“A garden is a thing of beauty and a joy forever,” says John Keats, famous poet of the 1800’ s. Well, about now, I’m thinking that, “my garden is a JOB forever!” But I haven’t given up, not even with the distractions of family life, my garden club life and our heat and humidity.
My garden constantly gives me something to enjoy. My honeysuckle (Lonicera x heckrottii ‘Goldflame’) is truly a “thing of beauty.” I purchased it in 2016 at The Growing Place, of course, and the first three years it hardly survived because the bunnies found it to be a “thing of yumminess.”
I planted hostas at its feet which seems to provide a salad bar that distracts the bunnies and in recent years it has been spectacular. Most evenings, we have our dinner in the gazebo and watch the hummingbirds flit from bloom to bloom as it now has rambled up the trellis, providing shade from the setting sun.
There is still time to add perennials or annuals to fill empty spots in our gardens. Thinking ahead to fall beauty, add mums that were bred by the University of Minnesota to be hardy in our area. So hardy that the planting guide from The Growing Place even tells us how and when to divide them!
Another plant that I’m going to add to my garden is the late summer and fall bloomer, Aster Symphyotrichum Laeve, “Smooth Blue Aster. A native plant, it also supports fireflies. Aren’t fireflies a summer delight?
Hopefully, your garden gives you an abundance of joy.
