While there are a few plants blooming in my yard this month, most are looking rather weary and fried. There are an assortment of coneflowers, helenium, phlox all seeming to "deal" with the drought and heat conditions. Most are looking more like the beleaguered hosta and hydrangea that comprise the majority of my landscape planting. The front is especially hard hit from the loss of the birch tree earlier this summer and are waiting eagerly for me to decide on the replacement tree to once again make them shade plants. (Sorry little plants it may take a few years to get that much shade again)
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| 'David' Phlox in the foreground, and a pink one behind. |
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| Various coneflowers and helenium |
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| Hydrangea 'Little Lime' just getting going. |
So meanwhile to escape the heat, well escape it to another location of heat, my cousin and I took a trip east to Pennsylvania to look at some much happier gardens. In four days, including drive time from Indiana we saw two Frank Lloyd Wright designed homes,
Longwood Gardens, including a fabulous light installation by Bruce Munro,
Chanticleer, and
Phipps Conservatory. I'm not sure whether these delighted our senses or caused depression at the sight of our fried gardens. They were enlightening and were all well worth the copious amount of dewy complexion we under went while viewing.
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| Chanticleer Asian woods garden |
They are all wonderful places to visit and we saw many other places we would like to visit as well in addition to visiting these gardens again when it cools down.
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| Chanticleer great lawn |
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| Longwood Bruce Munro, exhibit |
So if you haven't been here's a few teaser pictures.
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| Longwood Children's garden sunflowers |
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And who wouldn't love this for
their vending machine! |
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Longwood's Idea Garden was full of wonderfully colorful
plants that didn't seem to mind the heat at all. |
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| Phipps Conservatory |
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| Phipps Conservatory |
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| Phipps Conservatory |
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| Phipps Conservatory |
