Bogturtle's Garden- October 1-15, 2017

 This Aster, given to me by a friend, many years ago, wanders hopelessly among the groundcovers in quite a bit of shade. Actually darker than it shows, here.

 This white flowered Cyclamen hederacea was shown, in bloom, last Month.  Now the entirely silvery leaves have shown up. This is in the little rock garden, which seems a good situation for it. Not the first time I have tried this type. Last time, when Turkeys were very common and constantly here, the leaves attracted them, like any shiny object might attract a bird. They killed that one. You can't make this stuff up, and I could never have predicted it.

 Years ago this Japanese Anemone was a dominant bloomer in the main perennial bed. What with shrubs giving more shade, only a few bloomed, this year.  Usually a very vigorous, long lived plant, it has been here about 30 years. Often able to take over an area. A 5 to 6 foot high plant, with flowers about 3 inches across. A. J. 'Honorine Jobert' is an extremely old variety.

Two of the beautiful Camellia flowers, also in considerable shade. Maybe C Sansanqua, it is a white-flowered form called 'Autumn Moon'.  Fall blooming, white-flowered Camellias are not common.

 A contrast in color. Any other time I would have ripped out the Woodbine or Virginia Creeper, but this time of year the brilliant red is appreciated. Once Winter sets in, I will remove it from the Winterberry or Ilex verticillata 'Sparkleberry'. The brilliant red berries are appreciated but will go, as I say so often, to huge flocks of roving Robins, this Winter.
The blue green evergreen is one form of a Chinese tree called Cunninghamia lanceolata 'Glauca'.

 Perfection continues to evade. One of the Double Red Knockout Rose bushes has simply died. the other 4 are doing fine. A mystery. A new one will be put in, next Spring.
Both ends of the lens shaped bed were full of Ajuga, which looked grand in bloom.  But I treasure the ground-hugging Mazus repens 'Alba' more than the more aggressive Ajuga.
The yellow Rose, in the pot, is doing vastly better than the identical sort in an identical pot at the other end of the bed.

Mixed in with other shrubs, the Possum Haw or Viburnum nudum 'Winterthur' has taken on grand ruby shades for Fall. Only a few blue berries, this year, but the other form of this shrub, cross-pollination being needed, must not have bloomed at all. It is on the other side of the yard and is called 'Fallshade'.  Not worth showing, this year. It had been shaded out by a Viburnum mariesii, which was looking bad, and is now gone.                        

Bogturtle's Garden Sept. 2017

                            

 Magnolia grandiflora 'Bracken's Brown Beauty' is among the hardiest of sorts. The tree is finally big enough to show above the trellis behind the little rock garden. It has bloomed at least once before, but this Summer a single bloom was where it was hard to see. Now the seed pod remains.

Aesculus or Buckeye seems like other Horsechestnuts and the edible Chestnut, but the seeds are supposed to be quite poisonous to humans.
Several young ones are growing at the base of this parent plant.

 Double Red Knockout Rose has responded to a liquid fertilizer applied about every two weeks. Time to stop, as no new soft growth should be there to go into Winter. A pot, at each end of the bed, has a yellow Rose.

Below is the deciduous species of Holly called Ilex verticellata, but of a more dwarf clone called 'Sprite'. The berries are just beginning to turn red. Unfortunately the Robins will not leave them to light up the Winter garden. Mixing in with I. v. or Winterberry is the native Itea virginica 'Henry's Garnet. That is, in part, already turning red.
There is room for this shrub to sucker and spread, but that's not good for gardeners who want tidyness.

Above is another yellow Rose. It climbs on the fence of the deck for the pool. But like so many, this yellow quickly fades to almost white.

Surprised and gratified because some Fall blooming hardy Cyclamen have shown up in the little rock garden. It is ovewhelmed with weeds, as I have no time to tend to it. It will be interesting to see if foliage will show up.  It should. Cyclamen hederacea 'Alba'.

A beautifully patterned leaf has shown up. Not close, at all, to the blooms shown above. Again it must be Cyclamen hederacea.

Probably the interesting leaves of the Spring blooming Cyclamen cuom.
But the worst of the weeds, taking over, is shown.  The double flowered form of a Potentilla, that spreads by aggressive runners as well as seed.

