Thursday, June 28, 2012

What a difference a month makes

A Month Apart
I was just going through a bunch of photos the other day and came upon a few from last month...I could hardly believe how much the garden has grown in such a short amount of time! Next year, I really, really, REALLY have to try to remember to cut the Agastache back before they get as tall as I am.

I know I'm not alone in this...and that all our gardens go through a similar growth spurt during spring...but still...wow! I have to say, I came to the realization last weekend as I shoved my way through the backyard...the next time I plan for a path of any kind, it has to be a minimum of 6' wide! I seem to be unable to keep plants from spilling over the edges of things...it's just not in my nature to reign them in. Also, I could swear that a lot of plants are just BIGGER this year...like TWICE as big as usual. I don't know if it was our bizarrely warm winter or what. Conversely, some plants are really behind...emerging months later than usual.

swallowtail on knautia  1835
As we're on the cusp of summer officially starting here in Portland, I'm enjoying our last few cool, rainy days (which seem even more wonderful in light of the harsh weather around the rest of the country)...reveling in the fact that I haven't had to water yet (well, except for new plantings). What about the rest of you...how are your gardens progressing?

63 comments:

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  2. Wow, I love those before and after shots. Good advice about the garden path. Sadly, we have had to water more than ever since we're in a drought and are now facing record heat. For those of us with shade gardens, the damage is a little less, but many plants are really struggling. Visiting your blog is a welcome relief.

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    1. So sorry to hear about the weather you (and so many others) are having...it sounds just awful :-( I'm really hoping you all get some relief soon :-)

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  3. Your garden looks fabulous! But getting through your path may require a machete! I'm hoping my garden won't fry in our heat wave. I'll take some of your rain, please!

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    1. Hahahaha...indeed...I may have to invest in a machete this year for sure! I hoe you get some rain soon!

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  4. WOW! Scott that's crazy (in a good way), can you even get to the chairs to set down and relax?

    Like you I notice somethings going crazy (the cool water hogs) but others are sort of pouting (like the cannas and bananas that want heat). I want more weather like yesterday!

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    1. Hahahaha...luckily, the back yard is accessible on both sides, so I just go that way ;-) I'm hoping our summer is like yesterday (on the 4th) so very lovely!

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  5. Well those pictures tells it all. My how your garden had grown. What path Scott? LOL! It looks so lush and pretty.

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    1. Hahahahaha...I know, right...and believe it or not, in the week since I posted this, it's even crazier now...I'm a little scared!

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  6. Wonderful photos. It's amazing the changes that occur in one month's time. We're in the midst of what weathermen term, a severe drought. It's either water or wilt around here, so water it is! Here in nw Ohio plants/flowers are about a month ahead, even the cicadas are out and singing and all this earliness is a bit disconcerting, at least to me.

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    1. I know...our extended springs in the NW are like plant steroids! Yes...this year seems to be nothing but odd weather...I hope you can break the drought soon...having to water constantly and fret about the plants certainly makes gardening more stressful that it ought to be :-(

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  7. It's crazy what can happen in a garden in a short amount of time. It can truly get out of control. I love your photo of the Swallowtail. I had one here yesterday and it spent about a 15 minutes on the Milkweed that is in full bloom. I was so mesmerized watching it after it left that I thought why didn't I get my camera.

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    1. OMG...you know, this is the first year I REALLY seen so many Swallowtails around...I maybe saw 1 or 2 in the past, but this year we seem to have far more. I really need to get some milkweed this year...I just need to find a spot :-)

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  8. Whoa! It's a jungle out there.........a BEAUTIFUL jungle. Looks terrific.
    Glad you're having cool weather.

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  9. I'm having some "whoah" momements myself this year. I've replaced my Felco pruners with a machete. Next spring, I'm replacing quite a bit of the sprawly bullies.

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    1. Oh yeah...it's for sure, I've learned my lesson. I decided to just enjoy the garden for what it is, but next year, I'll be thinning things out and will definitely do some selective pruning early on to keep things from getting QUITE so big :-)

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  10. Wow, you really have a marvellous jungle out there, like Sue said. What a transformation! If your chairs are still in place there's a wonderful hideaway. Maybe your winter was very warm – or maybe you're just too good of a gardener ;)

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    1. Hahahaha...we did have a VERY warm winter (really, no winter at all) and things are HUGE this year!

