Rejuvenating an Old Garden

I have an exciting new project on the go, I have been asked to help rejuvenate an old garden. At one time, the garden must have been glorious, but has been somewhat left to it's own devices and could use some care & attention.

There are loads of bellflowers, globe thistles, phlox, goldenrod, snowdrop anemones, lamb's ears, irises, clematis, rose bushes and many other shrubs & trees (including spirea, potentilla, ninebark, cranberries and cherry tree & 2 large spruces).

View of the backyard. The area to the right, at the back seems to have been 'rounded up'. It will be seeded to grass with an area left for vegetables and some flowerbeds will be added for interest. The area with the 2 trees on the left will likely be mulched with a rock edge to the lawn. I think a few shade containers against the shed and possible a hammock under the trees would make for a nice shady place to relax.

Yellow species clematis growing rampantly on an arbour.



A flowerbed in the backyard, full of bells, globe thistles & phlox.


A cherry tree that is so overgrown and heavy with fruit it has taken a weeping form. Some pruning is needed, although I'm not sure what to recommend. The fruit is quite tasty! :)



A vigorous vine is taking over an old deciduous tree. I'm not sure what kind of vine it is, although Honeysuckle keeps springing to mind. Hopefully it isn't on the noxious weeds list, since it is very interesting and attractive.


This lovely shrub is in the front yard, it looks like a diable ninebark to me, but I'm not 100% sure. Unfortunately I forgot to bring my Lois Hole books with me (note to self, don't do this again!)

The front corner of the house. To me, it just needs some thinning but I like the way it looks.


There is an old rose garden along one side of the house. The wonderful Morden Sunrise still looks beautiful.

2 other roses are in a worse state, but still have lots of new growth and must have bloomed well since they are covered in rosehips. I suspect a hard rejuvenation pruning is needed, although I'm not sure what the best timing is.

There are many Lambs Ears in the beds, and babies on the lawn. I hadn't seen seedlings like this before. Probably not the best place for them, but still kind of cute.

Here is a wildflower mix in a pot.

I brought over a bunch of heliopsis seedlings, as well as some shasta daisies, platycodon, stella d'oro daylilies, Campanula carpatica, ornamental garlic, dwarf irises, silver brocade artemesia and an Asessippi lilac. Some bulbs will be added this fall, although I suspect there may be some already there.

Since this house is being rented, the budget is limited, but I think (hope!) that with a little work it will be beautiful and regain some of it's former glory. Any advice or comments would be very much appreciated.

August Parade of Pictures

Thanks so much for all of the friendly blogoversary wishes, all of your visits & comments are very much appreciated!

The summer has absolutely flown by, and September is just around the corner. Once again I've gotten behind with posting, so here is a parade of pictures with just names for identification purposes. Enjoy!

A surprise daylily.

Sunrise Sunset Rose

Morden Sunrise Rose


Cranesbill Rozanne

Progression of the new beds. :)

Miss Lucy Oriental Lily

'Kyushu' Hydrangea

Dianthus King of Blacks (or should it be Reds? ;) )

New Guinea Impatiens

Heliopsis helianthoides 'Summer Sun'

Bright Eyes Phlox (with variegated obedient plant & frog for company)

Diervilla sessilifolia Cool Splash

Palace Purple Heuchera

H.F.Young Clematis (only bloom :( )

Dwarf Balloon Flower & C. Carpatica, blues at the base of the clematis.

Silver Brocade Artemesia

Blue Fox Willow

I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer, and enjoying some time In The Garden.

I've got the Meconopsis Blues.

Sigh. I have tried and not succeeded (sounds better than failed, right?). I was so hoping to have the coveted Himalayan Blue Poppy in my garden! Hundreds of seeds with various types of stratification, 0% germination. So, I ordered 2 Meconopsis x sheldonii plants. They arrived in May and I planted them right away. The spot is sheltered, protected from hot afternoon sun and the soil was carefully prepared and they are checked daily. From the looks of things, there won't be any stalks of enchanting blue flowers this year. Occasionally the plant sends up a new leaf, but that's about it.



Since I keep looking out and wishing there was something blue & tall to look at I recently planted some Magic Fountain Delphinium nearby. I've had to stake them since the heavy rain just knocked them over. I also planted some of my reliable peachleaf bellflowers for more blue next year.


Here is the Dianthus 'King of Blacks'. I first saw these last year in the perennial bed at the garden centre. The just barely opened buds were jet black, as the flowers opened and matured they turned a dark red colour. My plant seems to have skipped the black stage. Maybe it's just the first bloom and the others will be darker. I really hope so!


At least Unique is cooperating, since her bed mates aren't! Looking lovelier every day. No hues of pink yet, but I keep checking...

Our single Dwarf Sunflower has opened. So happy & charming! I will collect the seeds and plant again next summer.

Here is the latest bed, with Little Lamb Hydrangeas, phlox, poppies, purple coneflowers, dwarf irises and a spot for the pink peony I'm going to move this fall.

Have a look at this Obedient Plant. I generally have trouble growing them, but this monster is well over 4 ft tall (they are usually 18-24 inches). Notice the little pink arrow towards the bottom left? It is pointing at another obedient plant of the same variety, purchased at the same time 3 or 4 years ago. Both were relocated to this spot last summer to get a little more sun. Pretty odd, isn't it?

Oh, and I completely forgot about my 1 year blogaversary on August 5th, time really does fly! A big thank you to those who stop by to visit, I truly appreciate it and have had so much fun seeing your beautiful gardens.

Yes, it's a Poppy!

The verdict is in! My mystery plant is definitely a poppy, and a pretty one at that!


Unique Hydrangea is looking lovely..



I'm really happy with the Daylily 'Canadian Border Patrol', I was hoping the Tango Weigela would look good with the maroon throat, and by golly, it does!



Thunbergia vine is not growing as vigorously as last year, but is still very pleasant.



Blue Carpatica is finally blooming, I find they are slower to get going than the white.



And my latest Rudbeckia addition: Autumn Colours. I had no idea there were so many colour options!

We planted a single dwarf sunflower seed into a peat pot some time ago, and then planted it outside. It looks like it's getting ready to bloom. :)

Nearby, Daylily Bonanza is showing off.


I planted these 2 weigelas last year, they were big and vigourous and colourful. The first, Midnight Wine, was a dark purple ball, it suffered complete dieback last winter (despite mulching), it is regrowing, but the colour is more green than purple so far.


My Monet suffered similar problems, but has recovered a little better.

Once again I will plant a Purple Coneflower and *hope* that it returns this year, so far, I haven't had any luck with them coming back.

And here we have a Little Lamb Hydrangea waiting for planting....