End of the month: 9.30.17

The rain that was predicted for Tuesday never materialized, so it looks like the rainfall in my garden for September 2017 is a mere .40". Dry as a bone no matter where I dig or how much I water. But some plants are taking the weather in stride.

The swaths of Geranium macrorrhizum across the front slope are still green and lush — and this is one area that I have not watered. What a workhorse plant. It performs the best of all the different Geraniums I grow. I'd put G. Phaeum second on the Geranium performance list.

Hellebores — whether old or just planted this spring — are all doing well. Helleborus foetidus 'Dunham' was added to my garden this year and is a new variety for me as well. I am guessing those are flower buds starting to form.

For a while the Hellebore was nicely contrasting with a red Trillium which gave up the ghost rather suddenly when I wasn't looking. 

But amidst all its dead leaves, the Trillium appears to be sendning up flower buds. This could be a real problem.

Noid Aster is looking good in the driveway border; a survivor who needs a new home that's not under a tree.

'Lars' is the only Astrantia that is still flowering, albeit one stem. Its nearby siblings are suffering from drought and rabbits. They are so stressed I hope they survive as they were gorgeous last spring. I've been growing them since 2015 as tiny seedlings and I would hate to lose them at this point.

Alstroemeria 'Inca Ice' is another plant that I added back in the spring, so it's been getting watery attention all season. It's still flowering like mad and producing lots of buds. I so hope this proves to be as hardy as advertised as it has been a delightful addition to the garden.

I'm not including any wide shots because they show all the spots where I am pulling out plants and rearranging things or areas that are brown and crispy. This post will let me compare the end of September 2017 with the end of the same month in future years. I looked at September posts going back to 2013 and none of them mention sustained high temps with no rain. Hoping this is a brief aberration and that everything survives this end of summer stress to come back stronger next year.

 

 

Comments

[Barbara H.]

Yes, we are getting very dry here, too, also with high temps though they will moderate at least for the weekend. You have some lovely flowering plants. I'm starting to focus more on planting shrubs but it's so nice to have those little pockets of flowers. Keeping my fingers crossed for better, wetter fall weather for us both.

[Lisa at Greenbow]

I feel your pain. What an awful few months we have had. Your poor hellebore making blooms already. It must be confused.

[Loree / danger garden]

Oh that picture with 'Lars' the Astrantia is fabulous!

[Peter/Outlaw]

Rain has returned here but it's still dry when you dig down a bit & the sprinkler still needs to be used in areas under thirsty tree roots. Geraniums are such undemanding workhorse plants! Hope your trillium holds those buds tight to the ground until spring!