Last week it was too hot to weed or take a walk in the gardens. About the only thing you could do was water. Everyday I tried to water all my annual containers and my new herb plantings. Then every few days I would water whatever I could. Right now I have three hoses hooked up with sprinklers and rotate them every 60-90 minutes when I am home. The weeds in my vegetable garden have been liking all this warm weather and purslane has taken over. Since today was a bit cooler, I decided to start my war with this weed. In case you don’t know what purslane is, it has succulent leaves that are green above and pale purple below. It has a yellow flower and the seeds are produced about 7-10 days after the flower opens. You guessed it, it was flowering so I knew I had to do something quick. It is a prolific seed producer and you can not cultivate it as fragments may also root and produce more plants. I used my soil knife to dig up this nasty weed along with a few other undesirable weeds and then I laid down cardboard and newspaper securing them with large rocks. My garden is 24′ X 24′ and after about four hours, there were a lot of pulled weeds when I was done. I’ll add a picture of that nasty weed soon. In the mean time, here are some gorgeous blooming plants from my garden.
This perennial is Monarda didyma ‘Cambridge Scarlet’ Bee Balm with it’s aromatic foliage and crimson colored flowers. This one is 2-3′ tall. Another monarda I have in my gardens that is only 15″ is Monarda ‘Petit Delight’.
A few weeks ago I had over 70 people tour my gardens and this orange perennial was a favorite. This is Asclepias tuberosa – Butterfly Weed. It is a species of milkweed and you guessed it, butterflies love it.
This was also a favorite……Tamarix ramosissima ‘Summer Glow’. The feathery foliage and the pink flower panicles of this large shrub attract attention.
The coneflowers are starting to bloom and there are so many varieties to choose from. I love the soft moplike floral heads of the Echinacea purpurea ‘Double Pink Delight’.
Keep watering and weeding!
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Nice pictures. Nice Gardens!
My 2 tamarin died after one year. I have no idea why. Just love them.
Sorry to hear about your tamarisk. I will be trimming mine back this fall as it is getting too big for its space. The pink flowers are a great splace of color in early summer.
You have got to be kidding, calling purslane a “nasty weed”! It is highly nutritious and versatile in the kitchen. For example: Chop it roughly and add to chopped cucumber, tomato, some feta cheese, dress with a little vinaigrette and you have one delicious, crunchy salad. An book that could add an entirely new dimension to gardening is Just Weeds by Pamela Jones.
I’ll have to check out that book Just Weeds. I’m always interested in learning about plants and I like to try new healthy foods. Thanks for the tip. I have plenty more purslane to try even though I removed a lot of it from the 24′ X 24′ area.