Photo of the Week: Ahhh...

Rosa 'Carefree Beauty'

See those water drops? They're raindrops. Yes, it has begun to rain again, at long last. One storm this week dropped over an inch of much needed rain. Unfortunately, it's nowhere near enough to break the drought, but it is a step in the right direction.

We Have Poddage

Asclepias purpurascens

The long wait is nearly over. For the first time, the purple milkweed, Asclepias purpurascens is going to produce seed. That is its sole purpose for being in my garden, after all. You see, this isn't just any old milkweed, or even any old Asclepias purpurascens. These three plants are part of the Native Seed Gardeners program, which distributes to local gardeners free plants of the local genotype of wildflowers and grasses. In exchange, the gardeners collect the seeds and give them to the program to be used in local restoration efforts.

An eye-catching display with Mini Moo© cards to raise awareness for the Native Seed Gardeners program.

It's one of those rare win-win situations.
I had been feeling very guilty about the six plants I'd received from the program (three of the Asclepias and three of a Liatris) because my plants hadn't produced seed. I know, don't count your chickens before they hatch, but the Asclepias hadn't even formed pods before this year, despite blooming beautifully. I had been thinking it was me, that I was doing something wrong, which is why I'm so thrilled and relieved.
If you live and garden in Northeastern Illinois, participate in this great native plant program. If not, find a similar program in your area, or start one. It's a great way to help out the environment and all those creatures that depend on it.

This post is part of Gail's Wildflower Wednesday series at Clay and Limestone.

Photo of the Week: Allium Cernuum

A blessed event has occurred this week at Squirrelhaven: over an inch of rain has fallen. While it's not enough to break the drought, it is appreciated. Allium cernuum, the prairie onion, had begun blooming before the rain.
In the prairies around here, its blooms are pinkish lavender to pale purple, but mine always bloom white to palest pink. I can't recall from where I got it, but I think I need the local genotype too. Allium cernuum is featured at the Lurie Garden (I grew it first). It self-sows a bit too prolifically in my garden and I always have too pull some bulbs in the spring. I wouldn't want to get rid of it, though, because it's a cute little native plant that is completely undemanding.

Defiant Beauty: July '12 Bloom Day

Phlox paniculata 'Goldmine' and Coreopsis 'Star Cluster' bloom with a crispy-brown lawn in the background.

Despite the severe (or is it now "extreme"?) drought, a surprising number of plants soldier bravely on, defying the heat and dryness to brighten the garden with blooms. These plants have endured temperatures in the 100s, although they and I got a bit of a reprieve last week with temperatures back down in the 80s where they belong. A mere .2" has fallen only in the last couple of days. Watering continues, but the Phlox and Coreopsis pictured above have not been included on the watering schedule.

The drought has set the garden back to nearly the point where it should be. It's only slightly ahead of normal, which means coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea),

shown here along with Campanula 'Sarastro' and Heuchera 'Raspberry Ice'. The coneflowers herald the main season of interest in the Nanoprairie along with Liatris spicata

and the Joe-Pye weed,  Eupatorium 'Phantom'.

It just started blooming today.

July also means daylilies,

although this mystery large yellow will be done tomorrow. Hemerocallis 'Apollodorus' has a few more buds in waiting.

July usually means lilies too, but most of the lilies have already passed.

Lilium 'Cobra' started blooming last week, and 'Black Beauty' is in full, glorious bloom.

They've topped out at over 5 feet tall.

This morning, I spied a hummingbird visiting the only Fuchsia that's blooming.

This is the oldest and simplest Fuchsia I have. This summer it is in a container by the front steps.

I don't know if the hummer has been visiting the honeysuckle (Lonicera 'Winchester').

It's in the way back corner and hard to see. I'm hoping it will someday grow tall enough to block a view.

The Pelargoniums have proved themselves through the heat and the drought.

I must find the tag for this one. It has out bloomed the others despite its foliage beginning to brown.

