June 2022 in the Garden and an Invitation to My Readers
We’re more than half-way through June. The solstice is just a few days away. Summer is well and truly here.
walking east into the garden from the back of the house
The garden is looking much different than it did in May. I’m always amazed by how quickly things progress.
walking a bit further into the garden turned southeast
Although most things seem to have caught up after spring’s slow start, some are still a bit behind.
There’s a lot of purple right now. From the chive flowers to these ageratum (the variety is Blue Planet and I love it)
to catmint (which has opened even more since I took this photo)
to clematis. This one is jackmanii.
I don’t know what varieties my other two are. The light one grows tall and blooms on the very tip of the stems.
The pink one is suffering from some wilt, but it’s still filled with flowers.
It’s a challenging year with bugs, too. Something has been chewing on my rose buds, keeping them from opening nicely.
That’s one big difference from last June. I don’t have as many roses. Frustrated with Japanese beetles, I dug many of them out last fall.
We’ll see how things go this season. I’m enjoying the fragrance at least. The pink, a type of rugosa, possibly Hansa, and this yellow, David Austin’s The Poet’s Wife, both smell delicious even if the petals are less than perfect.
Columbine leaf borers have decorated my columbine leaves.
From what I’ve read they don’t harm the plant so I’m not fretting.
It’s also been a bad year for gnats. They’re such a pain, sometimes literally, leaving itchy swollen welts where they bite. One of the realities of summer.
I have yet to make a salad completely from the garden, but it’s getting close.
I’m still delighting in pansies and violas.
In my Joy Letter the other day I mentioned how much fun I’ve been having sketching them with colored pencil. It started out as an experiment to test the paper and grew from there. (If you’re not already a Joy Letter subscriber, you can sign up here).
The self-seeded babies from last year’s plants are finally starting to bloom. They were much later than usual this year.
I love the surprises of color, shape and size that show up as they cross-pollinate.
The beds that looked so empty in May are filling out more and more each day.
the view from the garden looking northwest toward the garage
And there are quite a few peaches on my peach tree!!!
It makes me so happy! As do the cherries coming on my cherry tree/bush/shrub (it’s a variety called Juliet).
Some have been turning red and shriveling but I hope some will ripen and I’ll be able to catch them before the birds.
I try to be outside as much as I can, bugs and all.
facing southeast in the garden
I’m often surprised by how quickly things change. One day flower buds, the next baby tomatoes.
This one is Cherry Falls. Perfect for containers and very early. I grew it last year, too. I’m growing a total of seven tomato varieties (two plants of each).
If you were curious about the blue poles in the other photo, they’re T-posts to help support tomato spirals (I painted them blue).
It’s another garden experiment (and makes me think of maypoles). Tomato spirals don’t provide great support and if you use them you need to be vigilant about maintaining a single stem.
We’ll see how it goes. I like to experiment in the garden as well as in my art.
I’ve tried to weed out extra self-seeded plants, leaving (or transplanting) just the ones I want. There’s so much oregano popping up everywhere. I planted a lot of it last year. I’m not sure what I was thinking, but I could swear that in past years it was much more well-behaved.
For many plants, cutting off the flowers before they can go to seed helps to keep things under control. And with plants like feverfew will bring you more flowers, too.
The simplest projects in the garden can bring me so much joy. The window box planters I added a few years ago make me happy whether I’m looking at them from outside or in.
I really want to paint those petunias.
I’m looking forward to painting dahlias later in the season, too. I planted five varieties of dahlia tuber and I grew some from seed. All but one of the tubers have sprouted so far.
Frances Palmer inspired me to use tomato cages to support them (the photos of her garden in her book Life in the Studio are wonderful).
the northeast corner of the garden
So many flowers still to come. And so much to savor in the here and now.
I’m constantly reminding myself. I hope you are, too.
Many of you, my dear readers, are also gardeners. I love hearing about what you’re growing and what’s inspiring you and bringing you joy. I’ve been thinking about where I want to take my Reader Conversations and have an idea for something a little different.
I want to invite you to share your garden.
Here’s what I’m thinking:
Send me a photo of your garden (72 dpi, minimum width 600 px — if you don’t know what this means, just send me what you have and I’ll work with it as best I can).
The photo can be of a single plant or flower or of one corner or of a wider view. The choice is yours.
Tell me something about your garden. Maybe what you love about it or something about the plant/flower you’re sharing or maybe about the project seen in the photo.
Let me know what name you’d like me to credit and whether you want me to include a link to a website, blog or social media.
Email the photo and write up to: anne@mygiantstrawberry.com
Deadline is June 27.
In July I’ll write a blog post about YOUR gardens.
Sound good? I hope so!
Next Friday is my anniversary and I’m going to take the weekend off, including taking a break from my blog. I’ll see you again in July.