A pond upgrade...

What better way to cool off after a day of shovelling and dragging  gravel around  . Maybe a  pond up grade ?  Not really, not with temperatures getting into the upper eighties. At least we ( Philip) started early, before the sun was beating down .

The problem with the pond? The water level was always far to low , my fault for using these cement bricks to cover the pond liner, Then with  the wirevine on top ,  The water levelwas  a foot below gound level. 

So the project began, with me pulling out the bricks. Then Philip gave the Muehlenbeckia a good snip round. Then a good grab and out yanked  the old liner.

The two site Managers ever watchful 

This was Philip's expertise, the enlargement of the pond, I did the wheelbarrowing of the soil .

Now the fitting in of the stocktank ( no more tucking in of pond liner) . This took several attempts, If was getting HOT out!

Ahhh...

One of those Gravel filled days...

I don't know were all the gravel I spread around last time went, actually , I do know , those two watching in the back ground , they scatter it out of the paths into the plants . So now all the paths are bare and the plants are drowning in gravel. 

Now  this  area  needed a good layer of gravel , under the shorn Acassia .  With all that messy undergrowth gone ,  a more open space with  new low growing planting .

The sea of Sedum  got a thick sprinkling of gravel between the stepping stones , for easier wheel barrow pushing.    And so ended the  day , with still half the pile left.

Bejeweled.......

 

                              The most rampent selfseeder in the garden this year...' Grandpa Ott'

And below, the planting of Artemisia ' Powis castle',  Amsonia salicifolia , Zauschneria , Carex comans , Ruta graveolens 'Jackmans' blue',  Rosemary, in the most inhospitbale , dry, dog trampled , gravelly, never watered  patch is looking surprisingly fresh....

We have Plums , we have shade...

Last year we had just twelve Santa Rosa plums...this year many, many fat juicy fruit. And the perfect dappled shade for this looks like  being another scorcher .

Bloomin' July...

As you can see I was up early snapping away to catch the back lit best of Echinops' arctic glow', Eryngium  ...I'm not sure which... and a new addition of Achillea ' Summer wine' 

More Eryngium ...' Blue cap' or 'Borgatti' with a single seelfseeded daisy and Pennisetum orientale from   the ' Wind dancer' shopping day. 

Some how the Dahlias have taken over 

I love my frilly Rainbow Loveliness with Purple Mountain Orach

'More Dalhias , this  a new one, 'Black Wizard' in the purple , orange,  pink, bronze bed. 

the bronze Sedum  sea of frothy blooms .  

Inula orientalis looking looking surprisingly heathly concidering it likes a moist soil. Which is something I do not have. The hose left under with a drip for hours has made the difference.

My big  Hydrangea quecifolia with the most subtle and fresh fragrance just now.

Cuphea cyanea

The Phlox ...the Monach butterflies favorite tipple

I've added many Achilla this year as a filler plants for ...everything , this one ' Terra Cotta' 

Teucrium hircanicum 'paradise delight' one of my ' Digging Dogs' nursery plants from last autumn.

Echinacea purpurea 'Magus'

Self seeding Ammi Majus another favorite filler 

Clematis as ground cover.

The "Beast" which greets me when I open the back door.
And for even  more beautiful July blooms visit  Carol at May Dream Gardens.

The Beanstalk

The Paulownia tomentosa that just keeps going , after being cut to within an inch of it's life a few months back. The  leaves are HUGE , well over 2 ft across , with tree completeing in height with the bamboo !

A fence...

At last , after living with a cobbled together fence for ....seven years . We have a new doggie fence to keep those two out of trouble. And it's been a long running palava . After  Philip sourced a load of sheet metal skeietons from a Portland Iron works. Then  he charmed them into selling us a piece , then charmed them  to offer to cut it in half , weld rebars on  , so it could be stuck in the ground.and cut another piece (they had plenty of it) for a gate. Then it all went ... ummm pear shape.  it's been a long time getting it DONE . But done it is, well except for the gate., which may or may not happen, depending on how pushy or charming I'm willing to be...

It's all cut out interlocking L's , so perfect...

Where are they now ?

With so much going on in the garden in July, the seeds I sowed a few months ago were almost forgotten ...till  now. Bupleurim rotundifolium making an appearance. 

Zaluziaskya capenensis, we'll just say 'Night Phlox'. Just beginning to open, these I sowed in  every  spare pot I could find, so there are plenty.

I love these firey orange Calendula 'Neon'. They are making a return appearance . I planted some a few years back , then forgot how much I enjoyed them and forgot to reorder them .

A new one and this the first bloom , Dianthus rainbow loveliness ,  And lovely it is ! 

And lastly, after being so disappointed with the Caster oil plant last year. This year success. Rich soil and plenty of water....

Happy noise day...

The Recycled Arts Festival...

On Saturday morning I ventured downtown to the Farmers market . Normally just  to enterain the doggies ... very popular with the local dogs.

Lucky for me , a huge Recycled Arts  festival in the park 

Or should I say garden Art. I've never seen so many rusty rebars and bits and bobs of anything and everything all welded together to creat so many fun and crazy garden pieces.
I had to overcome my public photo taking phobia and take a few quick snaps. 

If onlyI  had four hundred in my pocket , I would have been tempted with this one

Or these rusty reeds for $ 250.00 , 

Something for the jazz fans

Something to fill with succulents

Something to frighten the dogs

Something for everyone