The nights are getting chilly, it was down to +6 here last night, that is Celsius. Daytime highs are in the high teens, low 20's which is considerably cooler than just last week. Such a short season we get in central Canada to grow our gardens.
I picked up two coneflowers at Gerber's last week and haven't decided where these will end up eventually. So I popped them into the bed beside the driveway for now; I don't know if they will stay here. That will probably depend on how happy they seem in that location. I imagine these in a drift somewhere in the back yard as they need full sun. And they shine best when planted in a large clump in my opinion.
That electric meter is an ugly site, I will have to find something that covers it up.
And yesterday we took a trip to McKellar so that Nick could get his new motor and boat trailer ready for a trip next week. On the way we noticed a nursery in Dwight and managed a 10 minute visit on the way home. Not much time to see all that they had to offer. It is a beautiful nursery and I must go again.
I picked up an ornamental grass, a miniature bee balm, and an autumn sedum. I seem to have a lot of pink in the garden so far, I wonder if that is going to prove a theme. I will get those planted today. And hopefully also the goat's beard and the remaining hydrangea that await patiently in their pots. But they require a new bed to be dug.
So this is the front bed nearest the driveway. I have added the bee balm and the stonecrop or autumn sedum to this bed, next to the fringed bleeding heart. And then put black mulch over the bed here to keep the moisture in the soil. Already the bees are arriving and there is always one visiting the bee balm and also the foxglove in the other bed. One plant that is not visible is periwinkle or vinca minor just behind the bee balm. I put the pot there just because there was a space and it seemed to immediately produce two flowers so I thought it wants to stay here. It is a very pretty ground cover that produces lots of pretty blue flowers in spring. You don't often see any flowers at this time of year.
Then late this afternoon, I began to dig a bed on the strip of grass between us and the new neighbour. I have been watching the light and shadows here to see what will happen once her house is up. There is some shadow until around 10:30 or 11 o'clock, then this spot gets quite a bit of sun until around 2 and then it gets some afternoon sun a few hours later. So the hydrangea should be fine here. And I hope to add the goat's beard and the pretty grass to this bed as well. This hydrangea is Jack Cataraqui, which will grow rather like a tree reaching a height of 12' and a width of 10'. Guess I had better leave some room around this one. On the left is a hardy mum that was calling my name at the grocery store. I love hardy mums and hope that this will survive the cold winter here and actually return next growing season.
I am imagining a short hedge along the curve of the driveway as well. I would love to have spirea somewhere on the property, even though their bloom time is so short. My dad had bridal wreath spirea in our garden when I was a young girl and their scent takes me back to those days. A neighbour of ours in Halifax, who is a magnificent gardener, advised having a double hedge if you want a hedge. In his yard, he has spirea on the outside border, and inside of that he has lilac. A wonderful idea if you have the space and the resources.
I was thinking of spirea here but they don't look that great after they bloom; however my new-found love of hydrangea is having me see a hedge of lime light hydrangeas and perhaps some ornamental grasses mixed together. I will let the idea percolate for a while. No one seems to have enough of one kind of hydrangea for me to do this now, so perhaps it will await the spring and I may have changed my mind by then. So many ideas! So many plans!
This is what I see in my mind's eye. How pretty!
Or perhaps a bed like this. I asked Nick if we could find a rock like this and he just stared at me. As if we can move a ton by ourselves. This is limelight hydrangea; I had overlooked this variety before as I thought the creamy white were nicer, but limelight turns a lovely shade of pink and it gives you blossoms that last for a couple of months. That is a winner in my book.
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