Jun 27: garden status

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.

Mexican feather grass in bloom

May 15: new bed is planted! And scabiosa and verbena are blooming

I killed grass back in February to create a new flower bed. I wanted to fill it with lots of nectar and host plants for butterflies, plus some herbs and peppers for eating. I mulched the bed in the end of March, and in May, I’ve planted it:

  • 5 Mexican sunflowers (nectar)
  • 8-10 dill (host plant for swallowtails, plus herb for us)
  • 4 orange milkweed (host plant for monarchs)
  • A big patch of zinnia seeds (nectar)
  • Red salvia annuals (nectar)
  • Parsley (host plant for swallowtails, plus herb for us)
  • Cilantro (herb for us)
  • JalapeƱo (pepper for us)
  • Basil (herb for us)

It doesn’t look like much for now, which is why I wanted to photograph it, as a before picture. The wire cages are to keep the rabbits away from the milkweed seedlings. The’ve eaten fresh milkweed in the past, and I don’t want them eating these seeds I’ve carefully cultivated for 10 weeks.

Newly planted butterfly bed
Plan, which I roughly stuck to
New butterfly bed with the rest of the back garden
The purple salvia is at its peak. The new bed is in the background.
I don’t have a telephoto lens yet, so this isn’t a great shot, but I do love watching the birds at the feeder.
Lollipop vervain is one of the first things to bloom
Scabiosa blooms along with the salvia and vervain