A true blue Ipomea, or Morning Glory. Quite a small bloom, but a fine color.  An amazing and vigorous pest that, strangely, was offered as seed from a really fine seed company.  I can freely eradicate all I see, if I wish.  It will still be here, coming so easily from seed. I. hirsuta.

All Summer long this Perennial Pea has bloomed. I steer clear of pink or orchid flowers very often, and go for the much rarer white-flowered form. The vine is in a number of places, and here it grows up the lattice fence around the pool deck.

Even more abundant on the fence around the pool deck, the climbing Rose 'Winning Circle' always seems disease and insect free.

Plastic planter boxes contain vines, and line one side of the pool deck, to climb up the fence. Here Ipomea 'Heavenly Blue' and some intensely colored sort bloom.

Here we have the half-inch wide flower of The Cypress Vine.  A kind of Ipomea, also. Perhaps I. cupressus.

Other vines have trailed out of the planter boxes on to the platform that hides the base of the umbrella. Perhaps the bubble gum pink form from the company called Susan's Seeds and the rather rare white-flowered form of the Hyacinth Vine. Those seeds were kindly sent me by a woman who grew it, when I said I did not care for the typical purple pink form.
Hope it forms seed pods soon. I have no other seed, and only one plant grew and bloomed. Responsibilities prevented me from devotion to gardening, this year.

A seed from my Phlox paniculata has shown up. Worth keeping, and with the normal vigor of the species, I expect it bigger and better, next Summer.

Ceratostigma plumbaginoides, or Leadwort,  has bloomed in the rock garden for Months, now. Half inch wide flowers of a beautiful shade of true blue.

Impossibly small, so it is difficult to see the female Ruby Throated Hummingbird. The mix is not commercial, but one part ordinary sugar and 4 parts water. I heat it in the microwave, in pyrex glass, but hold back some water, so I can make it up with ice cubes. The birds will soon fly across the Gulf of Mexico to the Yucatan, to Winter. Hurricane must be a factor. One could ride the outer,  counter-clockwise, winds and really get to Mexico from Alabama quickly. But what a distance for such tiny birds. Highly territorial, in the last instant of the video, the female claiming this yard chases away the one feeding.

So extraordinary. Always true to the old time sailor, 'red sky at night, sailor's delight. Red sky in the morning, sailor take warning'.  If I recall, the next day was fine, but such an unusual purple red sky.

Another sort of Ilex verticellata, or Winterberry. This one, 'Shaver', has unusually large berries, but like all the rest, wandering flocks of Robins will remove all by Christmas.

 Another unusual sky.

Probably a half dozen Sternbergia lutea were added to the Rock Garden several years ago. One inch and a half wide flower showed up, this year.  Easily confused with a Fall crocus, but quite different.

Bogturtle's Garden- August 16 to end

                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

 Build it and they will come.  So, finally, after a rainy night, a Frog did show up in the little pond.
Possibly a Leopard or Pickerel Frog. The shape of the spots determines species and one is rarer than the other.  At least in S. Jersey.   Duckweed, possibly Lemna minor, was added last Summer and is good for keeping the water clear. But I must scoop it out, as it soon totally covers the surface. Of course one or two cling to the Frog.  Best match is the Pickerel Frog, Lithobates palustris or Rana palustris.  Too bad folk can't even settle on Rana or Lithobates.
Baby Guppies are in the pond, now, even though I did not see any of the two males and one female adults, on casual check. 

 Lycoris radiata has been added to the rock garden in a few places and just seems to show up in different spots. Far smaller bloom than L. squamigera, the Mystery Lily or Nekked Ladies, previously shown. Both just show up on naked stems and produce their leaves at other seasons. 

 The unusual Winter hardy Begonia, called B. evansianna. I will remove most, as it is too successful. Other rare plants may, already, have been shaded out.  This plant does emerge so late that one would assume it has been lost, but it is taking over.

This is an equally vigorous select form of B. evansianna called 'Heron's Piroette'.  It will also be limited, with the hope of saving neighbors it has inundated.

 The huge Kerria japonica 'Floraplena' opens masses of orange-yellow marigold shaped flowers in Spring. Now it is in a small re-bloom.

Bignonia carpreolata, the Crossvine, is doing very well,after several tries, over the years.  A native of our South Eastern States. This one form is starting to be a really vigorous addition, normally blooming in Spring.  But as with so many plants, this vine sending out a very few random, two inch wide blooms, here and there. 

