🎉 UPDATE: The winner of a copy of RIGHT WHERE WE BELONG is Tonya Robinette. 🎉 (Congrats, Tonya! See my instructions in the comments for getting your book.)
I haven’t taken you on a garden tour yet this summer, so thought I’d show you around our yard before the squirrels and rabbits destroy everything! I don’t want to complain too much because we do love our wildlife. The animals and birds entertain us endlessly, and we never dreamed we’d see so much of nature here in the city. Still, I must say the critters have been more destructive this year than ever before!
Exhibit #1, this gal. See her resting, looking so innocent under that chair? That was right after she munched my lush fern to the ground. And right before she burrowed under my beautiful lantana plant in the pot (killing it in the process!) to make a nest for future bunnies. We replanted the pot and added a nice stone accent, hoping to encourage her to find a different maternity ward.
This has been a year of learning to trust my husband, the master gardener. (Not to be confused with the Master Gardener from Whom all blessings flow!) Ken has always been the one to decide what to plant and what goes where in the ground, while I choose the plants for our flowerpots. This year though, he had some specific requests. He wanted petunias in the garden cart my dad built. I’m not particularly a fan of petunias since they need deadheading to look their best (despite tags that say “self-cleaning”) but these gorgeous Sugar Daddy varieties won me over, and now I don’t even mind deadheading in the evenings while we water. They have been stunning from Day 1!
This photo was taken on June 14, Flag Day. We proudly fly our flag from the front porch on patriotic holidays (though our crabapple tree is quickly getting tall enough to hide it!)
Ken also talked me into Shasta daisies (last spring). Although I’ve always thought they were pretty, I’ve seen them look so raggedy in other gardens by the end of a summer that I was hesitant. So far, I’ve been proven completely wrong, and the daisies not only get noticed by friends, neighbors, and deliverymen alike, but they are the gorgeous view out my office window!
Our shade garden under the deck is coming along nicely. The hellebores we planted our first summer here finally bloomed. We divided the hostas for a nice arc of them that is also blooming now. The clematis is blooming on two poles of the deck, and the butterfly milkweed (planted on the edge so it gets plenty of sun) is giving quite a show, along with the new razzleberry coneflower we bought at the farmer’s market last weekend.
I still just love the checkerboard patio Ken created the first summer we lived here. It’s a nice path to the rose garden and my thriving tomato plant (which has fruit AND flowers on it!)
Here’s another view from yesterday while we were having a lovely, unexpected rainshower. (I discovered I can get a great shot if I hang out our bedroom window!)
Our oldest daughter gave me a gift certificate to our favorite hometown nursery. I spent it on these gorgeous caladiums! I love colorful-leaved plants which always seem to be “in bloom!”
I make the deck my office whenever I possibly can! It feels like I’m working in a treehouse out there with the birds singing all around and the market umbrella casting shade.
We have one less rail pot this year (a long story involving me and a spider) but the coleus, zinnias, and begonias are filling out beautifully and the Creeping Jenny is starting to spill over the sides as planned.
I don’t say it enough, but I sure do appreciate how this guy’s artistic talents (not to mention his muscles!) come to bear in our gardens!
The deck is a favorite place to sit at night. However (Exhibit #2) I am furious that the squirrels keep taking out sections of my string lights! Fortunately, I find lights for 50 cents a string at garage sales almost every week, but I’m getting tired of having to replace them, thanks to the silly squirrels (who, apparently, are immune to the forces of electricity?!)
What is blooming in your garden these days? I’d love to hear about it! And I’d love to give away a copy of Right Where We Belong to one of our readers who has stayed with me this far and who comments with an answer to that question. (Tomorrow morning, June 27, I’ll draw a winner from among the commenters. Watch here to see if that’s YOU!)
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I have some chives blooming & some beautiful roses…last year the deer ate my tomato plants on Memorial Day weekend, so I didn’t plant any this year…
Lots of tomatoes, sage, basil and flowers are what I have. Live your garden and your blog thoughts.
