Our drought broke over this weekend and it’s still raining, so you might want to carry an umbrella with you today as we splash our way through the next set of flowers!

Black Eyed Susans

One of my favorite flowers that opens in late summer here is the Rudbeckia Goldsturm, or Black-eyed Susan. The blooms stay open for weeks, and they’re virtually carefree, which makes them even more loveable!

Wine Delight Daylily

We’re getting a second round of blooming from a daylily that is new to my yard this year, the richly colored Wine Delight. I have over twenty different varieties of daylilies, in colors that range from white to palest pink ice, lemon yellow, orange, deep gold, salmon, a number of different shades of red, maroon, and even some shades of lavendar. Because different daylily cultivars bloom at different times, we have a continuous show of daylily blooms from early spring through autumn.

Yellow Candy Cane Zinnia

The zinnias are continuing to put on a show, from this speckled Candy Cane Zinna to

State Fair Zinnia

this lovely pale yellow State Fair Zinna. New blooms are opening daily, in pinks, whites, reds and purples, making delightful splashes of color.

Yellow Portulaca

Portulaca, or moss roses, fell out of favor decades ago in gardening circles, but I usually grow a container or two of them every year.

Moss roses

Moss roses are unabashedly wild in both their colors and foliage, and definitely not for a gardener who wants neat, trim, orderly plants! My grandfather grew an enormous border of moss roses alongside his driveway, and they always remind me of him.

Pink rugosa rose

In addition to my climbing rose bush, I also have an entire hedge we’ve grown of Rugosa roses. These aren’t named hybrid rugosas - they are the original native rugosas - and mine flower in shades of pink and white. The bunnies love to eat the young canes these roses send out, even though the canes are covered with thousands of needle-sharp thorns. Go figure!

White rugosa rose

The rugosas bloom continously, from early summer through fall, and aren’t susceptible to the diseases that attack hybridized roses. Their fragrance is heavenly, and at times the hedge has literally hundreds of roses blooming at a time. Their foliage is quite unique, with beautiful crinkled leaves that open in palest shades of green and gradually darken.

Garden spider

I neglected, when talking about the garden critters, to mention that we have a thriving population of spiders throughout the yard. This gal has spun a web next to our back door, and I’ve come to greatly admire her markings, which are almost irridescent in the light.

There’s still more to come…