Now that everything in the garden is in hibernation, I’ve started going through the photos of the garden to see what really worked, and what didn’t. I planted quite a few new perennials, and all did very well the first summer. I loved the flowers, so I just hope everything makes it back up in the spring. I’ve lost quite a few plants to Old Man Winter, so I’ll be excited to see what survives this year. Here are a few things that really performed well this summer:
Mom and I got this unique ‘strawberry and cream’ hydrangea in May, and I was really impressed with it. At first I thought I liked the pink and blue ball shaped hydrangeas better, but now I think these might be my favorite. They began the season a lovely and delicate white:
Then they blushed to pink over the course of several weeks, making them very long lasting.
My Grandma sent hollyhock seeds to me a year or so ago, and since they are biannual they waited to their second year to bloom. They were worth the wait, since once they took off they bloomed all summer. I wish I had planted some years ago since they were so pretty.
and the ruffled hollyhocks were really nice as well, and they came from a seed catalog.
The results of my vegetable garden were a little bit sad this year. The tomato plants were very sickly, and only a few tomatoes were produced. And the chickens ate them. They ate the beets and the eggplants as well. This prompted Landon to build a really nice run for them, but it was too late to save this year’s produce.
One plant that really excelled was a Sungold cherry tomato. It produced so many tomatoes that there was enough for the me and the chickens to share. It had bright yellow orange fruits, and they were the sweetest tomatoes I have ever eaten. Picked and eaten straight off the plant, they were closer to candy than a tomato. I’m definitely planting them again next year.
The end of the gardening season is probably the hardest thing about winter for me. I wanted to make sure to start spring off nicely next year, so the boys and I planted close to 50 daffodils right before the first snow. I really like tulips, but daffodils have been the best performer in my garden since they last longer and are poisonous so the pesky wild rabbits don’t eat them up. The yellow river should be a good way to begin next year’s growing season.
The hydrangeas are a very delicate pink. They are nice sized for a small area. I’m glad the hollyhocks kept their dark color. Your camera captured the brilliance. The ruffled ones are very eye catching. Thank you for the mental image of the flower bed to come in 2015.
Next spring we will plant a few grape plants. I’m going to for sure. Can’t wait for spring.