10 Days Gone

10 days. That's all we were gone for. But geez....
After 10 days, I thought I'd at least be able to find my house! No.... a few days of 100+ degree weather and KA-BLOOM!

Polygonum orientale "Kiss Me Over The Garden Gate" has grown 2 feet taller in the short time we were on vacation.

Dicliptera suberecta "Uraguayan Firecracker Plant" wasn't even showing signs of blooming when we hit the road on July 1st. But now, it's covered in its coral colored blooms. (Sacramento residents can find this plant at Talini's nursery to purchase)

Origanum laevigatum "Pilgrim Oregano" was purchased from High Country Gardens last year. When we left on vacation it was just a small mound of foliage, but now it's covered in beautiful blooms of purple and rose.

In addition to the beautiful flowers I also spotted a bunch of weeds! Ack! Damn you Bermuda! You litter my pathways and suck the life out of my lawn.... When are you going to figure out that you're not welcome here?!

As quickly as I got frustrated with the weeds, I look to my left and see COLOR. Rudbeckia, echinacea, and kniphofias never seem to disappoint in the summertime.

I haven't been very good at keeping track of which coneflowers I have. Part of that is because they have reseeded themselves everywhere in the yard and I keep digging them up and replanting elsewhere. I love them though, and so will the birds in the fall once their seed heads have dried up!

Helichrysum bracteatum "Monster Fireball Red"
is a newer purchase for me, and I'm loving its color in the garden. Fireball is an accurate description, eh?

I almost had an anxiety attack yesterday when I got home and saw how overgrown everything was. I'm suppose to be part of the Arden Park Garden Club garden tour in September, and now I am regretting handing my four year old four packages of sunflower seeds. (How many sunflowers is too much?)

I also wish that before I went on vacation I checked all of my drip lines. If I had, maybe this Holodiscus discolor "Oceanspray" would have made it! The drip line was not properly staked and moved about a foot from the base of the plant. I have now cut the plant back to the base, and staked the drip line (and prayed that it will sprout again from the base).

10 days gone and all of my Nigella plants have dried seed pods. We got home just in time, before it heavily reseeded itself in place.

10 days and some of the Rudbeckia are already finished blooming.....

10 days and we came home to the first bloom from Lupinus regalis 'Morello Cherry'.

Coreopsis 'Heaven's Gate' is blooming for the first time in our garden. I planted them last year and I admit I was almost shocked when I came across them in the yard yesterday. It's amazing how sometimes a plant stays insignificant for a year to the point that you forget about it. But then one day.... it blooms like mad.

In 10 days, the artichokes that were blooming like crazy on June 30th are seeing their end on July 11th. These plants will be cut down to the ground in hopes that we may possible get another round of 'chokes in the fall.

10 days ago this Shasta Daisy plant was upright, just starting to bloom. It was in a partial sun area, which I believe contributed to its 5 foot tall height. Now I need to find a place to move it so that next year it can have better support (and maybe not grow so tall).

Solanum pyracanthum is enjoying the Sacramento heat. Also known as 'Porcupine Tomato', it is covered in purple blooms after only being in ground less than a month. Its true battle will be our winter, and I will probably be digging him up and moving him to a container before the frost hits.

10 days was all our nectarines needed to ripen as well. These are Independence Nectarines, part of a "fruit salad" tree that I got for my birthday a couple of years ago from my totally awesome husband. This tree was purchased at Peaceful Valley Farm Supply, located in Grass Valley, CA. If you are in the market for fruit trees and native plants, you must check them out! It's a gorgeous drive from Sacramento!

10 days, and all I can say is 'Zowie!" (as in Zinnia elegans 'Zowie' pictured above!) I might need at least 10 days to get the garden back in shape, but I have REALLY enjoyed my time off to go visit family and beautiful gardens all over Southern California. I'll be posting all of those pics soon!