Would have to go back to my spreadsheet to name this little Hybiscus relative. But it is good to see that it is still on the property. Again, very far away from where I once planted it. Second time showing up so strangely.  The seeds are large, easy, and the seed pods are prominent, so I may be able to save seed for this perennial.  Described as short lived, but I planted the originals over ten years ago, so it must sustain itself by seeding about. Usually a bubble gum pink.

 Ceratostigma plumbaginoides is sometimes called Leadwort. The flowers are close to cobalt blue.

 One of the super easy, very long lived Sedums. The camera came out of the air-conditioned house and so the lens must have fogged up.  Don't really even care to give the name, as I, likely, got it as a stowaway with other plants I actually wanted.
Almost difficult to kill.

Heavenly Blue Morning Glory is one plant I would always want to have in the garden. Always seems to wait until August or Sept. to bloom, here.  And new seed always seems needed, as, unlike other Morning Glory sorts, here, it never reseeds or forms seed at all.

                           

Bogturtle's Garden- July 11-20

 Rudbeckia (Black Eyed Susan)'Goldsturm' or 'Goldstorm' is another cottage garden plant you may always have, as it is amazingly vigorous. I may reduce this crowd to a third, when bloom is over. This crowd of perennials is to the left of the little rock garden.

The later blooming clone of Aesculus parviflora.

 The only example of the Rose-of-Sharon, or Hybiscus syriacus.  Others are beautiful, but give too many seedlings.  This white one, 'Diana', will not make seed.

 The little pool at its best. No Frogs, but 'If you build it, they will come'.  Any day I expect to see one or two, as they are migrating, and especially on a rainy night. On a walk, last year, I noticed some Duckweed in a land-locked pond.  Lemna, or Duckweed,  is the second smallest known flowering plant.  Wolfia, called Water Meal, is smaller. At any rate, I am now removing Duckweed, which is okay. Four Guppies were added, as fish always must be. Otherwise an ideal Mosquito breeding pond would exist. A minnow trap was made up and put in the local creek. Someday, somewhere, someone may find it, as the powerful tides broke the anchor string and carried it off.

 Blue, gray and silver plants are a favorite, and this is an unusual blue clone of the native Love Grass. Erogrostis elliotii 'Glauca'.

A particularly successful Japanese Painted Fern. Athyrum japonica 'Pictum', is my guess.   It came as a spore, as there are quite a few on the property.

 A white flowered Phlox paniculata expected and known to be shorter than the sort sold as 'David'. But this year, with all the rain, it is as tall as 'David' has been in other years. These flowers have a slight scent.

 A Hosta purchased for the bluish foliage.  Never very blue.

        

Phlox paniculata 'David'.  Described as deer resistant, it was eaten down where I first planted it. The deer would have to go beside or between the vehicles to get to it now.  They never have bothered these perennials in this main bed.

 Cannot imagine buying a pink Phlox paniculata, but it is here, and  so fine I leave it.

A failure because the young woman supposed to water the plants, when we were away for 10 days, years ago, did not notice it dying. Finally cut it to the ground, and slowly, it is coming back. Edgeworthia chrysantha will be shown if it forms buds and blooms, as the blooms are unique.

'Knowlian's Black' is not really black, but is a beautiful color. Seems to have come from seed, true to color, and with other Morning Glories all around, that is surprising.

The Perennial Pea is blooming behind the pool deck, and should, eventually be seen from on the deck.

 My daughter loves pink, so I was glad to find this bubble gum pink Morning Clory for her house. A few came here, also. Once again, I cannot say why it has not mixed in color with others

This sort of thing is what I see, each morning, as I check the two trail cameras, but there are often surprises. Three baby Raccoons is a first for this camera.

 I think the rediculous name is Ceratostigma plumbaginoides, and it is called Leadwort. The most beautiful shade of almost pure cobalt blue, and long blooming.  A fine, long lived, low growing groundcover in the little rock garden.  So late to emerge that the gardener might suppose they had lost it. In good Sun, it colors beautifully for Fall. Each flower seems less than an inch across.

 Almost the correct color reported here. One of the 'Chicago' series of Daylily, it is tall and spectacular. Hemerocalis 'Chicago Apache'.

 The Daylily Hemerocallis 'Mt Etna'.