Your yard is always beautiful. What would we do without our yard working husbands. We have 3 acres and lots of deer nibblers including a racoon who decided he likes to roll up my husband’s recent sod project.
Some of our favorites blooming now are the purple Salvia bushes, yellow and red cannas, Rose of Sharon and I eagerly await our Beautyberry bush.
You and your husband have green thumbs, for sure! Your gardens are absolutely beautiful!!!! I was absent the day green thumbs were passed out so I received a black thumb! I can handle an ivy and tha’s about it! Thank you for sharing your lovely pictures. I thoroughly enjoyed every detail of them.
My vegetable garden is “blooming” and beginning to produce. My first peach tree (out of three) is almost ripe. It’s a race to see who will harvest, the raccoons or squirrels or myself. From the seeds and half eaten peaches on the ground I would say I’m not the winner.
We have orange day lilies, purple & blue morning glories, hostas, & a purple butterfly bush blooming right now. Yours looks so beautiful and organized! Ours is more just a natural blooming and growing area. 🙂
I love your garden. Would like to have a checkerboard walk someday. My hostas are doing well this year but a heatwave and vacation led to the death of my petunias last week. I will be replanting them soon. I have a couple of tomatoes and a pepper in pots. No big veggie garden for me this year.
We’ve had days of endless rain so yesterday was the first day in probably a week that I could finally walk around in my garden. My peas and potatoes are blooming. as are the tiger lilies and roses. I don’t have many flowers (mostly shrubs) but this year have bought a few perennials to start adding colour to my yard.
We have a patio garden planted with a mixture of flowers, herbs, and vegetables. In our Houston weather, tomatoes, sweet peppers, okra, and eggplant grow well at this time of year although the heat will burn up the tomatoes before long. We also have mint, basil, and rosemary growing and some lovely flowers–moss roses, hydrangeas (which require LOTS of water), etc. We even have a potted lime tree growing nicely on the back patio.
Well, in my kitchen garden, there is rosemary, thyme, oregano and basil. I dry the basil and oregano in the fall. In my flower beds, I have knock out roses, ditch lilies, star gazer lilies, creeping phlox, tall phlox, sweet William, celosia, lemon balm, hosta, sedum, peonies, asters, lamb’s ear, Mexican petunias, canna lilies, catnip, maximillian daisy, Texas star hibiscus, mums, tulip, hyacinth, bee balm, Stella d’oro lilies, Philadelphia mock orange, dianthus, money plant, snow ball Bush, althea, and various assorted bushes, oh, and an elephant ear my mama gave me. Each year that I see it grow, I am thankful.
A couple varieties of day lilies, clematis and ice plant provide color around our bird feeder where the birds get to eat when the squirrels let them. Like you, Deb, I am entertained by the wildlife in our yard, but I’m frustrated when they eat my plants!
Given to me by a new friend, our tayberry bush is producing incredible amounts of sweet delicious fruit! Thankfully the critters don’t like the prickly stems 😉
Your gardens are lovely. Thank you for sharing! I have grass growing. 😂😂
I have a black thumb, so the only thing blooming right now is an antique rose. We got a nice and much needed rain last night, so I am hoping for more buds. Your garden is lush & beautiful!
Beautiful pictures, Deb. To answer your question … Since we are temporarily living in an apartment, there is nothing blooming in our garden here. Back at our house that hasn’t sold yet, my herb garden is flourishing, my day lilies have multiplied, and my roses need a little pruning.
Thank you for the lovely tour of your garden! Our daisies, day lilies, torch lilies, clematis, and peach-colored (Easter?) lilies are in bloom in our yard. The rabbits have been busy eating plants here, too, so it isn’t just a problem in your town/state, Deb. 🙂
Every year we get “magic dirt” from our friends who have horses. We used it in our garden and at present have a zucchini plant whose plans include taking over the entire neighborhood and just possibly, the world!
Sad to say , we don’t have much blooming here this summer . I had open heart surgery in late April and it put a stop to any planning or planting . I’ll live vicariously thru pages like this that helps me to still smile in the rebloom. Your yard looks amazing !
