Six on Saturday – Wilt Proof

Chris Mousseau

We’ve had no rain again all week; lake and river levels are too low to spill over the mill falls; folks have started to report wells going dry; large patches of grassy areas are dormant brown.  Seems like a normal mid summer in southeastern Ontario; and I recognize how very fortunate we are compared to other parts of the world that are experiencing extreme weather conditions.

Luckily we had a bit of rain last Saturday and  a bit more is forecast for tomorrow so the rain barrels will continue to provide water to the tomatoes.

Most everything else is on its own though.  I’ve been noticing this week which shrubs and perennials are feeling stressed and which seem quite fine.  Daylilies with their large fleshy water retaining roots are still looking great, globe thistles with their fuzzy leaves and deep reaching roots are fine.   Rudbeckia, with a more shallow root system on top of my rocky clay soil is really wilting, as are Viburnum and even Lilac shrubs.

Here are six plants in my garden today (and yesterday) – to see more sixes from around the globe head on over to The Propagator’s site.

Button Bush decaying flowerhead
1 – Disintegrating flower of a Button Bush – Cephalanthus occidentalis – an Ontario native shrub.  Kind of neat how the seeds just fall off…
20180714_1945081540848935.jpg
Same flower, last week.
white wildflower on mound
2 – I have no idea what these are — they come back year after year and the top of a mound of dirt, they spread around so I pull a bunch now and then, I’ve seen hummingbirds zooming around them…they don’t mind the hot dry summer!
closeup white wildflower on mound
closeup of the flower
red orange ruffled daylily July 21 2018 sm
3 – pretty fabulous orange-red daylily
Echinops July 20 2018
4 – Blue Globe Thistle – Echinops – standing tall and proud
white Lily July 21 2018
5 – My lilies opened just this morning – obviously wanting to be part of this Six!
white Echinacea July 20 2018 2
Echinacea purpurea is usually the star of the garden at the end of July – the white variety competes quite well though I think.

 

 

 

14 Comments

  1. Your mystery plant looks like a saponaria officialis. Don’t you think? You always take gorgeous photos every week and it’s a real pleasure to look at them on Saturdays !

    1. Yes that’s it! Soapwort. So funny….I was out for a run after posting this, saw more of this plant along the roadside, and thought to myself ‘looks like a type of wort !’

  2. That button bush is great stuff. The RHS says it’s part of the coffee family. Does it have a scent? Agree, your white echinachea steals the show. But then your lilies aren’t anything to scoff at either. In fact, based on these 6, your garden’s looking pretty good.

    1. They look similar don’t they? But I’m sure now it’s Soapwort…the leaves give it away. Is your Hesperis (dames rocket) still blooming?

  4. Globe thistle is popular this week.
    Button bush flower in the older picture looks silly. I have never seen one before.
    I am sorry that I can not identify that soapwort thing. I do not know that genera.

  6. Love the button bush, I also featured the globe thistle – yours are a little further on I think. And we also share the echinacea, mine are purple but I do love your white ones. Rain in short supply here too.

    1. If the forecast is to be believed, we’ll have a bit of rain most days this week….and it is lightly raining now. Rudbeckia will be happy!

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