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Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Perfect plantings: Garden update

Last summer I wrote a post entitled Let the Sun Shine and gave you a look at some of the things we were planting in our back yard. I thought I'd give you an update a year later, and let you see how things are progressing in the space between the Modernist Nest and the main house.

Last spring we built a trellis to provide a partial privacy screen between the two houses. We planted coral Lipstick honeysuckle to climb on it. We also transplanted some yellow and purple iris and this season added some annuals--hot pink periwinkle, which is thriving, and orange marigold, which is mysteriously not doing well at all. We installed planters beneath my windows and planted a darker purple-pink periwinkle in them, and they're doing well too. By next year, the annuals under the trellis will be replaced with dwarf Picasso cannas that are bright yellow speckled with orange. Our goal is to have a drought-resistant perennial garden that comes back every year and requires little care in the Texas heat.


Summer, 2013

Summer, 2014


Last year I planted two varieties of Euphorbia in tall galvanized planters to flank my front door. Look how much they've grown in just twelve months. The light green on the tall Candelabra variety is new growth since I put the pots outside late this spring.


Summer, 2013




We planted daylilies in the bed around the trellis, and they've already produced some spectacular blooms this year. They're easy to grow in any soil, and they're authentic mid-century plantings. My grandmother was an avid daylily grower, and I've become as enthusiastic about the plant as she was. Unfortunately, I don't have as much room to grow them as she did.


My grandmother with just a few of her daylilies.
I'm guessing this photo was taken in the 1960s.


The photos of daylilies on last year's post were taken from the Oakes Daylilies catalog. I'm happy to report that these were taken in our own garden this summer.


Gertrude Condon

Rosie Meyer

Wounded Heart

Amber Sunset

Awesome Blossom

Daylilies can be planted in the ground or in pots. They do well anywhere that they can get at least 6 hours of sun each day. Mine are in full Texas sun all day. They're not picky about soil and they don't require a lot of special care.

Daylily color and variety are almost endless. They come in bright and pastel colors, in shades of apricot, melon, gold, lavender, near white, orange, pink, purple, red, yellow and even brown and near-black. Some blooms have contrasting centers, called eyezones, like most of mine have. Some have ruffled edges, others have double blooms, and some have spidery fingers,. (I have one called Spooky Fingers that hasn't bloomed yet. I'm sure it will show up on my Facebook page or Instagram when it does.) Some are dormant in the winter, while others are evergreen. Different varieties have different bloom times, and some re-bloom. Some blooms are under 4", while large varieties have blooms over 6" in diameter. Bloom height varies too, with some dwarf varieties staying under 20", while others are more than 36" high. Some varieties are even fragrant.

If you're looking for a popular mid-century plant that will give you a dramatic show of color throughout the summer, you can't go wrong with daylilies.

13 comments:

  1. Hi Dana,
    your garden is looking beautiful. Your Euphorbia have grown spectacularly (and gosh I love the colour of your front door - but you already know that don't you?!) Not enough sun in our yard for Daylillies which sounds crazy considering I live in W. Australia! Much of it is shaded by an enormous Kurrajong tree (beautiful, but the bane of my gardening existence!) the little spot of full sun we've got we save for vegies. I love that photo of your Grandmother x

    p.s. I have ditched instagram and am going to try and blog more...I didn't really like it (just letting you know in case you wonder where I am...)

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    1. I wouldn't want to give up any of my huge trees, probably planted in 1950 when the house was built, but they do make gardening difficult. That little strip of yard is the only place that gets sun...and it almost gets too much sun.

      I haven't been able to work up much excitement about Instagram either. I post every once in a while, and I go several days without even thinking to check it, then I look at several days' worth of posts at a time. I hope more people start blogging again. I know it requires more work, but I think it's so much more interesting than Instagram.

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  2. Your garden is looking spectacular Dana!

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    1. Thanks, Jacqueline! We're really enjoying it, and we're happy that it's filling in so quickly. Unfortunately, our vegetable growing isn't coming along quite so well. We're going to have to think of a better spot for our raised beds. They're getting a little too much sun, I think.

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  3. Your garden is looking so lovely, Dana. We had a few day lillies at our last place. Everything is so very dry here at the moment. Xx

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    1. It's dry here too. We transplanted some things yesterday, and I watered them heavily, but they still look pretty sad today.

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  4. Hi there, lovely Dana! So sorry I've been so absent these past months. I've really been missing you all, but life has been crazy busy and I simply haven't been able to find the time to write a decent post or comment on all your lovely posts. I hope you haven't forgotten about me... I just started my vacation and look forward to lazy days with time for some reading and catching up!
    Your garden looks amazing, Dana, and that picture of your grandmother is just priceless!! All the best, Tove

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    1. I've been keeping up with you on Instagram, but it is wonderful to see you back here!

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  5. Wow, all abloom in the mid2mod garden. Love the vintage photo of you grandma, she looked like one tough woman!

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    1. My grandfather was a farmer when they were a young couple, so she was very strong and tough. After he died, she moved to town, and always grew vegetables and flowers in her back yard. What you see in the photo was just a tiny part of the yard.

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  6. Green thumb is an understatement! The garden has bloomed beautifully under your care, has there been some little people assistance? x

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  7. Love a good garden post. Your garden looks so beautiful. Gardening is so much fun and as for work, it's not work at all. You've had some great 'plant' posts along the way. I've enjoyed reading the above comments too ... so many people have been absent from blogland. Revolution, I say!! (You've been a constant, Dana. Shows your loyalty.xo).

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  8. Looking good! My how things have grown, I might just have to give those day lilies a try!

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