After three weeks of horrid summer temperatures it seems a miracle that anything in the garden could be alive, much less flowering and looking splendid. But, of course, the gardener knows that plants are sturdier than that, and even at the end of an August notable for too many days over ninety, and too few…
Month: August 2016
Let nature take its course
I was unconcerned when I first noticed an infestation of aphids on seedpods of the Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata, below). What harm could be done to this vigorous native? Probably none, and I planned to let nature takes its course. Its course, as it turns out, was to attract beetles that have quickly stripped aphids…
Where are the bees?
Much about the fate of bees and other pollinators has been discussed by government and gardeners in recent years. I cannot argue, except in my small part of the planet where there is no sign of their diminished numbers. On any sunny afternoon from July through September, the gardener need only stroll past his small…
Summer rain
Each August afternoon, the gardener scans the western sky for storm clouds that might bring relief to his parched garden. For weeks, scattered storms have looked promising, only to veer slightly off course. In fact, the garden is surviving this dry period with few problems, so I whine only in disappointment that another garden is…
A bit out of control
The edge of the koi pond is getting a bit out of control. Not all of it, but of one hundred twenty feet of stone partially submerged in the pond, a section of perhaps thirty feet of mixed irises has been infiltrated by Japanese silt grass and other annoying weeds. Two circumstances contribute to this…
It’s hot out there
Given that gardeners are individuals of outstanding character and judgment, I suspect that many are content to remain indoors as much as is possible through the worst of summer’s heat. Regardless of their good sense, there are generally fewer flowers to attract the gardener, and with any luck, drier ground is less likely to grow…
Goodbye beetles
Just as Japanese beetles were becoming bothersome, destroying every flower of the purple Passionflower vine (Passiflora incarnata, below), they have vanished, though certainly not due to any action on my part. My displeasure counts for little in this garden. I suspect that the beetles’ movement into the next phase of their lifecycle is determined by…
Passionflowers and beetles
Early flowers of the passionflower vine (Passiflora incarnata) were undisturbed by pests, but now, as dozens of Tiger swallowtails have appeared in the garden, so have Japanese beetles. Beetles find flowers as they open, and a bloom that would typically last for a few days is destroyed by midday. There are readily available controls for…
A good omen (if you believe in those, which I don’t)
After recent back surgery, I expect the period for recovery will be brief enough that I will remain unqualified to write on the topic of gardening with physical limitations. Already, I have plucked a weed or three, and since I have nothing better to do while recovering, no doubt this activity will pick up. So…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 