We've had some lovely weather this week, and I've been doing some tidy up in the garden - pulling out the finished zinnias, trying my hardest to get rid of the bermuda grass and nutsedge. This resulted in two rather empty island beds, so I headed to Plants for All Seasons to get some winter color.
These little violas will last from now until spring and will brighten an otherwise drab garden through the winter.
They spread a bit, so I spaced them out and had enough for both island beds, the containers by the bird bath and the raised bed by the trellis on the back wall.
Skip forward to this morning and I awoke to hear the drumming of rain on the roof and the sounds of the water barrel overflowing.
As always happens when we get a heavy rain, the garden flooded. We keep meaning to get something done about it, but the water usually drains after an hour or so, provided it stops raining.
But what's that I see behind the bird bath?
Yes, the Angel Trumpet that offered one bloom after a rain storm at the end of October (see my post here) is literally covered in blooms!
Now the rain has passed and the sun is shining again. Here's a photo of the Angel Trumpet in the afternoon sunshine.
It's bright and sunny outside, but very blowy, so I hope this doesn't get blown over. That would be a disaster!
I noticed earlier when I was re-positioning it to make it more stable on the sodden earth, that the pot is starting to crack so I'll need to replant it eventually. I'd like to find somewhere to put it in the ground, but everywhere seems to be a battle of roots. I'll have to give it some thought and decide where would be the best place for it.
Words and photographs by Jayne Wilson, Green and Serene, Jayne's Country Garden.
This morning, since today is a Sunday, I treated myself to a lie-in, well as much of a lie-in as the cats would allow.
As it happened, I got up at seven, fed the cats and read for a while, before rejoining my sleeping hubby for an extended snooze until we were awakened by thunder outside.
We lay there listening to the rain, and thinking how much the garden would be enjoying it. After breakfast, and after the rain had stopped, I headed outside with my camera.
As the clouds moved off, I checked out the garden and found the flowers, such as this daylily, covered in glistening raindrops.
I've seen a few Monarchs in the garden in recent weeks, and today I spotted a caterpillar, his chosen leaf had protected him well from the rain. Interestingly, last week I took a photo of a chrysalis on the fence and the next day when I went to check on it, there was no sign of it. I hope this caterpillar has better luck.
The Savannah holly looked particularly photogenic with its coat of silver raindrops. The sun was just in the right place to catch them and the whole bush looked like it had been dusted with fairy dust.
No, that's not a real toad on the roof of the toad house, but I can tell you that there was a very happy frog in the vicinity somewhere. I couldn't see him, but I could certainly hear him! He was quite the loud one! I'm sure he appreciated the rain too.
Words and photographs by Jayne Wilson, Green and Serene, Jayne's Country Garden.
