summer – Andrea's Gardening Blog

Sep 16: chrysalises galore (and swallowtail caterpillars)

September 17, 2022September 17, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, caterpillars, chrysalis, gardening, photographyLeave a comment

I counted at least six monarch chrysalises in the garden today and about a dozen swallowtail caterpillars on the rue.

Monarch chrysalises in Russian sage and nepeta

Sep 10: flowers and caterpillars in the garden

September 10, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, caterpillars, garden, photographyLeave a comment

Lots of stuff isn’t looking so great in the garden right now, but lots of stuff is. The zinnias are taking over, the sedums are pinking, and the goldenrod and monarch caterpillars are peaking. I counted more than a dozen caterpillars in the milkweed, and found a few swallowtail caterpillars on the rue as well.

Front beds with asters, grasses, and mums

Aug 21: garden status

August 21, 2022September 10, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, gardenLeave a comment

The late summer flowers are in bloom — rudbeckia, echinacea, goldenrod — and zinnias are flowering where I let their seeds fall out back last year. The lavender in front never really recovered this year; I think I’ll replace it with mums.

Aug 6: flowers and butterflies in the garden

August 6, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, flowers, gardening, photography, swallowtail1 Comment

Aug 3: garden status

August 3, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, statusLeave a comment

We’re in peak summer flower season: the rudbeckia, shasta daisies, echinacea, white hydrangea, Russian sage, blanket flowers, and butterfly bush are all gorgeous. The Joe Pye weed, autumn joy sedum, goldenrod, and mums are getting ready to flourish. The yarrow, roses, and salvias are done, though, and I need to cut them back to clean things up a bit.

When I watch the garden from my office window, I often see large swallowtails out there now, and I found a couple of fat caterpillars on the rue. The rabbits are getting my milkweed (and liatris) out back; I hope there will be enough for the monarchs. The back beds need another year to fill in after I moved so much stuff around this winter.

Jul 9: garden status

July 10, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly gardening, gardening, statusLeave a comment

Basil is starting to fill out in the raised bed. Time for pesto!

Brown eyed Susans, coneflowers, and Russian sage are blooming

I dead-headed the roses this week so a new flush of buds could bloom

I like the rearrangement of the back bed, but it’s going to need another year at least for everything to fill in after me moving stuff around.

Jul 7: playing with my camera in the garden

July 7, 2022July 10, 2022Posted in Photography, summerTagged daisies, garden, photographyLeave a comment

This time of year is always fun for photography. The flowers are still fresh and most of the plants are still green; stuff hasn’t started getting leggy or dried out yet.

Evening Shastas, shadows, and white picket fence

Jun 28: bunny in the garden

June 28, 2022July 10, 2022Posted in summerTagged bunniesLeave a comment

I’ve learned to coexist with the bunnies; I just try to plant stuff that won’t upset me if they eat it.

Jun 27: garden status

June 27, 2022July 10, 2022Posted in summerTagged butterfly garden, gardening, statusLeave a comment

It’s that time of year where everything is growing and lush and pretty, and I stop logging it and just enjoy it. Every once in a while I take my camera out when I walk the garden. Here’s some stuff blooming in the end of July.