In The Time Of Vegetation

Get lost in the Tall Flower Meadow. Have fun.

Where The Wild Things Grow

I have never see the native Bottlebrush Buckeye growing in the wild until I planted it in my garden. It grows so slow I am not sure it likes it up here. That's ok. It blooms beautifully every year. This is just the beginning.

Platanthera lacera is one strange native orchid. I never find it blooming in the same place twice. The plant itself goes missing too and I know where to look for them. What kind of a life cycle is this orchid using?

For now.

There is another vision in my head that may prove stronger. It will just take a lot more effort to pull it off. For now this will do while I ponder. It left the driveway. Good enough.

I had a chat about Jack-in-the Pulpits this morning with a live human. That doesn't happen much. We agreed the biggest ones are always green.

The source of 'Annabelle' and all her siblings mutates in the forest.

Where the Wild Things Grow.

Outside

I've been outside til dark a lot, even later watching fireflies. By then it's near to bedtime.

I walk along the byway. The outer edge is what they see. There is a whole lot less looking in.

They pass by in numbers now. It's summer on the road.

Some stop. How many I'll never know. The outer edge is Lush, enough to keep a person busy without ever looking in.

Inside hides.

Invisible.

From parsnips head high.

I've been outside.

The Feral Vegetable Garden

There was a roadside vegetable garden in there.

Low on energy and enthusiasm, it got away from me.

This could happen to your vegetable garden too if you let it.

But in a wild cultivated garden full of wild and gone wild flowers, the invaders are not all bad.

They can even stop traffic. I get more visitors while working in the roadside vegetable garden than any other place in the gardens along the scenic byway.

I took a day off and played in there today. Mid-June it is not too late to get some things planted in the vegetable garden. Mid-June is probably even a better planting time at my elevation for a good number of things.

There is some open space left and it isn't difficult to make more. Weeds and feral vegetables pull easy in my dung enriched soil.

But the roadside vegetable garden will be on light detail this year. The freezers are still full of fine produce.

The leeks have been returning for ten years running.

I planted tomato and pepper right before the monsoon. The tomatoes grew major leggy. I am considering pulling them and starting over they look so sad and skinny. The peppers are fine. I have lettuce to eat.

She was a bit shocked when I told her they were parsnips.

Yes, parsnips. She stopped to admire the parsnips.

In a feral roadside vegetable garden.

Full of blooming weeds.

I take my responsibility to be scenic seriously.

I Have Flowers

In all this green.

Many of them are weeds or weed like.

I paid good money for some of them. The Thermopsis caroliniana was worth it.

Others were gifted and turned weed like, considering the conditions.

I did not plant this wall of Hydrangea arborescens.

I did plant this spirea and kind of regret it. It wants to mimic the hydrangea's behavior. Some things self sow in the wild rather prolifically.

And some things don't. I got the first bloom on my catalog bought Louisiana Iris. It has a name. It's in a bag of tags somewhere.

Louisiana Iris is close enough for Bloom Day.

The sturdy constitution of the 'Black Gamecock' La. Iris encouraged me to buy more.

I'm waiting on 'Clyde Redmond' to bloom. I did 'Clyde' on Maui. I think I need to move him to more sun for better results. Perhaps that will happen this weekend.

I grew some Iris ensata from seed. I should have just dug a division from one I wanted. White is kind of boring. But I will say both these iris species are much better than the bearded iris for growing in the wild at this elevation.

I have Carrion Flower. Do you?

Soon I will have Bottlebrush Buckeye.

Will I eventually have more of the native Astilbe biternata? Just because it is a native does not me it will self sow in a wild garden. This should. It grows all along the scenic byway.

The hosta are not blooming yet, but their foliage fills time in the shade. The wait for flowers takes longer in the dark.

I have a river of hosta running through the forest.

This is Rodgersia post peak bloom. It is a big foliage plant the rest of the time.

The Calycanthus is filling the garden with its fruity smell. Reminds me of mango/banana until it turns rotten. The fermenting fruit smell is part of the cycle.

I never get monarchs on my milkweed, but it does not go to waste. The number of insects and critters that use this plant is astonishing. I think the deer even sampled it.

Even my rotten logs bloom on occasion. How many rotten logs in bloom will you find at Bloom Day headquarters? I'm sure mine is the only one.

Another Objet de rolled down the driveway. What will become of it?

I have plenty flowers in all this green. Day by day there are ever more. In my garden it is best if the flowers can act like weeds.

Maybe next Bloom Day I will be able to show you the first ever super bloom of liatris. It is looking to be the kind of thing gardener's dreams are made of and I have no idea what combination of factors has set it off. It's all out there in the Lush.