What’s Blooming

Spring seems to be transitioning into summer as the days and nights are getting hotter.  The last few days have been in the mid to upper 80’s.  With that, we are starting to see some of the summer blooming plants start to flower or really ramp up their growth.

In our back sun garden bed, Small’s Beardtongue (Penstemon smallii) continues to look good and is handling mid-day sun better than I expected.  But it is now being joined by Lance-Leaved Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata), Stoke’s Aster (Stokesia laevis) and Foxglove Beardtongue.  Of these, Stoke’s Aster and Foxglove Beardtongue are 2 of my favorites and they deserve a place in any garden.  Both are adaptable (full sun to part shade, not fussy on water or soil texture), handle our summer heat with few issues and have evergreen basal foliage.   I am ok on coreopsis…it has done better since I learned that it likes poor conditions (i.e. minimal watering, no compost/fertilizer).  But it still only seems to last 1-3 years, which makes it hard to justify a spot in the garden.

In the front yard, our Oakleaf Hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia) have started to bloom.  I have these growing in a part sun spot in the front foundation planters as well as a more shaded area underneath 4 red maples.  It has thrived in both spots, needing little care.  With its coarse and layered leaves, I think it looks very flowy and wild…like a raging river.    The only downside is that the deer will nibble on it…but I find it to be more of an issue later in the year when they have less to eat.  In our front full sun bed, the Red Bee Balm (Monarda didyma) continues to do well, while the Carolina lupine (Thermopsis villosa) is just about done blooming.  Joining them in the last week has been Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)...a well behaved, low growing form of milkweed.  I haven’t noticed any baby monarch caterpillars yet, but the bees are really enjoying it. It’s orange color even matches our contractors’ port-a-potty sitting next to it in the driveway.