What has really surprised me are the Clematis. 'Betty Corning', 'Evisix' (Petite Faucon™) and 'Madame Julia Correvon' have yet to stop blooming, and in spite of everything, 'Rhapsody' is beginning to rebloom.

There's just nothing else in the garden right now quite this color.

Next to it, poor Hydrangea macrophylla 'Claudie' is reduced to only two bloom clusters because of the extreme warmth of March and then the freeze in April.

Throw in a drought, and it's lucky to have even that.

Just beyond the hydrangea, in the raised bed, the balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) is in full bloom. I don't know what cultivar this is, with its occasional double and semi-double flowers.

Who knew they were drought tolerant?

So much of the Woodland Garden is struggling in the dry shade, but amazingly, the spikenard (Aralia racemosa) looks no worse for the wear.

I'm hoping for a good crop of berries, although a welcome storm could drop tree branches on it, but so far, so good.

At the front of the Woodland Garden, Lobelia 'Monet Moment' has just started its show.

Joining in are Geranium 'Gerwat' (Rozanne™), Hosta 'Winfield Gold', and at the top, Phlox paniculata 'Laura' growing through the variegated dogwood Golden Shadows™(Cornus alternifolia 'Stackman'). The dogwood's blooms are long gone, but it still sports some darkest purple berries.

I wish there was room for a picture of each plant that has persevered in the face of adverse conditions as they deserve the tribute, but I'm happy there are so many of them. I'll leave you with my favorite little charmer, Geranium 'Bob's Blunder'.

Visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens for all the Bloom Day posts from near and far.

Also in bloom:
Angelonia angustifolia
Antirrhinum (a self-sown seedling)
Callibrachoa
Callirhoe involucrata
Calycanthus floridus 'Athens'
Campanula persicifolia 'Alba', 'Blue Eyed Blond', 'Telham Blue'
Campanula 'Samantha'
Ceratostigma plumbaginoides making an early appearance
Clematis 'Henryi'
Consolida ambigua (larkspur)
Crocosmia 'Lucifier'
Dianthus 'Cranberry Ice'
Eryngium 'Jade Frost'
Geranium 'Blogold' (Blue Sunrise™), 'Jolly Bee'
Geranium hybrid
Geranium nodosum 'Svelte Lilac'
Hemerocallis 'Evening Seas', 'Grape Velvet', 'Little Grapette', 'Pink Lavender Appeal', 'Super Purple, 'Woodside Amethyst'
Heuchera 'Citronelle', 'Frosted Violet'
Hibiscus syriacus 'Red Heart'
Hosta 'Cherry Berry', 'Gold Standard', 'June', 'Maui Buttercups', 'Rainforest Sunrise'
Hydrangea macrophylla 'Bailmer' (Endless Summer™), 'Penny Mac'
Hydrangea quercifolia ''Little Honey'
Knautia macedonia and K. 'Thunder and Lightning'
Lavandula 'Hidcote'
Lobularia maritima (sweet alyssum)
Malva sylvestris 'Zebrina'
Oxalis regnellii 'Triangularis'
Pansy (I know, weird!)
Phlox maculata
Phlox paniculata  'Blue Paradise', 'David', 'Grenadine Dream', 'Nicky', 'Red Riding Hood', 'Super Red'
Rosa Carefree Beauty (not worth showing because of the Japanese beetles)
Ruellia humilis
Talinum paniculatum 'Limon'

Photo of the Week: Metallic Green Sweat Bee

What a pleasure it was to sit outside and watch the pollinators now that the extreme heat has left the area. This little bee (Agapostemon) couldn't wait for the Platycodon (balloon flower) bloom to open fully.

