"Weeds"

 It's the time of year for those summer wildflowers that the uninitiated call 'weeds', a misnomer if there ever was one!  Summer wildflowers are amazing in many ways.  They don't need planting or watering, but they serve our pollinators just as much as any garden plants.  And they come in an incredible variety.

This one is Mullein, standing nearly five feet tall, with thick fuzzy basal leaves.  This was growing in an untended corner beside our new long term care home.

This is Purple Vetch.

The bright yellow St. John's Wort.

Crown Vetch.

Daisy Fleabane.

Bird's-foot Trefoil, here rooted among the grass, but hanging over the edge of the curb.

Queen Anne's Lace.  My mother wedding bouget was composed of these flowers!

Spotted Knapweed.

Chicory, sometimes used as a coffee substitute.

I cannot resist calling out our modern commitment to getting rid of all these 'weeds'.  Just the other day I saw a ditch lined with br\eight yellow Trefoil for over 100 yards.  I said to myself I'll get a photo of that when I return.  But sadly, on my return two large riding ,owers were just pulling away, and the beauty was totally eliminated.  Our society too often wants to destroy the beauty for no apparent reason!

The Garden House and Splash Park

 Let's go back to that house with the beautiful gardens (which I think should be called the 'Garden House), and take a closer look.  And if you do look closely you not only see the flowers but you notice the unusual selection of trees as well.  As well as the border of flowers along the fence I'm sure there are beautiful gardens inside the fence!

Notice the reddish tree on the right, the spruce on the left and on the very left a tree is boom with white flowers.

Along the fence there are a number of roses.

That reddish tree is in fact a very large smoke bush.

The spruce is not an ordinary spruce but a Weeping Spruce.

And white blooms are on a Catalpa tree.  All in all a remarkable selection of trees!

Mind you they do have that long white picket fence to paint.  I was given the job of scraping and repainting a long white picket fence beside our house when I was about 14.  That was no joke!

Right across the street is McCarroll Park.

McCarroll Park is home to our local splash pad.  If I wasn't in a wheelchair I would have gone right in!

Homes by the Harbour

 We have some really beautiful homes down by the harbour, and once or twice a year I take a ride past them down toward the municipal park on the shoreline.  Let me take you along with me.

This house has the most beautiful gardens, complete with white picket fence and roses climbing around the gate.

Next in line is a starkly modern house.  As I recall this was built around an existing tiny cottage.  I presume the blinds are down because the sun would be shining straight in the windows at this time in the morning.

This is a beauty of 19th century craftsmanship, all stone walls in a classic symmetrical Georgian design.

Take a close look at the difference between the stonework in the front wall and the side wall.  The front is all square cut stone, with rough stone used in the side walls.

And a seagull stood guard.

This is the view of the bay that house would have, complete with the old cannon made at the long defunct foundry three blocks away here in Meaford, and given to the town.

I ended up riding down into the public park, with the escarpment on the military base in the distance, the view only a little marred by the large boulders installed after the storms two or three years ago.

One More Garden Post for Now

I think it's the time of year that means we have so many flowers blooming.  That and the fact that Mrs. F.G. likes to gather seed and scatter it.  But whatever the reason, the garden is full of colour right now.  I just watch out for those bright reds!

Currently the Lavender is in full bloom, a deep purple.

This is a Penstemon, or Beardtongue.

And these more colourful ones are Bidens, a name I hadn't heard of before.

I didn't know you could find a pink Yarrow, but here it is.

This, which looks for all the world like a thistle, is not, at least not the sharp spiny kind.  It's a Globe Thistle, but it has no sharp spines, and has a nice blue globe flower, here not quite out yet.

One more Daylily, a beautiful large yellow one.  You can see how many buds are coming along on the same plant.

Finally another of my favourites, a shrubby purple Clematis.

The First Daylilies ar in Bloom!

First, that mystery plant I challenged you with yesterday?  Achy Back Acres got it right; those leaves are of Chick Peas.  Achy Back Acres is a veggie farm we sometimes stop at between here and Owen Sound, highly recommended!

But big changes are happening in the garden - the first Daylilies are in bloom.  We'll have different daylilies blooming every day for the next month.  As the name implies, Daylilies only bloom for a day, though individual plants can have numerous buds that all take their turn!  It's a very colourful time in the garden!

I looked out the window and was completely surprised to see this colourful bright red Daylily right off.  It had seven blooms on day one!

The other one out was this bright orange one.  Talk about colour!

We also have the first of the Hostas in bloom.  I think the wrinkly leaves of this Hosta are almost as interesting as the flowers, perhaps not as beautiful, but interesting.

In spite of some large Clematis elsewhere, my favourite is this white one with tiny wee flowers.  They're so numerous it looks like a wave of white froth against the maple tree.  I think this is Sweet Autumn Clematis.

Finally this is our tiny Fairy Rose, doing very well this year.  We're now almost up to date in the garden.

The Garden is Bursting Out All Over!

It's the time of year when all the remaining plants in the garden start coming into bloom.  We've been away a couple of days, a doctor's apt. and trying to get the ramp on the van fixed, which necessitates a trip to Barrie.  There's a frightening sag on one side when I ride up or down it.  Turns out the hinge is broken, but they have to order the replacement part.  It was good to get back out in the garden this morning.

We have a large patch of brilliant yellow Coreopsis which looks gorgeous!

I've been watching the Foxtail Lilies bloom right outside my front window.  The development of the flowers is fascinating!  This was 3 weeks ago.

As the blooms unfolded they looked like this.  The flower is about 8" tall, but it's only a couple of inches at the top where the stamens are found.

You can easily see the ripe pollen on the stamens, and the bees visit constantly.

This bright red little flower is the Maltese Cross.  It feels new to me, but Mrs. F.G. sit was here last year.

It makes a great colour combination with the Daisies and the red Valerian.

I even got one of those White Cabbage butterflies to sit still long enough for a portrait!

Mrs. F.G. likes to try different plants to see how they grow here, but I bet you can't guess what these are.