Originally Posted by ewizabeth

Hi Brain,

Is that like a saucer magnolia with big pink blooms in the spring? I love those!

I got my sister a Pee-Gee Hydrangea "Grandiflora" tree for her birthday. I ordered it online and she should get it soon. It's a beautiful tree that we both love. She has a beautiful yard and garden and I can't wait to see it when it blooms. It gets 10-15' high and 8-10' wide with huge blooms up to 12" from mid-summer to early fall. She'll use it as a centerpiece in her flower garden.

I bought a couple of shrubs yesterday, a snowball viburnum that is beautiful in spring and fall and has summer berries for the birds. I also got a hydrangea shrub for the front yard. The rabbits don't eat my other hydrangea perennials so I figured that would be a good choice.

I'm taking out the burning bush and moving it to the backyard where it won't be so unsightly after a winter of chewing by the rabbits.

I planted two rhododendrums in the front and divided my hostas, Annabelle hydrangea to plant in my new bare spot where we took out the old bush.

I also got some perennials for my front flower garden, including a painted daisy, foxglove (for a shady corner), poppies, and some white phlox.

I have to do a lot of dividing and transplanting of my other flowers and I'll be good for new stuff this year.

I'm going to cover my shrubs this fall with a chicken wire around them so maybe the coming winter won't be so bad with the rabbits.

Our neighbor came over and showed me her new puppy, a German Shepard beauty named Bear. I hinted that I wouldn't mind if she played in our backyard to discourage the rabbits.

Originally Posted by braingonebad

Have you grown foxglove before? In my area, it works as a biennial. It'll come up one year, bloom one or two years, then you have to rely on it reseeding itself, or you have no plant. If you allow the flower stalk to fall over when the blooms fade, generally its seeds will fall out and plant themselves and grow.

Once the plants have 3-4 leaves, you can move them if you like. Don't wait till they're too big - then they don't transplant as easily.

(things I learned the hard way.)



Cheryl - I'm not sure which mock orange yet. I'll have to see what's available locaaly. My neighbor has one that he says blooms most of the summer and it is awesome, both how pretty it is and how aromatic it is. I'd like one like that.

And thanks for the hummy links!

I have half those plants, lol! The comumbine, the texas salvia, the bee balm, beard tongue, trumpet vine, coral bells.

They go for the salvia the most. I collect the seeds in the fall and just toss them all over the beds in late spring. Great plant.

We had a honeysuckle, and it tore shingles and gutters off the house. we tore that bad boy down, lol. The trumpet vine is going by the fence, just to be safe.

Originally Posted by ewizabeth

Brain, Thanks for the tips on Foxglove. I'll make sure to let it go to seed in its little corner. I got stakes for some of my tall plants too.

I planted some Columbine last year and it's coming up! A couple of other perrenials but I don't remember what they are at the moment. After all of these mature I can go crazy dividing and sharing with my neighbors.

Cheryl,

We get a few hummers every August through October. When should I put out my feeder to see if they show up in the spring? Would I do that now? Or wait awhile?

Originally Posted by Av8rgirl

Be careful of the Trumpet Vine. It can also be pretty invasive and tear down the fence. Honeysuckle can be pruned back so it doesn't get so "wild" and rip down fences. A lot of people don't know that.

Also the butterfly bushes should be pruned down to the ground each year to keep them from getting out of control. I prune mine with the chain saw down to about 3-4 inches from the ground!

Sounds like you've got quite the perennial garden for the attracting airborne wildlife!!! We get a lot of butterflies...but also a lot of hornets and wasps. Thank goodness for pest control.


We've had about 5 hummers that return each year. It's about time to put out the feeders.