August 29th - more plants

Today, I planted the rest of the plants that I got from Gerber's yesterday. In this front bed, just behind and to the side of the hydrangea, I put Solomon's Seal. This is a plant that grew well in my Halifax shady garden, and it is quite charming. It also spreads but is not invasive. It grows branching stems each spring from which hang creamy bell-like flowers.

I encountered more of the plastic sheeting that seems to underlie this entire bed. I simply cut it out where I was digging and will tackle it as I come across it.

And I met with a builder today who is going to construct a deck over most of this front bed. It will extend the front porch and provide a wonderful place to sit when it is hot as this is shady for most of the day.

Next I planted three astilbes in the bed where there are four others. Two of these are white and one is pink. I want this entire section to be astilbes and sweet woodruff. It receives only an hour or two or morning light and the rest of the day, it is in filtered shade. They should do well in this location.

This is a photo of the sad looking hydrangea at the corner of the house. It looks as if someone tried to train it into a tree, but half of it appears to be dead. I had cut it back last fall, taking out all the branches that seemed lifeless. And it has put out a surprising number of blooms. From the many videos on hydrangeas that I have been watching, this is characteristic of panicle hydrangeas, they bloom on new wood.

So I am going to give this plant a second chance. I was going to dig it out, but I will prune it back hard in about a month, and see if it generates new growth next spring. If not, this is the plant that I took the cuttings from and they seem to be doing fine. So it the original plant succumbs, I will plant one of its babies in its place.

I don't know what type of hydrangea this is, but the flowers turn tan colour instead of pink. That should provide some clue to its species. Back to the hydrangea videos.