Coneflowers

One of the pleasures of the late season garden is seeing the coneflowers  blooming.

I usually refer to them by their 'real' name echinacea.

One of the reasons I have so many of them is that they bring the butterflies and humming

birds to the garden in abundance.

I like them white, and I like them pink!

They mix so perfectly in the border.

So easy to grow.

I like them single, and I like them double.

This one below is called 'Double Decker'.
(must have been a guy who named it)

This is a photo from about 10 days ago before it put on its second deck.

pretty enough...

 but look at it now!!!!!!

 Kind of a boring name for such a show-off!

Don't you think?

 They look so different with their party hats on.

And yet there's something to be said for plain and simple.

This guy likes them just fine!

The bees and butterflies love them now and they

 will feed the birds long after the bloom has faded.

I'm loving the late Summer garden.
So much color and texture that it makes me think it's my favorite time
in the garden.
Oops...I think I said that when the peonies were in bloom.

It can't be the middle of August!

I don't even want to say it out loud.

BUT,

we are only a month away from our first killing frost.

Where in the world did the Summer go?

I haven't done half of what I have wanted to do this season.

But we really have had a beautiful gardening season here.



The daylilies are so pretty right now.

The daylily below is Carolyn Criswell.

So pretty!

Hollyhocks

They pop up everywhere in this garden...

mostly where I don't want them.

I just dig up the ones I don't want and let the others grow.

The Adelaide Hoodless rose.

 The clematis are beautiful right now.

The one below is Cometessa de Boucharde.
(I think I spelled it right)
It was my favorite...

...until this one took over the wire arbor.

I will need to look up it's name and put one on the new pole trellis Dale built
earlier this Summer

It is so showy.

The jury is still out about this hydrangea.

I planted it last year. I only got one because I wanted to test it out first to

see if it would thrive in our cold. 

It's called Invincibelle. I think I really do like it.

You can't compare it to the Annabelle, because if you do, it comes up short.

But if you look at it for it's color and form, it really is quite pretty.

I don't think I will find another hydrangea I like better than the Annabelle.

It really is a beauty!

 This one is Limelight and I love it as well.
It is just starting to bloom.
It is a little late this year.

A little white asiatic lily.

 

Please let the frost be delayed this year...just like our Spring was.