Lovely vignette Rouge. It looks magical. I must try growing Scarlet Bee Balm again next year, and the White Bee Balm Monarda cllnopodia. Monarda bradburiana is the earliest blooming Bee Balm.

Plain ol green leaved Black Cohosh, Actaea racemosa. Ive added Actaea pachypodia, Doll's Eyes, and

Actaea rubifolia which is very rare in Illinois, but available in the trade.

Hummingbird Petunia, Petunia exserta. They are holding up well in the scorching heat.

It was mindblowing to learn that there was an 'almost' locally native Cuphea that I could grow as an annual. The flowers are tiny, but this plant is a great filler in more subdued plantings. This plant is sticky. Blue Waxweed. Cuphea viscosissima.

Aquatic Milkweed, Asclepias perennis

The seeds aren't attached to silk umbrellas, the are dispersed via water.

Rattlesnake Master, Eryngium yuccifolium. All other native members in this genus are just as bizarre and beautiful. There's even a prostrate, ground covering species with tiny globe flowers. The leaf fibers can be fashioned into clothing.

Penstemon richardsonii

I can't capture it's beauty with my camera. A cranberry color with glaucous lobed leaves. With Cerastium arvense and Sedum pulchellus.

White flowered Grass Pink Orchid.

Kalm's St. John's Wort? Hypericum kalmianum. St. John'Worts are difficult to ID. I will have to examine the seed capsules to know for sure. The flower centers turn bright orange once pollinated.

The jurassic looking Compass plant, Silphium laciniata, and Prairie Dock, Silphium terebinthinaceum are sending up flower spikes. Showy St. John's Wort, Hypericum prolificum and Flowering Spurge, Euphorbia corrolata in front.

Culver's Root, Veronicastrum virginicum.

Common Mountain Mint, Pynanthemum virginianum

Especially attractive to wasps.

Hqppy Phlox drummondii

I think I'll be using a lot more of these in the future. I also ordered some seeds for what were advertised as true blue Drummond's Phlox. There was no germination and I have since then found out there is no true gentian blue form.

Prairie Milkweed, Asclepias sullivantii

conspicuous pink midveins and sessile leaves.

Poke Milkweed, Asclepias exaltata

Upright seed pods like it's Starfish Flower cousins.

Only a few Starry Catchfly flowers survived the deer this year. Silene stellata. So pure and delicate looking.

My annual average of 3 Black Eyed Susans, Rudbeckia hirta and many endangered Leafy Prairie Clover, with some Partidge Peas. Im redoing this whole bed, hense the current clutter.

Master Cheerleader ra ra

Lopseed, Phryma leptostachya, Phrymaceae. A delicate looking thing that Im stoked to have grown. The flower spikes give the same pixie dust effect as Enchanter's Nightshade.

Canada Milkvetch, Astragalus canadensis. A host plant for Duskywings. Astragalus is, or is close to being the genus with the largest number of species.

I've been growing this Clematis for 3 decades. It will look better when the Ipomoea pandurata blooms. Name? I seem to have forgotten it.

Later....

I had to look it up,

Clematis Jackmanii since 1858.

C. lanuginosa x C. viticella

George Jackman

Foliage is important too. I love the look of False Nettle in a shady area.

Boehmeria cylindrica.

Not mine, but under my care.

Many Cowpen Daisy vollunteers this yesr. Verbesina encelioides. Not as seedy weedy as its cousins Wingstem and Frostweed.

Indian Tobacco, Lobelia inflata. I finally have a flowering plant after years of failure. Has medicinal value. It can aid in quitting tobacco, by partially killing the urge to smoke real tobacco.

Just added this perennial a month ago, false sunflower Bleeding Hearts, love it already.

Stephanie Returns daylily

Mixed perennial bed, mostly daylilies

Sherry

Such wonderful photos! I'm jealous of your monarda indianagardengirl. I've tried at least three times, if not more, to grow some, each time a different cultivar, and each time I got that horsemint worm (I think that's what it's called). I keep telling myself maybe its a blessing because of monarda's reported aggressive tendencies, and I might not be able to keep on top of it, but I'm still toying with the idea of trying yet again. Just love those "fireworks" blooms!

:)

Dee

The crazy plant called moon carrot, Seseli libanotis, is finally blooming. This has take at least two years, maybe three, even though it's called a biennial.

Alas all the stems have flopped over, from the weight of the flowers and the storms. It would be more impressive if it were 3+ feet high.

Minor update - this might have been sold to me as Seseli gummiferum.

Prairie Dock is launching 5 flower spikes.