I always love your garden pictures – everything is lovely! We built our home 24 years ago and I gradually created gardens everywhere. Now I’m trying make them less work intensive by putting in more perennials and adding azaleas. We are challenged with very hot summers, so my yard is looking its best right now since we have had lots of rain (which also means lots of of weeds).
In the front yard my white and pink crape myrtles are in bloom, which I planted after learning they are the 100 day blooming trees. I also have impatiens doing well in my ‘secret’ garden by the front porch steps. Along the sides I have Cana lillies and hosta, a back impatiens garden in the corner formed by our porch. We have two red knockout roses at the corners of our patio, with white and pink begonias in between. In the far back end of the yard are more red Cana lillies and my yellow day lollies blooming.
Your flowers and yard are beautiful.We have the same rabbit issues here.They also have chewed on the sides of our garage doors.I guess they need fiber too LOL.Thanks for sharing your pictures.
I live in a senior high rise. Some of the residents love to putter in the flower beds. I’m not one of them! I just love to see the end results. Some even have small raised beds in back for veggies. I don’t get out there much since that is where the smokers hang out.
We don’t have a regular garden, but do have some lovely day lilies. There’s also a magnolia tree in our yard. Both the magnolias and day lilies work well for table centerpieces indoors too.
This book sounds great. I am looking forward to reading it.
nina4sm at Gmail dot com
With the drought that California had up until this past winter, my garden suffered a lot! I’m thrilled that the hydrangeas are finally recovering and blooming again!
We have beautiful red rose bushes blooming in our yard. I really have a black thumb instead of green and this is one beautiful bush that really doesn’t require much work.
Unfortunately, I have a black thumb. Even plastic plants are hesitant to enter my home, but for whatever reason that doesn’t apply to weeds. I can grow those like crazy. I also have monkey grass that was planted by my condo’s landscapers that tries to take over every bit of ground. I do try to at least keep it in check. I’m super jealous of your beautiful yard and hat’s off (actually keep them on to protect from the sun) to you and your husband for all your hard work to keep it looking like that despite the critters thinking it’s just a buffet for them :-).
Can’t say for sure what’s blooming in my yard as I have been at my mom’s for a month but at her house the crepe myrtles are gorgeous. Thanks for sharing your garden, it is glorious!
Thank you for the lovely, encouraging tour…and a bit of nostalgia to boot !
Your plantings & yard are beautiful. Two years ago I retired and, since I could no longer afford my home on social security, I relocated to Alabama.
My home of 14 years was filled with gorgeous flower beds and flowering trees that I planted and enjoyed all year round in Ohio. So, your story is an inspiration to me. Living in an apartment I have no opportunity to enjoy my shade trees or hosta beds and all of my coneflowers & lillies.
Blessings to you and your artistic, hardworking husband.
Sincerely,
Pamela Proudfoot
Kudos to you and your hubby, Deborah – your lawn is always beautiful with plants and flowers, as is your house inside. I love viewing the items you pick up at yard sales and the ingenious ways you find to use them.
My 92 year-old mother’s passion is still her flower gardens – I, unfortunately, don’t have a green thumb, nor am I physically able to tend flowers and plants if I did. I’d love to pay you a visit and view yours in person.
Wow, Deb, you & Ken are so multi-talented. I love how you two collaborated to use the medium of gardening to create the absolutely lovely setting of your grounds. It, indeed, invites one to pause, drink in the beauty, relax, dream & be renewed. If your photos can convey all that, I can only imagine the real live effect produced on those blessed to witness it firsthand. I must admit being enthralled by the checkerboard patio since I first saw it in your posts. My gardening skills & desires are very limited. The nurse in me doesn’t like my hands or feet in dirt 🙂 That being said, I am proud of 2 tree trunks in my front yard that I’ve “repurposed”. After having the 50 year old dead catalpa (sp?) trees cut down, I asked for 18 inches of trunk to remain. After having the insides hollowed out to contain a large planter, I’ve filled them annually with colorful blooming plants. Due to the direct sun & the Kansas wind, it’s been a learning experience choosing what to display. My favorite pick by far has been this year’s – something called a scaevola. It overflows with trailing vines along with small clusters of white & deep purple fan-shaped blooms. It has proven to have excellent heat & wind tolerance and will undoubtedly be my annual pick from here on out. Thanks for the chance to share my tiny gardening accomplishment & for the opportunity to win your giveaway. May God bless all the Raneys REAL GOOD!
