As the season draws to a close, the backyard garden is looking fairly full, at least from some angles. It is very soothing to spend a few minutes there in the evening.
The flowers are mostly shades of violet with a few reddish butterfly bushes in the mix. Next year there will be more maroon leaves in this scene with the additions of a 'Red Dragon' contorted filbert and a 'Royal Purple' smoke bush.
Four Russian sage (Peroskvia) plants are especially lovely when a breeze waves their flower wands back and forth.
The overgrown dwarf Arctic willow is kind of a thug but so graceful that I happily keep it around. Next spring I need to use a shovel to cut back the roots as well as cutting the branches nearly back to the ground to help it stay smaller. In the meantime I have to keep reminding my kids that they are NOT allowed to whip each other with the wiry stems.
The color of the asters complement the butterfly bush so well! Love that combination. I love Russian sage and can't believe I have yet to put it in my garden. One of these days!
ReplyDeleteIndie, my neighbor just told me that Russian sage reseeded like crazy in her old yard. I haven't had too much of a problem this year, but we'll see what happens as things progress. I'm definitely planning to cut all the stems back to about 1' tall this fall to try to remove most of the seeds.
DeleteDo you think I could do the same with a too big spirea?
ReplyDeleteYes, Margaret. Spireas can be cut down nearly to the ground each spring to keep them smaller. And I'm sure you could 'prune' the roots with a shovel as well! Many deciduous shrubs can be cut back hard like that to contain their size - smoke bush, panicle and Anabellehydrangeas (not mopheads or they won't bloom), sorbaria, butterfly bushes, and others I'm not remembering right now.
DeleteFabulous..thank you for the info. I will do that this coming spring! :)
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