The first week of September has come and gone already. August was a blur of activity; we had many garden visitors stop in; there were small tours scheduled at least twice a week with many drive-by drop-ins, too.
Our last official large tour group was on August 30. They were a Red Hat group of (I think, twenty-four ladies) coming from a town near Madison, WI which is a good two and a half hour drive from here. Since we had hardly any rain for most of August, I was worried their long trip would be in vain, but luckily my trusty annuals held up with only minimal watering.
Carl came home early to help with the tour which I appreciated. This way we could split the group up; Carl took the ladies who were interested in seeing the entire garden with him. I escorted the ladies in walkers to the back yard and seated them near the Quarry Puddle (ugh, so low, but the fish are still ok). I had a great time visiting with the ladies, so many stories to listen to and wisdom to share.
After a two hour tour of the gardens and in the house looking at our lamp obsession, it was time for the last tour of the year to leave for home. The ladies said they were happy they came and the trip was worth it. We were both glad to know they enjoyed the time; we certainly enjoyed them, too.
The tour season is officially over for 2016. Time to turn to our attention to fall.
Now that the growing season is almost over, it is a good time to evaluate the plantings and whether they were worth the space, time and effort.
There are going to be lots of pictures of my petunias in this post so if you are offended by petunias, my apologies. As we all know by now, I am a diehard fan of their flowering potential in all adversities; heat, drought, no matter, they keep on keeping on.
This was the first year I've planted 'Red Velour' Tidal Wave petunias from seed. One packet was ten seeds, and I bought two packets. When the petunias germinate, they are so tiny you'd never think they would develop into these vigorous powerhouses. I always feel so silly planting them out in June; they look lonely spaced out three feet apart. But once they acclimate, they are fabulous.
I had a few 'Silver' Tidal Waves planted in amongst the 'Velour' for color contrast, all told, there are twenty-five petunia plants in these beds.
The petunias are so vigorous they even climb up into the ornamental grasses and conifers.
Different light conditions bring out the nuances in the blooms.
Some of the petunias are planted in gravel right at the edge of the driveway, but they performed perfectly.
Carl wasn't too fond of the color (he's color-blind to a degree and for him the color wasn't attractive) but I was thrilled with them.
Bottom line, will I plant 'Red Velour' again?
Um, YES!
I smile every time we turn in the driveway. They are a great welcoming committee.
I heartily recommend any of the Tidal Wave series to anyone wanting true 'waves' of color in the garden. If you like petunias, you won't be disappointed. (I mean, c'mon, what's not to like?)
Our last official large tour group was on August 30. They were a Red Hat group of (I think, twenty-four ladies) coming from a town near Madison, WI which is a good two and a half hour drive from here. Since we had hardly any rain for most of August, I was worried their long trip would be in vain, but luckily my trusty annuals held up with only minimal watering.
Carl came home early to help with the tour which I appreciated. This way we could split the group up; Carl took the ladies who were interested in seeing the entire garden with him. I escorted the ladies in walkers to the back yard and seated them near the Quarry Puddle (ugh, so low, but the fish are still ok). I had a great time visiting with the ladies, so many stories to listen to and wisdom to share.
After a two hour tour of the gardens and in the house looking at our lamp obsession, it was time for the last tour of the year to leave for home. The ladies said they were happy they came and the trip was worth it. We were both glad to know they enjoyed the time; we certainly enjoyed them, too.
The tour season is officially over for 2016. Time to turn to our attention to fall.
Now that the growing season is almost over, it is a good time to evaluate the plantings and whether they were worth the space, time and effort.
There are going to be lots of pictures of my petunias in this post so if you are offended by petunias, my apologies. As we all know by now, I am a diehard fan of their flowering potential in all adversities; heat, drought, no matter, they keep on keeping on.
This was the first year I've planted 'Red Velour' Tidal Wave petunias from seed. One packet was ten seeds, and I bought two packets. When the petunias germinate, they are so tiny you'd never think they would develop into these vigorous powerhouses. I always feel so silly planting them out in June; they look lonely spaced out three feet apart. But once they acclimate, they are fabulous.
I had a few 'Silver' Tidal Waves planted in amongst the 'Velour' for color contrast, all told, there are twenty-five petunia plants in these beds.
Different light conditions bring out the nuances in the blooms.
Some of the petunias are planted in gravel right at the edge of the driveway, but they performed perfectly.
Um, YES!
I smile every time we turn in the driveway. They are a great welcoming committee.
9 comments:
Your petunias came through summer looking fantastic. Most of mine look horrible, almost as if they've gone thru a shredder -LOL!
Your garden never fails to impress. Just amazing, Karen.
Happy Fall!
Those petunias are wonderful! I'd be happy growing them and seeing them as I pulled into my driveway too. Home sweet home!
Have a lovely weekend ~ FlowerLady
Hi Karen, It was so nice to hear from you. I think your petunias are absolutely gorgeous! I love the dark red. Quite a change from your bubble gum pink. :) Summer sure went by fast and it was a crazy one for me with my sister here all summer (unplanned!). I'm not looking forward to the cold weather coming in another month or so but fall is lovely here and the colours will be beautiful. I hope you enjoy your fall season there now that your tours are over. I suppose you have a lot of garden clean up to do once the frost hits the flowers though. Take care. Thanks for visiting me.
Pam
I like Petunias, but I haven't grown them for years because of my shady lot. Your garden is a great example of how to use them well. Wow, your stained glass lamp shades are stunning!
The new red petunias are gorgeous! I love that deep red color! They spread so nicely, too. How early do you usually start the seeds for them?
Karen - I'm so glad you came through garden tour season unharmed! Those red petunias do look fantastic, there are a couple of places those would be perfect in my garden. Where did you order the seeds?
Thank you, Sue! It was a rather odd summer here; very hot and dry. The one bonus was an almost mosquito-free year, so I guess I won't complain about that!
Rainey, thank you!
Thank you, Pam! Yes, garden clean-up is another big chore and one I tend to put off for far too long. I always hate to take anything out until the last minute and then I wish I'd done it when it was warmer. But it's hard to yank out flowering plants when we waited so long for their blooms.
Thank you, Beth! I'm always kinda scared to share my petunias with many gardeners as they are often looked down on as an all-too-common, overused annual. And I admit, yes, I do overuse them, ha! But I'm a big fan of plant what will thrive in a sunny garden and what makes your heart happy.
Indie, thank you! I started these petunias a little later than usual this year, almost the second week in April, but they sure took off.
El Gaucho, yes, phew, we were glad to survive the garden tour season without any dents or scratches. Check out Park Seed for the petunias. I can see these scampering about your garden, too!
Hi Karen.... first off... your lamp display is utterly stunning!! You have no fear of tackling the most instricate for sure!!! I like your TidalWave Red Velour a lot... perhaps I'll try a few next season. I have an issue with my Sunpatiens.... you may know that I love the 'electric orange' but am starting to have problems with a viral or bacterial wilt with some plants.... I read last night that they shouldn't be planted in the same spot more than one year which is exactly what I was planning to do since I'm crazy for the look... it will be hard to come up with a replacement that has the same flash and pizzazz for next year.... at any rate.... great tour since we haven't had time to get away much in 'real' life.... maybe next season!
"... if you are offended by petunias"? seriously? We all have our favorites, but why be offended by any plant? You've created a delightful and bright display. I always thought of petunias as a staple of hanging baskets, which I such at. I will definitely try it planted in the ground next year. If it looks half as good as yours I'll be satisfied.
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