Welcome to Garden Bloggers’Bloom Day for August 2019.
Here in my USDA Hardiness Zone 6a garden in central Indiana, we are sliding down in a cloud of dust toward the end of summer.
That’s right, a cloud of dust and don’t trip on those big cracks that have formed in the garden beds. After one of the rainiest springs I can remember, we have been without substantial rain now for the last six weeks or so. (There was one good rain sometime in July but I can barely remember it now.)
But my garden is a champ and I have flowers a plenty for bloom day.
First up, I picked some zinnias, sunflowers, marigolds, and dill to make myself a little posy bouquet, complete with a ribbon and a tag telling the meaning of each flower.
I was inspired after reading The Posy Book: Garden-Inspired Bouquets That Tell a Story by Teresa Sabankaya.
Maybe I’ll try to make a posy bouquet every month for bloom day? Maybe. Anyone else want to try it? You might be inspired to do the same after reading the book!
Out in the garden, I have lots of pretty flowers, like Allium ‘Millenium’ (yes, it was trademarked with just one “n”) which I got as a passalong plant from a friend who grew it in a container.
I took the two big bunch of bulbs he gave me in early fall, carefully teased them apart, and then planted them along the edges of several garden borders. I love how they look. I might dig and divide them again to make them go even further.
Way in the background in that picture is Lycoris squamigera, which I like to call Surprise Lilies or Resurrection Lilies or even Magic Lilies because I am genteel like that.
Down the way from them is Eutrochium purpurea ‘Little Joe’,
It’s a cultivar of the native Joe Pye Weed that can grow upwards past six feet. That’s a big plant for my little garden so I am happy to have ‘Little Joe’ which gets to about four feet or so.
Speaking of natives, I also have lots of Black-eyed Susans, Rudbeckia sp.
This particular clump self-sowed itself on the edge of the vegetable garden and managed to escape my weeding. Truth be told, most of the weeds also seem to have escaped my weeding this year.
I did manage to clear the weeds away from around the zinnias. This red one is ‘Holi Scarlet F1’, an All-Americas Selection for 2019. (Thanks, AAS, for sending me seeds of this one. It is fabulous!)
I have “regular ol’ zinnias”, too. I mixed together a bunch of packets of zinnia seeds which were all supposed to grow to about the same height and this is what came up.
It’s not summer in the garden without zinnias!
I also have marigolds in bloom, hydrangeas in bloom (and begging for water) along with an assortment of fading coneflowers, tall phlox, and hyssop.
If you’d like to hear more about Blacked-eyed Susans, Tall Phlox, Coneflowers, Surprise Lilies or The Posy Book, please listen to the last couple of episodes of The Gardenangelists podcast I record weekly with Dee Nash of Red Dirt Ramblings. We have fun and think you’ll enjoy listening to it in or out of your garden. (And for weeding, we have a special weeding episode you won’t want to miss!)
And that’s a wrap on my bloom day post.
What’s blooming in your garden in the middle of August? We’d love to see! It’s easy to join in for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day! Post on your blog about what’s blooming in your garden around the 15th of the month, then come here and leave a comment about what you have and a link in the Mr. Linky Widget so we can find you.
And always remember… “We can have flowers nearly every month of the year.” ~ Elizabeth Lawrence
Your garden is full of color for the month of August despite the lack of rain and your Zinnias are gorgeous! It is always such a pleasure to visit! We’ve had temperatures in the upper 90’s with some nasty thunderstorms coming though Long Island this past month, but it has finally calmed down to more normal conditions. The Crape Myrtle is in full bloom along with Rudbeckia and Balloon Flower among other blooms. Happy Bloom Day and thank you for hosting!
I love your posy-of-the-month idea, Carol. The bouquet you made is so charming. I may have a go for the next GBBD. Here's hoping we both get some rain before then–just gentle soaking rain, though, not torrential downpours!
Nan
Your zinnias are beautiful – they are one of my favorite flower. I also enjoyed the allium – ours is long gone. We've been getting all your rain, I suspect, and I apologize. I wish I could send some of it your way.
Lovely blooms. Carol, I think a regular Joe would be fine in your garden! xogail
I love zinnias. Yours are beautiful! I have huge sunflowers blooming. I did not know what I was getting, because I transplanted them from underneath the bird feeder. I have two butterfly bushes, Black knight and Summer skies, which has variegated foliage. I have a small Joe Pye weed, Red Dwarf, which gets 2 to 3 feet tall. My reblooming daylilies have begun to bloom, again.