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  11. Beautiful! It's so amazing how fast a garden grows when you get rain.

    It's hot here and we haven't had rain so my garden is basically dormant until fall.

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    1. ARGH...that's so sad :-( I hope you get some rain to re-awaken your garden.

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  12. Wow, Scott, your plants are huge! Most of mine are blooming early, but seem smaller than usual this year...go figure...

    I just came in from spending 45 minutes watering the deck containers and a few new blueberry bushes in the rockwall garden. Yesterday I spent nearly two hours watering the two biggest gardens...I am sick of watering already. After a week of nice temps, it's HOT again...hate that, too. I am hoping for rain on Sunday.

    Have a good holiday weekend.

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    1. Yeah...that has happened here too...things blooming about a month earlier, but dwarf-ish. Other plants are just HUGE and sprawling all over. Sounds like you spend all your spare time watering lately...I hope you get some rain SOON!!!

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  13. The plants may be confused, but so am I. Never a dull moment, waiting to see what will happen next out there.

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    1. Hahahaha...that is so true...I guess that's what makes gardening interesting...nothing is ever certain, is it?

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  14. And, you've had a butterfly flutter by. Lucky you! Great photo of him enjoying Knautia's sweet nectar. I think it's a combination of a mild (temperature-wise) winter with the abundance of spring rain. Everything has just exploded. Even my Daphne 'Summer Ice' a slow-growing shrub has DOUBLED in size since its first flush of bloom in March and April. It's crazy. And I'm not complaining. Like you I have trouble reigning in my lazy path-strewn plants. I keep thinking, I'll wait until... they're finished blooming or some other silly rule I've made up for myself. I hope your Epilobium (I couldn't for the life of me remember Fireweed's Latin name so thank you!) blooms soon. It is a winner. Thanks for commenting on my blog.

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    1. I think you're exactly right, Grace...it's like a perfect storm of conditions to make things just go bonkers! I'm the same way, I always have a reason why I need to wait to trim things back...and now that all those plants are blooming, I can not bring myself to cut them back...sigh! My Epilobium has been blooming for the last week or so...and I adore it...so absolutely beautiful (and tough as nails)!

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  15. I'll say! Only a month- wow. Yes, big difference. That's funny you say that- things here seem bigger than usual too. Maybe it is the warmer winter we had here as well as you suggest- who knows. That photo of the butterfly is stunning. Beautiful. It was 109 here Tuesday. Bleh. But at least not as bad as it was last year.

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    1. Yeah...last winter seems to have really messed with things a bit...and as nice as some of the effects are, I worry about our long-term...so I hope we return to a more normal weather pattern soon. Stay Cool!!! I would be a hot, crabby mess if it were that hot here!!!

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  16. I'm jealous. All my plants are stunted and miserable, we've only had two rains since the start of June. Even my sedum are half the size they normally would be. I'm glad someone is getting great weather though, your garden looks so lush!

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    1. UGH...that sounds horrible :-( You know it's extreme when even the sedums suffer...I'll cross my fingers for some cooler tems (AND RAIN) for you soon!

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  17. Wow! Wow! Wow! What a difference water makes! I'm happy to have a few flowers this year and agastache that is knee to waist height.

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    1. Let's hear it for your Agastache!!! I'm amazed at how big these ones are, it's kind of crazy (over 6' tall). Sadly, some of my other Agastache are at least 2 months behind where they usually are at this time...crazy weather.

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  18. Thanks for visiting my Shabby Cottage. I'm really sorry now that I never kept track of the names of my plants...so I have not idea what the pink day lily is called. Love your blog and see your beautiful garden. Warm hugs, Esther

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    1. Thanks for visiting, Esther! No worries...it's hard enough keeping things alive sometimes, to have to remember what the names of things are, right!?!

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  19. yes, I suppose we know better. Yes we know. How large a plant will get. Oh well, it's nice to enjoy before we get out the tools.

