Six on Saturday: Early October

Our drought continues and my central Ohio 6b garden is looking decidedly crispy, plus most of the zinnias are covered in powdery mildew. But I managed to find six things to show.

This lantana that I've been growing in a pot since spring had stopped blooming some time ago, which made me sad. I moved it to a sunnier spot and it's blooming once again and bringing a much-needed pop of color.

My dahlias have taken a beating (teething more accurately) from the deer this year and most of them are currently in between blooms, but I found this single dahlia bloom, as did this bumble bee.

These rudbeckia are growing in a pot near the house so the deer have been leaving them alone and I really enjoy them.

More of these snapdragons I grew from seed are blooming now. I really like this mix.

These zinnias are also in a nearby pot and are still blooming and luckily powdery-mildew free unlike my zinnias that are in the ground.

The tomatoes I purchased and planted are very crispy and more than half dead at this point, but these volunteer tomatoes look great and the deer finally let a few ripen.

That's my six this week. Visit Garden Ruminations to see what's happening in other gardens around the world.

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day - September 2025

It's rained less than 1" here in my central Ohio zone 6b garden since August 1 and we're now officially in a moderate drought. The garden is looking rather crispy, but there are still some blooms thanks to supplemental watering. 

Last month I feared I might not see any blooms from my Otto's Thrill dahlia this season, thanks to to an untimely deer pruning. But here is my second bloom, this one with more yellow peeking through than the first. 

I'm really loving these sky blue asters, as are the pollinators, which I planted last year and plan to add more next season.

My rudbeckia that's in a pot is still blooming. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the plants in the garden (those darn deer!).

Queen lime red zinnia from saved seed and an unknown variety.

The zinnias are still blooming too since I've been watering them, but the ones in my front bed have a nasty case of powdery mildew and probably need to be pulled (sobs).

These snapdragons I grew from seed took quite awhile to get going, but I'm loving the colors.

Nothing phases this mealycup sage (savia farinacea). It dealt with our overabundance of rain in spring and early summer and now it's still blooming away despite receiving no supplemental water. 

White snakeroot (ageratina altissima) suddenly appeared throughout my garden this year. It's native and the host plant to 7 species of lepidoptera, plus it's filling some holes for the time being so I'm letting it stay. I'm curious to know what others think of this plant. 

That's about it for what's blooming in my garden this month, visit May Dreams Gardens to see what's in bloom elsewhere. 

Six on Saturday: Early September

Well, I'm about as late as can be in getting this posted, but in the end I just couldn't let this week go. We are now officially 'abnormally dry' in my central Ohio zone 6b garden, after receiving only 0.75" of rain in August and only 0.17" so far in September with no rain in the forecast. The garden definitely looks parched, but a few things are still blooming thanks to supplemental watering.

The star of this week is my Otto's Thrill Dahlia, which is finally blooming. She's not only the biggest dahlia I have, but she's also the prettiest. Unfortunately, the deer must find her tasty because they chomped all but this stem back in July so I don't know if I'll have more than the two buds that grew on it.

This delightful sky blue aster (Symphyotrichum oolentangiense) is starting to bloom and has me plotting to add more asters next year.

I have been thrilled to have lots of butterfly visitors in the garden lately and even hosted 9 black swallowtail caterpillars at one point. This painted lady was enjoying the zinnias which are another bright spot in my dry fall garden.

I've also had some monarch caterpillars even though my milkweed is in a very sorry state indeed. And for the first time ever I've spotted some chrysalises, including this one. I am keeping a close watch and hope it makes it.

Some consider mallow a weed, but it's pretty and not aggressive so it's more than welcome here.

I am less sure about this white snakeroot (ageratina altissima). It's suddenly appeared everywhere in my garden this year and is renowned for killing many via milk sickness in the pioneer days. It appears to be quite the prolific self-seeder. I've pulled it from many parts of the garden, but it's filling some spots that would otherwise be bare so I'm letting it stay for now. Luckily there are no cattle anywhere in the vicinity to worry out.

That's my six this week. Visit Garden Ruminations to see what's happening in other gardens around the world.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day: The August Garden

 

Our rains have finally dried up and my central Ohio zone 6b garden is looking a little tired. We've had less than three-fourths an inch of rain so far this month, but I'm not complaining as overall we've had great rainfall this summer.

In August zinnias are the stars of my garden. These were all sowed from seed outside in May. Most of the seed I saved from the Dawn Creek Pastels zinnias I grew last year. I have no idea where that bright fuchsia zinnia in the top left came from, but that's part of the fun.

While the zinnias are doing great, it's been a bit of a disappointing dahlia year. Of my big dahlias, only Sweet Love is blooming so far. It's extremely reliable and has been blooming since early July. 

My favorite, Otto's Thrill, was severely pruned by the deer when it first set buds, which set it back quite a bit. There are two new buds now and I'm crossing my fingers I'll get some blooms yet. I also lost one other dahlia over winter, a hazard of not digging them up. But I still find the convenience is worth the risk.

Sweet Love dahlia

My dill is also in bloom. These umbel flowers are so pretty.

But when I looked closer yesterday, I was excited to discover seven Black Swallowtail caterpillars! This is exactly why I grew this dill, which I hope is enough to sustain them. I'm already plotting to grow more host plants for them next year. I also spotted two Monarch caterpillars on my sad-looking rose milkweed. Hopefully it will work for them.

