As July Comes to an End

I still have two or three more Patriotic Stitches I'd like to get started on before the month ends.  First up will be Heart in Hand's "America".

Yikes - July is quickly coming to a close.  Let's take a look at what is going on with my gardening efforts.  Then we can head on over to the Tuesday Garden Party at an Oregon Cottage.

While I'm usually all about bright Crayola crayon colors, I do really like my dark chocolate brown Coleus.

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Back to Bright! I've been exploring orange plants a bit this year.

I planted out four different colored Thunbergia vines. This one - Orange Beauty is the best performer so far.

And I'm really pleased with the two large pots of bright orange New Day Gazanias.

Back to Blue and my Comfort Zone.

This is the first year I've grown Marine Blue Salvia - Salvia chamaedryoides - the hummers like it fine.

Speaking of blue, just looking at this glass cascade of white and blues is calming and cooling just like water, or so I think. I picked up this beauty on my trip to England last year at Saltram.  The blues are the colors of the ocean and sky in Devon. 

"I'm just a girl who can't say no..."

I ordered five Fuchsias from a local nursery. 

I've become enamored with the smallest types of Fuchsias like this F. procumbens.

So then I had to buy F. procumbens variegata.

I planted up this great basket in early May with four small starts of Dark Eyes.  It's everything I could ask for now and much less expensive than buying a pre-grown basket. 

I've also started 'collecting' triphylla-type fuchsias such as this one - Traudchen Bonstedt. 

Here's another triphylla-type - Koralle. Gardenmeister is probably the best known triphylla fuchsia. 

This is basket number two - with that old fashioned favorite - Swingtime. 

Here's a Green Comma Butterfly resting on Fuchsia Autumnale.

It was 96f yesterday - far too hot for my tastes.  I watered everything well last evening and as the temperatures are to remain around 90f through Sunday, I'll be watering every two to three days. 

One year ago today Mom and I visited Hampton Court - there are two posts about our day there.  Here's the first, and here's the second.