My garden beds are starting to look rather bedraggled after the long summer, and let's not even talk about the lawn! But I still have a few spots of color in my garden thanks to some hardworking flowering machines. It's time to give credit to those worthy plants that are still going at the end of the summer. Beware, this post is photo heavy.
First off is ANNUALS. Here's a hand for diligently doing your job.
My wave petunias and orange zinnias keep going and going!
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| Cosmos sulphureus |
Cosmos which I grew from seed are still blooming.
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| Cosmos bipinnatus |
I have petunias in several different places. I know they're common, but there's a reason why!
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| petunias with sedum 'Autumn Joy' that is starting to bloom |
On to the PERENNIALS. Between the coreopsis and rudbeckia, the yellows seem to have it. All those still blooming, stand up and take a bow!
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| Coreopsis |
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| Rudbeckia hirta 'Goldilocks' was grown from seed. |
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| Also grown from seed, Rudbeckia hirta 'Irish Eyes' livens up an otherwise dull spot. |
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| The very tall Rudbeckia nitida 'Herbstonne' enjoying a second flush of blooms. | |
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I'll go ahead and put the Dahlia 'Kelvin Floodlight' in this category. I took a chance and left it in the ground after last year, and it has come back and is still blooming.
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| Dahlia bud starting to open |
On to my favorite - VINES. Several of my clematis vines are reblooming, and one never stopped - definitely worthy of a Persistent Plant Award!
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| Clematis 'Rooguchi' has been blooming all summer. |
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| Clematis 'Jackmanii' starting to rebloom. |
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| the beautiful Clematis 'Guernsey Cream' |
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| the teeny, tiny bell-shaped flower of Clematis pitcheri |
Last but not least are the blooming SHRUB awards. The butterfly bushes are the star of this category, with
Buddleia davidii 'Santana' winning MVP of the garden.
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| 'Santana' has been attracting butterflies all summer long. |
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The award for 'Most Improved' goes to Buddleia davidii 'Harlequin'. I thought it had succumbed to fungal diseases from the wet spring, but it's back!
First frost date isn't for a few more weeks, so here's hoping for that these hardy plants keep persisting awhile longer. An extra special award for any plant that would like to keep on blooming until spring! A gardener can hope right?