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    1. Hahahaha...for sure...even when we know it will happen, it can be hard to bite the bullet and chop, chop, chop!

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  20. growing by leaps and bounds!! Looks great. Love the photo of the Swallowtail.

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    1. Isn't it great...and yes, I love the Swallowtail :-)

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  21. Guns 'N Roses is playing over and over in my head! I love your jungle! LUSH!

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  22. Now I know what it means to say what a difference a day makes, multiplied into what a difference a month makes. We all know when we start out with that small plant it is always a surprise to see how big it becomes.

    Eileen

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    1. Hahahaha...I know...somehow I never can imagine that those tiny little plants will get so big...SO FAST!

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  23. Wow, that was an amazing picture that you've captured of that gorgeous yellow-black butterfly perching on a red flower! And crisp focus too.

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    1. We've been graced by many more butterflies than usual this year...and I finally managed to get a photo of it!

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  24. I like your path the way it is. Having to literally rub shoulders with plants to get to your seating area adds a certain mystique to your garden (and probably a few interesting things to a cup of coffe you might be carrying.)

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    1. Hahahaha...totally...and since it's Agastache, I smell good when I emerge on the other side ;-)

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  25. Aha, walking through that path must feel like a safari! I'm so excited to see some of my perennials starting to get full and lush - this cool, wet spring pushed many things in that direction. Our growing season is so much shorter than other areas that it takes years longer for plants to get large, and it's so hard to wait. So, enjoy the fullness before you have to start trimming back to make room for the gardener in the garden :-)

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    1. It totally does...hahahaha! Yes, our cool, wet springs make for explosive plant growth!

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  26. With our heatwave, over 100 lately, things have been at a stand still. Nothing really growing. Yours looks lovely.

    Cher Sunray Gardens

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    1. Oh no...that sounds truly miserable :-( I hope the heatwave ends soon and you (and your garden) get a reprieve with some more pleasant weather.

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  27. I'm glad to see that another, better gardener than me has this same sort of "problem". No matter how many times I see this transformation, I can't visualize in spring how big everything is going to get in just a month or two. I was just noticing that every new plant I put in this spring is already shouldering up to at least one nearest neighbor. And every year in the fall I can't find or reach the "bare" spots where I intended to put spring bulbs. But I love the lush abundance of the summer garden!

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    1. Hahahaha...I know...it always sort of sneaks up on me...which seems so funny! So glad to hear someone else has trouble planting bulbs in the fall...just HOW do other people do it!!???!!

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  28. Things are huge here in Seattle too. We had twice as much rain as normal in June. I'm sure that accounts for it.

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    1. That's very likely, Jordan...it seems like the garden was given a shot of steroids or something!

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  29. I'm happy to learn you have trouble clearing the path-- my feeling exactly. Yes we are having jungle weather in western Oregon, hence the jungle. I love the big plants and especially how the trees are growing too. Your secret sitting area must feel as if its deep in the woods, so perfect. Here's to the lush garden--clink!

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    1. Hahahaha, clink indeed! I know, I'll never complain about our spring weather, it's so wonderful for our gardens. So many other places might get a week or two of real spring before the scorching temps settle in .

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  30. I think all the rain and lack of sun has made the plants stretch this spring. And I agree about the warmer winter helping, too. My callas and Eucomis are all leafing like crazy.

    Your garden is looking wonderful, Scott! Who needs to worry about the path when you can get such quick privacy for your sitting space out of the deal??!

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    1. That's definitely the downside, Jane...those plants are not quite as sturdy as they really should be...so they do tend to topple far too easily. By the end of summer, it seems like I've planted a veritable grove of bamboo stakes around the garden to support everything!!! Luckily, you can't see them through the plants ;-)

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  31. I wish our veggies were having as much fun! We have a fuschia that's gone completely insane this year though.

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  32. Scott, i still remember the photo when you are digging this path after erecting the walls. Look at it now, but that is not unusual, as it is the same thing here in the tropics. And if we happen to forget a mimosa growing as a weed, we cannot even go through without any ouches!

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