Survival Strategy

This plant has been with us for years as an annual that reseeds rather freely.  It has a growth habit that is unique among our other plants.  All four of the pictures shown here were taken today.  All of these plants are in the same planting bed within a few feet of each other.  Each seed sprouts according to some unknown schedule and at widely different times from the others.  The tiny plant is just now getting underway while some nearby are in flower.

These larger plants are just inches to the right of the first plant shown.  No flowers appear on these plants yet but the Japanese beetles are having a field day on the leaves.  One plant is caged since our herd of deer also feed on these plants.

Most of the plants are at this stage of growth.  Flowers are open in abundance and seed clusters are in the early stages of development.  Here again we can cage out the deer but nothing will keep the beetles at bay.

We do not know the exact identity of this plant.  Ingaborg emigrated to this country from Germany between the World Wars.  Our first plant was a gift from her and we have always called it Inga's mallow.  Some visitors think that it is a hollyhock but we are holding on to the tag mallow.  Not knowing the proper name of the plant is a rather small issue.  Its colors are intense and we always remember Ingaborg when looking at these flowers.  Her gift to us will likely live on after we have left this place.

You Have To Look Past The Crabgrass

Coming upon the end of August, there is a great deal of beauty and success  in the garden, but you have to see past the crabgrass.  The many rainy days this summer have made the plants and flowers grow.  Included in that is the plants and flowers of weeds.  Worse than that are the seeds of weeds.  I have a long list of hated weeds crab grass, mare's tail, French weed, quack grass,sedge, ragweed,... and I really hate it when they go to seed.  When I get out to the garden I can lose all track of time.  Every weed with seeds that I pull gives me a great feeling. At least I know those seeds will not get to drop in my garden bed.   I load my trug  then take them back to the place where we are putting the pernicious stuff. It's hard to walk through the garden without a handful of weeds. Sometimes by the time I get back to the spot where I was working, my trug is already half full of weeds.

All this sound tedious to some I suppose, but I love to pick a spot and go after them. It feels fantastic to look where you have been and see them gone!  When I take a break and look up , the sky is a glorious blue.  The pink hollyhocks are climbing for the clouds.  Sometimes you see a hawk circle. Often the hummingbirds whiz past your head .  I think they do it for fun.  Butterflies and hummingbird moths look for flower nectar.  Dragonflies look for bugs.  For such a quiet place there is a whole lot going on all the time.

The red hibiscus are just beginning to open.  Even with so many flowers finishing their summer bloom period we have late bloomers yet to come.  Yes, there is a Japanese beetle inside the flower.  I tried to catch him, but he got away.  We have had too many Japanese beetles this year. I used to hate to  kill anything, but I have grown to know the enjoyment  of my gloved hands squeezing mating beetles into a brown pulp.  I accidentally discovered that Japanese beetles that have been eating red bee balm  make a red pulp.  I'll be back to find out if hibiscus has the same effect.

I know I'll never get all the weeds, or all of the Japanese beetles, but I make a little progress every time I go out there.  It feels so good!