New Blooms and Re-Blooms

Now that it's late summer in the garden, many flowers have faded but many more are just coming into their own.  The heat of August is intense and we have had little rain but certain flowers seem to love just those conditions.  Monarda punctata is one that likes it hot and dry.  It should continue to bloom right on through September.  Planted in front of the vegetable bed, hopes are high that the fall garden will benefit from the many bees that come to visit this plant whose common name is Spotted Horsemint. Butterflies love this one too. 

As she has done all spring and summer, Belinda's Dream is flushing with blooms.  The foliage has stayed beautiful with absolutely no spraying.  The bush has grown from a small 18" high to 30" in height.  Of course, I've been deadheading and cutting blooms for indoor bouquets which has kept the bush nice and tidy.  The typical pattern is for three buds to be grouped together on one stem. 

Sometimes a grouping of plants just works.  This one has done well in a partially shaded corner next to one of the rain barrels.  Blue Plumbago, Plumbago auriculata, blooms much more profusely when grown in full sun but it fits nicely here growing long, gently arching branches.  The clusters of blue flowers show up well against  the red blooms of the miniature climber, Rosa 'Red Cascade,'  in the background.  Dracaena deremensis 'lemon lime,' is growing in a container nestled in among the branches of the Plumbago.

A new addition to the sunny part of the backyard garden is Tecoma alata 'Orange Jubilee.'  More cold tolerant than the more common Yellow Elder or Tecoma stans, this sprawling shrub's foliage will serve as winter interest against the fence.  During spring and summer the orange trumpet shaped blooms attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.  (I've only seen one hummingbird this summer and it was sipping from the tall red pentas.)

A re-bloomer in the garden is the Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum.  This shrub has proven itself cold hardy, heat tolerant and a beautiful bloomer. 

Many colors of  Pentas lanceolata are blooming in the summer heat. These butterfly and hummingbird attractors never stop blooming except when frosty temperatures arrive. They rebound quickly from a central Florida winter most years. January 2010 was an exception.

Tiger Swallowtail

Impatient gardener that I am, I purchased several new Pentas to fill the bare spots in the garden until some of the older plants returned.  That wasn't  entirely a bad thing to do.  A new color, cranberry, was added and it has proven to be a butterfly favorite.  Pentas are so easy to grow.  They are drought tolerant and bloom continuously without needing any extra fertilizer.   They fill in and add color to both shady and sunny areas of the garden. 

The late summer garden is going strong even through hot, humid days and nights.  Cooler temperatures will be coming though.  Evidence is in the buds forming on the fall blooming red firespikes, cassias, and forsythia sage.  There is always something going on in the garden.