Oh, I definitely need this book. Sounds delightful! Your posy is just so vibrant and so summery. Thank you for hosting! I love this link-up party! 🙂
I've been intrigued by 'Little Joe' and sometimes wish I had planted it instead of the regular one but I do love it. Lots of nice color in your garden!
Six months without rain is normal here but then I'm guessing you don't have an automated irrigation system, a virtual necessity for us in SoCal. Your garden is looking splendid despite your mini-drought. I wish I could grow that Joe Pye weed. Thanks for hosting, Carol!
Love those zinnias, I"m without this year, a mistake I won't make in 2020.
Sharing a garden is a way to find much in common! Not unlike annuals from here to South Dakota! Plant Exchange Blog is at the 100th meridian and likely a USDA zone lower than you! Plants are amazing to grow for all us and still look so good, no matter the gardening skills! I refer to my lesser skills here. Happy summer day!
Beautiful blooms…Summer can be felt in your garden…we are into monsoon season with heavy rainfall season …Colorful zinnias are such a magic to the garden…I wish we could grow allium with that splendid blooms …HAPPY BLOOMS DAY.
Hi Carol – it's been awhile since I've had time to visit and I'm looking forward to strolling through some gardens. Your garden pictures are a good reminder that I need to plant more zinnias – yours are spectacular! Happy gardening, Joanna
Darn it! I made a posy with my garden blooms to give to a recuperating friend and forgot to take a photo of it to share on Bloom Day. Ah well, next time.
Meanwhile, I shared a new "weed" attractive – but likely a thug – for my Bloom Day post this time.
I can't do bouquets at my house! One of the cats notices every little new thing, and has to investigate, even if it means climbing the bookcases. It's also the reason I have a total of TWO houseplants! I'd have many more, but for "Benny the Bu**head."
I love allium and will buy some bulbs as soon as they're in the stores! They take way too long from seed!
It isn't a summer garden without zinnias and yours are beautiful! I have finally been able to grow zinnias this summer for the first time ever. It did require us cutting down two thorn trees in the front yard but the extra sun has made all the difference.
Jeannie@GetMeToTheCountry
Your August blooms are beautiful! I love the shorter version of the Joe Pye weed. I'll have to be on the lookout for that one
We are having a very wet summer, Carol, with heavy downpours doing a lot of damage to my gardens. I don't know which is worse — no rain or too much. Like you, I have zinnias. Yours are so colorful. My Joe pye was labeled 'Little Joe' but it is taller than 4 feet. I wonder …
Thank you for hosting everyone's favorite meme. P. x
Carol, We've had the same weather pattern in Maine this summer as you've had in Indiana — lots of rain in May and June followed by little rain in July and August. As a consequence, my garden is looking a bit drought-stressed and bedraggled. There's still plenty in bloom, though. I love your Joe Pye Weed; it's a plant I don't have enough moisture to keep happy, so I have Joe Pye envy. Thanks again for organizing this montly garden party.
Love your Allium Millenium, so unusual to have an allium flowering now, must see if they are available over here. Autumn is making its presence felt over here, I'm not ready to let go of summer yet!
Carol – your garden manages to be beautiful even though the weather has been so undependable this year. I put in zinnias – and a few other annuals where other perennials had drowned and died in the spring. I am definitley going to keep zinnias from now on. Thank you for inventing Bloom Day,
Wow, if only i can plant those aliums in our very hot tropics, the colors are my favorites. Sometimes i already get tired seeing the very loud colored flowers, the reds, oranges and yellows.
Seeing your zinnias reminds me how much I love them and how I wish I had planted them this year!
And yes, Posy of the month is a great idea!
Hi Carol,
No matter how many n's are in Millenium it is a wonderful flower. I want more of them every year.
I have some red Echinaceas that must have been talking with your spectacular red zinnias! I'm a day late, but happy to be posting for Bloom Day. Thank you, as always, Carol, for hosting!
Your zinnias are lovely, so lush!
I'm having to be careful with flowers in the house as we have 2 new, VERY curious kittens who love eating plants, so no posy from me for a while I'm afraid.
I'm rather late to Blooms Day as my post went up whilst we were on holiday in Switzerland. However, I'm sure you'll recognise my latest garden flower love inspired by last year's Fling!