Each section of your garden looks amazing and beautiful! My husband is also my gardener, but his talent lies with veggies (which by the way, I don’t even eat due to my parents indulging my picky-eating habits throughout childhood, but my husband just calls me spoiled and continues to indulge me). Right now in “our” garden, the tomatoes, squash, pepper, peas, green beans, and corn are blooming and producing. He is very proud of his garden and I’m very proud of my city boy turned farmer. Earlier this year, he bought me some hanging basket with beautiful flowers in them, and so far, I have not managed to kill them. So, I’m proud of both of our successes.
I have strawberries done for this year. And weeds. Eye surgeries have kept me from getting a garden in.
Your gardens are beautiful! My asiatic lilies are going crazy right now. My black lace elderberry has gorgeous pink blossoms. My hostas are looking great–I have several different kinds, colors, and sizes. My tomato plants are starting to get blossoms and fruit. My sister grows heirloom tomatoes in her little greenhouse, and each year she give me several plants. My favorite is Sun Gold. They are so good eaten right off the vine.
I have a few Rose of Sharon blooms. Waiting for Crepe Myrtles of 4 different colors. Yucca and Day Lilies are about through blooming. I have Garlic blooms turned to seed. I’m watching my tomatoes and peppers waiting for the ripe ones. I have clover in my yard for rabbits if I don’t mow soon after the rain. I saw one bloom on my lavender plant which is in a pot.
Your flowers and yard are lovely.
My excuse is the bermuda grass creeping in everywhere I don’t want it. lol
I’m new to gardening so I don’t have much growing. In fact out of the 5 things I planted only my basil are actually growing and doing well. But I think that’s mostly because basil requires very little involvement from me. Other than that everything else is dead😑 lol.
I had surgery last week, so I haven’t been able to get out and check lately. I’ve had beautiful day lilies this year, but they’re about bloomed out. My hydrangeas are beautiful and a multi- colored cone flower is striking. I always enjoy your gardens, Debra. Everything looks so fresh and neat.
Your garden is beautiful!We have some lilies blooming and also some day lilies.
Deb, thank you for the wonderful tour of your lovely gardens!The last freeze in must have taken care of our plum and lemon trees for this year.
I love flowers, but unfortunately I do not have a green thumb. So I have never had a garden of any kind. Thank you for sharing the beauty of yours with those of us who are gardening challenged.
Thanks for showing us your garden. You are blest indeed with that gardening husband. God does bless all of us with His spectacular creation.
I admit I do get frustrated with the bold bunnies at our house eating the new plants to the ground. They become less cute at this time of year.
It’s all so lovely! I’m not good with plants, but the outdoors ones fare much better than indoor ones. I have hanging baskets outside my office window which usually contain petunias or impatiens (I need to deadhead some petunias there just now). We have a couple of planters on the back deck, and I tried something new in them this year – pink geraniums in the big one with a smaller white flower in front, and in the smaller container, pink and white dianthus, which looks like miniature carnations – I discovered carnations are part of the dianthus family. We have two big containers by the front sidewalk, and I got from Lowe’s a couple of containers of mixed flowers in pinks and purples and white and replanted them there. My rose bushes are out there as well, which thrive despite me. Our ladies’ brunch at church last spring offered to attendants some seedlings of fresh herbs. I have basil, rosemary, and chives doing great on my windowsill. They are outgrowing their space and need to be transplanted outside, but I’m concerned about weeds and bugs and other critters getting to them there. I have never used fresh herbs before, so this is a learning experience!