Curl Up & Fry: the Drought Chronicles

Cornus alternifolia 'Stackman' (Golden Shadows™) July 5 at 105F

As of June 30, Northeastern Illinois is in a severe drought. Adding insult to very dry injury, we've just endured a searing heatwave, which began on June 30. Then on July 4, the heat spiked to over 100F with the overnight temperatures in the low 70s for four consecutive days (officially at O'Hare Airport it was only three days, but I don't live at O'Hare), with a blistering 106F as the highest temperature. Couple that with abundant sunshine and you've got the recipe for crispy fried garden.

While Geranium 'Gerwat' (Rozanne™) struggles gamely on, the foliage of Epimedium grandiflorum 'Lilafee' is becoming brown and crisp. The last buds on Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears' shriveled.

Similarly, the buds of the 'Purple Prince' lilies were unable to cope with the extreme heat, failing to open fully and toasting out.

It's hard to see in the picture, but a bud of the mystery yellow daylily (Hemerocallis) has dropped off the plant.

The drooping response to the extreme heat shown by these oakleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia 'Little Honey') is only temporary.

It's the browning of the foliage that has me concerned. They are prominent on the watering schedule.

Even native plants have started to struggle.

In the foreground at the base of the tree in the image on the left, Hepatica nobilis var. acuta is in distress. Watering in the morning of July 7 revived it (on right), but the infusion of moisture wasn't enough to help the Caulophyllum thalictroides in the background. It has started to give up the fight and is ready to doze off into dormancy. The Hepatica is evergreen and doesn't have that luxury. Watering has also saved the buds of Actaea racemosa.

Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola', Polyganatum biflorum (Solomon's seal), and Phlox divaricata suffer alongside the Actaea.

The bloom stalks still looks a bit droopy to me. We shall see.

The crucible has had one positive feature. It has revealed the worth of Angelonia angustifolia Angelface series.

July 7, 2012

While the poor Impomoea batatas shrinks from the heat and the Calibrachoa has shriveled, the Angelonia just shrugs it off.
You didn't think I was going to leave you with just dismal thoughts, did you?

(All images were taken on July 5 or 7, 2012. I refused to leave the house during the 106-degree heat on July 6.)

Imperfect Perfect: Picture of the Week

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. To the gardener, this Echinacea purpurea bloom is imperfect, and the gardener is inclined to remove it. To the pollinator, this bloom is a perfect feast. I'm learning to tolerate some imperfection so as to benefit my little pollinator friends. They need all the help they can get. 

Drought Chronicles: What Looks Good Now

Phlox paniculata 'Nicky', Geranium 'Blogold' (Blue Sunrise™), Calycanthus floridus 'Athens', and Hemerocallis 'Woodside Amethyst'

Hello, July. Normally, I dread July as the weather is usually the worst of the gardening season. I didn't dread the start of July this year because July weather crashed my June garden party and stubbornly refuses the hint that it is not at all welcome. At least there are bright spots to the garden yet. The southeast border is surprisingly at its best now. All of the above-listed plants are blooming well; even the unmowed lawn is blooming. There's really no point to mowing as the grass is not growing and the bees are enjoying the clover. The only casualties of the drought in this border are noticeable by their absence. All the peony-flowered poppies  (Papaver somniferum) dried up. Ah, well, that's life in the garden, or, to quote Cubs' fans, wait 'til next year.
While the southeast border has benefited from some additional watering, the southwest bed against the house has not. It does get afternoon shade.

Coreopsis 'Star Cluster', with Phlox paniculata 'Goldmine', Hemerocallis 'Little Grapette', and Hemerocallis 'Pink Lavender Appeal'

The Hosta plantaginea in the background of the above photo is showing signs of distress and the Hemerocallis foliage is browning and getting ratty. But the Coreopsis is ignoring the drought. I must admit that this is a free trial plant I got last summer. I think it's a keeper. It bloomed into October last year, but did develop a bit of mildew near the end.

Coreopsis 'Star Cluster' October 2011

In the heat of summer, the flowers are almost solid white, but in autumn, they sport reddish/purplish centers. Coreopsis are tough native plants from the prairie. I think I'll be planting more of them this fall. It'll probably be raining again by then.