies. I was trying to show how bold they are with a distance photo. We've had so much rain lately with mild temperatures the lushness of it all is quite nice.

On to the close-ups. This is the Golden Stargazer cluster referenced in the image above.

One of the things I've noticed is the color variation based on soil type. This is also a cluster of Golden Stargazers but the color is bright yellow. The Goldens in the 2nd image above have an orange tint. The difference you ask? The yellow lilies are planted in 100% compost and the orange tinted lilies in a mix of clay and compost. The clay must be the culprit.

This is a our new bed of Oriental Lily 'Josephine' with African Queen (orange) and Golden Stargazers (yellow) in the background.

This is a wider shot of the Josephine lily bed.

This is Double Oriental Lily Lodewijk starting to open. The last few seasons our double lilies have not been as stellar as depicted in the catalogs. They are a nice novelty though and add color and fragrance to the garden. They grew quite tall this year reaching 5 feet.

A solo African Queen Trumpet lily.

OK, this isn't a bed of lilies. Its a bed of Gooseneck Loosestrife (Lysimachia clethroides) in peak bloom. They prefer moist soil and protection from afternoon sun to really thrive. They can be aggressive (not invasive) if happy and will naturalize easily. Its a tough plant. They spread underground by rhizomes. They can be ripped out, tossed on the mulch pile and root as if nothing happened. They reach about 2 1/2 feet with the flower spike and come back every year.