Dee, I was also a bit worried about Monarda. It would take over the world, I think, if allowed. However, even in my clay soil I could go out right now and easily rip out handfuls. Very shallow rooted. So even if it gets away from you one year you can easily push it back the next.

The drought continues. We’ve had severe storme to thr north and south, but we seem to be situated exactly where holes form in the line if storms. This is good in that we’ve avoided damaging winds, but bad in that we’ve missed the rain too. I don’t generally do supplemental watering for established plants, but I did make some exceptions during the worst of the heat.

rouge you certainly started out with a bang and everyone has followed suit!

Salvia Caradonna

Astilbe straussenfeder

Grrr I thought the glitch was done with me. At least 2 pics resolved.

@indianagardengirl, that stretch of monarada is stunning.

By chance do you recall the specific variety as it is so tall. (So many of the newer varieties are compact).

Do you find Monarda needs more water than average?

Does deadheading get you any more blooms of any consequence?

@peren.all Zone 5a Ontario Canada, I know I have said this before, I love astilbe but I no longer have any as it bothered me as to all the moisture it needs but I bet given your large property you dont give them any supplemental water. Or what's your 'secret'?

Monarda is a real runner for me too, in sandy soil here, and it definitely doesn’t need more water — it’s happy and naturally aggressive no matter where it ends up. lol! I was just weeding and saw this color combo that I thought was pretty. It will be prettier when the astilbes are in full bloom. :)

@rouge21_gw (CDN Z5b/6a), I believe it's Raspberry Wine. In spite of websites saying it needs consistent moisture I NEVER water it, even in dry years. It doesn't seem to care. I've never bothered to deadhead it, it will be attractive into August. Maybe this year I will chop some of it and see what happens.

@party_music50, that's a lovely combo!

Ty! Here’s another combo that I like: Heuchera Obsidian, an unknown pink mini astilbe that came from a friend, and Hosta Permanent Wave. :)

The first flower open on my favorite daylily: Black Eyed Susan

Beautiful flowers everyone. Luv the hostas..keep ’em coming.

hydranhea and water hyacinth.

rouge you are correct that I do not give supplemental water to Astilbe (or anything else). I do have lovely moisture retentive loam but that is it. I have not topped up on compost for them in decades... So really no secret to divulge I am sorry to say.

As an interesting aside I was recently upped to zone 5b yet Ottawa stayed 5a. I am less than an hour SW of Ottawa.

"Peachie's Pick" Stokes aster (Stokesia laevis):

PC I ‘used’ to have a group of 5...unfortunately they petered out due to lousy soil 🫤

Buttered popcorn…. my only daylily

Coneflowers, oh so tall. Back one just short of 5ft

Hostas and friends

Balloon flower with selfseeded allium

Wine cups, one of my faves that I’ve spread around the gardens

Stopped in at Lowes for the first time in forever as my beds are packed and dont need anything, well….my timing was perfect as they were just marking these beauties 1/2 off 😍 of course I could not resist these tall phlox! I plan to divide them…just need to figure out to put them all

Love July…Hydrangeas and phlox are just starting to bloom🤗

@porkchop_z5b_MI, the flowers on Stokes aster plants is so beautiful. I tried them many years ago but they didnt last for me :(.

Gorgeous plants @gardenho_z5.

(If you lived closer to me I would politely ask you for a clump of those "Wine Cups"...beautiful).

Thanks Rouge and I would gladly give you as many clumps as you’d like! In return I’d politely ask for a clump of that tall orange plant of yours. You know the one your friend gave you a starter of one…cant remember the name of it lol.

Fragrant Angel Coneflower really is amazingly fragrant!

The vaguely surreal looking flowers of Cardiocrinum cordatum, red form. They are actually darker than this - reminiscent of dried blood actually - but I can't capture even playing around with a color mixer and hue control. The upper-most petal is what they all look like. If you want a 'goth garden', this is the Cardiocrinum for you!

Hydrangea 'Preziosa' - one of my favorites

Colorful second flush of growth on hybrid Acer 'Hot Blonde'. I'm a little worried about that leaf spotting, the plant came that way in late April so it wasn't heat related. It was in hot house, so maybe this is a pathogen that favors those humid conditions? I've never seen anything like it on a JM.

Finally got Stewartia 'Scarlet Sentinel' to bloom. Droopy Juniperus rigida in the BG.

If the unidentified petite pink astilbe is lightly fragrant it might be ”Maggie Daley”

Pretty, tough little plant that stays good looking.

Finally, a cool, cloudy day, so I captured some July photos:

Canna Tropicanna Black with Tropicanna in the background, Fuchsia Cardinal, Hydrangea Blaumeise, Helianthus Earthwalker, Stumpery with various plants, Linum with Helianthus background.