I am SO enjoying your posts about your own green thumbs…or not. 🙂 I’ve learned of some new plants, too! I looked up Beautyberry and tayberry. I’ve seen the former but didn’t know what they were called. Had never heard of tayberry, but they sound wonderful! I wish I could grow a lime (or lemon) tree in Kansas! Thanks so much to all who’ve entered. I’ll name a winner in the comments here tomorrow morning.
Loved the pictures of your home, yard, and gardens. Beautiful!
My tomatoes, beans, cucumbers and zucchini are all blooming and starting to bear fruit! My roses will bloom until the first hard freeze, and we have HUGE blooms on our hydrangea, which is making a full recovery, finally, after being killed to the root four winters ago.
We have a very small backyard, so my husband has used cinder blocks and 2 x 4’s to create a raised garden area where I have several large pots. This year I have mostly a variety of tomatoes, a few peppers and several herbs, but I love looking out the patio door to see the progress of growth and thank God for the opportunity to see His handiwork in my little garden 🙂
Your garden is just gorgeous! I tried planting a shasta daisy plant again this year after previously not having luck with one. I’m happy that it is growing and blooming. I also have some petunias, marigolds, lavender (first time for that), moss rose, ice plant, a little bit of salvia (it grows beautifully for my sister but tends to give me trouble), and a large swath of coreopsis. They keep blooming as long as I can keep up with the deadheading. Hopefully my tomato and pepper plants will produce. The strawberry plants didn’t do much this year. I love tending my plants and seeing their beauty.
Our garden is looking pretty good despite the weeds which my mom started to pull today while I mowed the lawn. Should have a pretty good crop of potatoes & tomatoes.
Your backyard looks like an oasis.
Unfortunately I do not have anything in my garden. Since my dad’s passing(2011) we have not planted anything in our yard except for mint about 4 yrs ago. We used to plant flowers in the front and vegetables in the back. He used to be out there weeding and watering everything.
What a lovely garden! I’d never guess you live in the city! Ken is very talented!My garden is in need of his touch although some things are surviving. I tend to plant perennials because…well… they’re supposed to come back! LOL! I have lavender, stella d’oro daylilies and hydrangeas blooming now. Oh and a completely out of control rose bush. The hydrangeas are the pride of the yard! I’ve been cutting and sharing them with close friends!I also have red geraniums on the porches. Thanks for the tour! It’s lovely.
Loved the peek at your garden! Notning much is growing in my garden right now other than our perennials. My husband and I have both had health issues and surgery, so we haven’t been able to work on it very much. Maybe in another week or two I hope to at least be able to put in a few flowers.
Where we live, we always have a problem with hungry deer; therefore, most of what we plant must be unappetizing to their pallets. Just when we got what those things are somewhat figured out (Shasta daisies, for example), now we’re dealing with cute, but very destructive foxes. Recently one of them tore my metal garden angel from a flower bed and tossed it out in the driveway, so it could dig up and destroy my spring bulbs- not to eat them, but just for the fun of it. My husband says they are little demons. Right now we have tiger lilies blooming and roses which are smothered in 4 foot mint. We must persevere! By the way, I would love to win your book 🙂
I just love your flowers and your yard. You and your husband have done a beautiful job.
What is blooming in my garden these days? There are a few flowers ‘popping’ up in a small flowerbed that also came up last year. (I don’t remember what they are called, but they were very colorful.) Every year I try and plant something different in that ‘bed’ This year I planted some Forget-Me-Nots that I hope will be making an appearance before summer is over. I also try and fill 2 white planters with flowers and set them on cement pads just outside our garage.
Thank you for the give away.
What a lovely garden! Since I’m an avid gardener I love seeing other people’s inspiration and handiwork. The shot of the rabbit is terrific – little stinker that she is. Thanks for sharing!
🎉 And the winner of a copy of RIGHT WHERE WE BELONG is Tonya Robinette. 🎉
Tonya, if you’ll send your snail mail address to me at debraney@mac.com, I’ll pop your book in the mail this week!
Thank you again, all of you wonderful readers, for sharing YOUR gardens. I read every comment and so enjoyed imagining what your garden spots might look like. Have a wonderful day, and God bless!