Six on Saturday: Middle June

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  We are delighted to discover these tiny hearts appearing on a volunteer seedling redbud tree. I seem to remember that there is a Cercis cultivar that has red leaves, but this is one that nature provided to us.

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Mid-June still holds a few surprises and unexpected delights. Like a lovely rain shower around 1 this morning. Glistening droplets of rain still clung to grass and leaves by the time the sun was up over the trees, and there was no need for me to unroll the hoses to water first thing today.

The various trees and shrubs continue to open their first flowers of the season- a pink flowering crape myrtle that has burgundy foliage bloomed on Tuesday. Tree Hibiscus flowers also started early this week, with more trees joining the display as the week progressed. We already have three types of Hydrangeas in bloom, and the Gardenia, which fills the garden with its fragrance, is now completely covered in flowers. What a beautiful time of the year!

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  Rose of Sharon, tree Hibiscus, attracts hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies all summer.

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Only two small pots of ferns remain in the nursery, waiting for a more permanent home. The rest of the new acquisitions finally are planted. I bought the ferns on impulse on Monday when we stopped by our favorite garden center. I always check out their section of shady plants, and particularly their ferns. On Monday morning, there were just four pots of delicate ‘A. x Mairisii’ maidenhair ferns left for the season, and I purchased the best three. One has already gone into a container with some Caladiums, and the other two will likely go into larger containers to grow on later today.

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  Maidenhair fern, A. x mairisii, planted last month with Japanese painted ferns in these two containers, proves very hardy and tough in our area in spite of its very delicate appearance. The third photo shows the Athyrium ‘Victoriae’ which finally sprouted by late May growing with some Caladiums overwintered from previous years.

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My gardening efforts are in a lull at the moment, after a tick bite earlier in the week followed by several more mystery bites. They may have come from chiggers or from spiders, but they have been a painful distraction these past few days. It is the season for arachnid bites and these remind me to be more careful when doing anything outdoors.

We also picked up a few more Pentas on Monday, a bright annual beloved by hummingbirds and butterflies, another Salvia or two, and two more dragonwing Begonias generously gifted to us by the garden center’s owner. I believe that will have to be the finale of my plant shopping for the season as I’m running out of containers and spaces to plant anything more.

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  The underplanting of the container holding the Canna ‘Australia,’ sent to me last winter by Tony Tomeo, is filling in. The Cannas don’t have flower buds yet by they are growing very well. When I went to remove the stray Zantedeschia I had mistakenly planted instead of a Caladium, it was too well rooted to dig out without damaging it and the Cannas. So it remains and has bloomed with a dark purple flower, which looks good against the dark canna foliage.

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But the deer and voles continue to help open up new spaces. We discovered a young buck grazing the geraniums on the front patio late yesterday morning. It is the first time that we have ever caught a deer on the patio, not even 10 feet away from the front door. He ate about a third of our best variegated, blooming geranium after munching about half of a nearby Heuchera.

The various repellent sprinkles and sprays I’ve been using this year have not been entirely effective. Perhaps the damages would be far worse had I not used any at all. But this group of deer living near us delight in chomping on those plants they are supposed to leave alone, especially. . . like zonal geraniums, ferns, and even a newly planted Epimedium in the fern garden.

With the planting mainly done now, and the tender containers brought out of the house last week, it is time to relax into a rhythm of watering, trimming, (spraying!) and admiring the plants as they grow. A forgotten Kniphofia bloomed this week. Although I like Kniphofia flowers, I rarely plant them as their orange clashes, to my eye, with the nearby pink Crinum lilies, which also bloomed this week. This one is left from an earlier version of the garden. The deer do leave the Crinums and Kniphofia alone, knock on wood, so we will enjoy these blooming for the next few weeks alongside the blue Salvias I’ve added to the garden this spring.

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  Crinum lilies began blooming this week. This one is several years old now and grows better each year. A surprise Kniphofia can be seen off to the far left, not yet showing color. The butterfly bushes are also finally in bloom and will bloom through at least October.

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A very happy Father’s Day weekend to all of the dads, grandads, and mentors out there helping to inspire our young people. You are likely passing along a love of gardening and of the natural world along with your accumulated wisdom about life and living.

Mid-summer, like mid-winter, is a good time to stay indoors (during the heat of the day) to read and study. Spring is past, summer is upon us, and the seed of autumn showed up this week in the form of a golden tulip tree leaf on the front walk. Change is always in the air in a garden.

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  Zantedeschia grows in a container grouping with lavender, iris, herbs, and Osmanthus.

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With appreciation to Jim Stephens of Garden Ruminations, who

hosts Six on Saturday each week.