Six on Saturday – Barefoot Lily Lady

More Clematis Love

Just a little splash of Clematis love coming from our July garden.

I would describe the color of Clematis ‘Prince Charles’ as lilac-blue. My husband dug this clematis up for me earlier this summer and then rehomed it in a spot about 2 feet away so that it wouldn’t have to reach so far toward this backyard arbor. I call this handsome guy “Charlie” as it is planted to remind me of my oldest grandson, Charlie.

Clematis ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ is most definitely a gorgeous showstopper gracing the south-facing front of our house. We gave her a bigger trellis a year or two ago, but it looks like we may need to upsize again in the near future. “Comtesse” is the French word for countess, a female member of nobility. This lovely lady is definitely regal.

A closer look at lovely Clematis ‘Comtesse de Bouchard’

Another view of ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ earlier this summer–just loaded with buds waiting to burst into glorious bloom. I just love her six-petaled rosy-pink (almost lavender) blossoms with creamy yellow stamens.

The petals of profusely flowering Clematis ‘Sunset’ are a stunning, velvety purple with streaks of sunset red radiating from her beautiful creamy white anthers. She’s a reliable repeat bloomer, but I’m going in with my pruning shears this week to snip out spent flowers to encourage a stronger repeat bloom.

Pretty in pink Clematis ‘Princess Diana’ is charming and super-happy this summer. I have her planted in full sun on both the southwest and southeast sides of our home. Though not technically a climber, I’ve trained her to the arbor at the entrance to our backyard.

Before life with Alzheimer’s necessitated moving my sweet momma out of her home, I took a digging of clematis from her lovely garden. I never found a tag for it, but think it just might be Clematis ‘Multi-Blue.’ This beauty has scrambled up one side of the arbor at the entrance to the backyard for almost 10 years now. I call her ‘Lady Charlotte’ in remembrance of momma, and hope that she will one day meet up with ‘Princess Diana’ regally scrambling up the other side.

That’s a wrap for my Six on Saturday from hot and humid Southern Wisconsin this Saturday. To enjoy the world garden tour visit our Six on Saturday host Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Sunshine Yellows in the Spring Garden

Magnolia ‘Elizabeth’ beginning to unfurl

Classic yellow daffodils are a spring garden must!

“A garden should make you feel you’ve entered privileged space — a place not just set apart but reverberant — and it seems to me that, to achieve this, the gardener must put some kind of twist on the existing landscape, turn its prose into something nearer poetry.”
― Michael Pollan

“God’s yellow, in all its gloriously beautiful shades and hues, adds sunshine and poetry to even the smallest of garden spaces.”

~ Cindie Winquist, gardening barefoot in Wisconsin

Getting the Tap Root

Joining my friends at Six on Saturday for some garden-related photos and fun. There’s not a whole lot going on my December garden–nothing that merits taking photos, anyway. There’s not even a trace of snow to photograph. Rather than bore you with photos of brown stuff, I thought I’d finish up a post I started way back in April, but never posted.

My Succulent Garden Chair

By August, the chair garden was looking very pretty.

I am amazed by how much the succulent plants in my “chair garden” grew over the summer months. During the first week of October, knowing we could potentially have a frost in the two weeks while we would be away on vacation, I moved the chair into the shelter of our 3-season porch. We’re back from our warm and wonderful vacation in Louisiana, so I’ve been busy moving the plants from the unheated porch into the house so that I can begin the next phase of over-wintering them.

August’s Floral Show

It’s a busy day – no time to write. But here are a few pictures of what’s happening in my August garden.

We received a garden-refreshing rain last night. It’s probably my imagination, but I think a few of my flowers are smiling today.

The Perks of Pulling Weeds

One hidden blessing of the never-ending task of pulling weeds is the beauty you see more clearly when you’re on your knees. The beauty of this daylily is just one of many colorful examples in my garden today.

Such a pretty shade of apricot-peachiness!

Mid-Summer Garden Lovelies

First sunflower to open—a volunteer from 2022’s crop.

The succulent chair garden is flourishing!

This lacecap hydrangea is from a funeral basket arrangement 15 years ago. A sweet reminder of the love of my cousins and my dad’s legacy of faith.

A white Asiatic Lily on the west side of the house.

Clematis ‘Princess Diana’ still looking rather regal

This & That – an eclectic hodgepodge of plants and purple-y painted miscellany after a refreshing rain. The purple in my garden is my quiet nod to my sweet Momma’s battle with Alzheimer’s. .

***“And the yellow sunflower in beauty stood.”***
***~William Cullen Bryant***

Six on Saturday: Singing in the Rain

Lots of Wisconsinites were “Singing in the Rain”…including me.

On July 4th, we Americans commemorate the birthday of our country. We like to celebrate by wearing red, white and blue, and attending parades, picnics, fireworks, and patriotic music concerts. Some of us prefer a quieter celebration. I spent the holiday doing a lot of barefoot gardening–mostly deadheading spent blossoms and pulling weeds. Once I had an area cleared of weeds and the soil amended with compost, I put down a few inches of mulch I’ve been hauling from our community’s free pile of woodchips.

“A garden requires patient labor and attention. Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them.”
Liberty Hyde Bailey

Thankfully, some much prayed for rain has fallen in the area, ending our severe drought conditions. Wayne kept up with watering of the flowerbeds, potted flowers, and our little patch of tomatoes during the drought; thankfully, most everything has survived. However, our lawns in the area went dormant, so look rather browned out. Our lawn is greening up a bit, but still looks rather sad and feels a little crispy underfoot.

The metamorphosis of bud to blossom beauty continues in waves.

My echinacea seems rather happy this summer. Buds are opening to beautiful blossoms now that they’ve been sprinkled liberally with raindrops.

I am always delighted when someone stops by my garden for a little visit. Thank YOU for visiting via this virtual “Six on Saturday” peek at what’s happening in my Wisconsin garden. If you’d like to see more beautiful garden spaces, pop on over for a virtual visit with our host Jim at Garden Ruminations–where you’ll find his blog post and comment section to be a most pleasant pastime.

Six on Saturday: Gushing with Beauty

Welcome to my garden. If you love all things purple and pink, you’re in for a flowery treat.

What a difference a few weeks of time can make in the metamorphic beauty of a garden.

We’re going through quite a dry spell here in my part of the world–a few sprinkles and light showers here and there, but nothing earth-quenching to speak of. My husband has been helping me keep the gardens watered, so most of our plants are holding their own and not too stressed. The peonies and iris have completed their summer visit, but my clematis vines are now absolutely gushing with beauty. Here’s a peek at six of my favorites (at the moment).

It’s been a pleasure having you stop by for a “Six on Saturday” peek at what’s happening in my Wisconsin garden. If you’d like to see more beautiful garden spaces, pop on over for a virtual visit with Jim at Garden Ruminations–where you’ll find his comment section to be a pleasant pastime.

Six on Saturday: ‘Grand’ Garden Help

One of my great blessings this summer has been having our grandsons helping out in our garden. Charlie, Henry and George were extremely helpful yesterday morning.