This dwarf sunflower is a survivor! I grew 10 or so plants from seed, but the darn deer ate every single one down to nubs in June. I thought they were goners, but the plants grew side shoots, then buds and now one of them finally bloomed! A head-clipping weevil got the second bloom on this plant. Gardening is tough business sometimes.

I'm also excited to see this garden phlox bloom. Keeping it in a cage is the only way to keep the critters from eating it.

I wintersowed this mistflower last winter. Not only is it blooming during it's first summer, but it's also been ignored by all the critters in my yard, a major bonus!

I love volunteer flowers and these cleomes have been blooming and bringing me joy for weeks.

This wild petunia (ruellia humilis) is quickly becoming another favorite. I love its color, that it blooms for months and that it spreads a bit. Unfortunately the critters also love it, so I keep it caged.

And last but not least are the tomatoes which keep blooming away and proving me with these yummy cherry tomatoes to eat.

Also in bloom are agastache, snapdragons, coneflowers and even pansies (since March!). Thanks for stopping by and please visit May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming elsewhere.

Six on Saturday: Late summer

 

It's beginning to feel like late summer in the garden. It's hot, but not the breath-taking heat we had in July. We even had a lovely break last weekend and I was able to turn off the AC for two whole days. For the first time this gardening season we could use some rain, but thanks to all the rain we've had previously, things are still looking pretty good.

This little corner of flower pots by the back door is one of my favorite spots right now. I just love these big, blousy zinnias which are Dawn Creek Pastels grown from seeds I saved.

Here is a closer view of the zinnias which come in an array of pastels colors.

Another spot I'm really enjoying is the view from my bedroom window of these volunteer cleome. I need to plant more next year.

This white liatris has been here for years, but was getting tall and floppy. Somehow the massive bulb was uprooted and broken earlier this year and I just plunked the biggest piece back in the ground. It turned out to be a happy accident as it survived and is looking better than ever.

This 'Blue Fortune' agastache is finally blooming and is looking pretty good this year.

I'm also quite please with this blue mistflower (conoclinium coelestinum) which I grew from seed this year via winter sowing. And bonus, this is one of the few plants in this bad bed that the deer and other critters haven't mowed down.

This is the year of volunteer lilies, which is perplexing since I've never, ever planted a single one. Perhaps a squirrel planted it? This one is aptly named surprise lilly, my plant ID app tells me. It's pretty, but since lilies are extremely toxic to cats and our cats occasionally visit the garden as does a neighbor cat, I'll be pulling it after it blooms.

That's my six this week. Visit Garden Ruminations to see what's happening in other gardens around the world.

A Very Late July Bloom Day

Front garden bed with monarda, Shasta daises, coneflowers
and mealcup sage (Salvia farinacea)

 

It's been a week, so while I took photos in time for July Bloom Day hosted by May Dreams Gardens, I'm just now posting them. I didn't want to miss the occasion altogether though since my garden is currently in peak bloom.

Coneflower with an unknown variety of monarda

The monarda in the front garden bed has thrived this year. Usually the heat and lack of rain means a shorter bloom time and powdery mildew by now, but it's loving the wetter than normal summer we're having.

unknown variety of gladioli

Last year the deer ate all my gladioli before they had the chance to bloom, but this year I've been vigilant about spraying them with deterrent and have gotten to enjoy quite a few of these stunning blooms.

White swan coneflower

I just love the mix of pinks in this Firefly Fuschia yarrow, planted last year.

My Sweet Love dahlias have been blooming since July 5, but I'm still waiting on my dinnerplate dahlias to bloom. Despite being in zone 6b, I don't even bother digging these up anymore. They like where they are and have returned two years in a row. 

I love the dainty delphium butterfly blend (delphinium grandiflorum), which I grew from seed from Botanical Interests. I just wish I could manage to grow more than one plant a year.

I've planted so many rudbeckia seedlings, but the critters have been relentlessly eating them. I'm really enjoying this one that managed to bloom (as is this ant). 

There are also several other native plants blooming now in my garden, but you can see some of those in my last post if you're interested. And visit May Dreams Gardens to enjoy other fantastic gardens in bloom.

Six on Saturday: Natives in bloom

We had a little break from the extreme heat last week and it was "only" in the high 80s rather than the mid 90s and above. The humidity also dropped, so while still hot it wasn't completely miserable.

But it's back in the 90s for the weekend, of course, so the only gardening I'm doing is early or late. Currently, I have the most native flowers in bloom at once in my garden, led by the coneflowers.

 
For years I avoided white coneflowers, like the White Swan coneflower (echinacea purpurea alba) above, because I thought they'd be lost in front of my white house. But after growing them once, I can't imagine being without them.

The tall larkspur (delphnium exaltatum) is starting to bloom. This is another favorite native in my garden because not only is it pretty, but it also reliably attracts hummingbirds. It's so tall that's it's hard to show the blooms and foliage in one photo though.

The mountain mint (pycnanthemum virginianum) attract lots of pollinators, is deer resistant, plus it does well in my dry native bed that is near a silver maple that hogs the moisture.

Next to the mountain mint, the swamp milkweed (asclepias incarnata) is also in bloom. Strangely, it does better in this dried bed that in the medium to moist back bed. Unfortunately, though, I haven't seen any signs of monarchs so far.

This spiderwort, newly purchased this year, has been reliably blooming since I planted it in May. I just love the vibrant blue color.

That's it from my garden this week. Visit Garden Ruminations to see what else is in bloom from gardens around the globe.