Perfect plantings: Garden update

Last summer I wrote a post entitled Let the Sun Shine and gave you a look at some of the things we were planting in our back yard. I thought I'd give you an update a year later, and let you see how things are progressing in the space between the Modernist Nest and the main house.

Last spring we built a trellis to provide a partial privacy screen between the two houses. We planted coral Lipstick honeysuckle to climb on it. We also transplanted some yellow and purple iris and this season added some annuals--hot pink periwinkle, which is thriving, and orange marigold, which is mysteriously not doing well at all. We installed planters beneath my windows and planted a darker purple-pink periwinkle in them, and they're doing well too. By next year, the annuals under the trellis will be replaced with dwarf Picasso cannas that are bright yellow speckled with orange. Our goal is to have a drought-resistant perennial garden that comes back every year and requires little care in the Texas heat.

Summer, 2013

Summer, 2014

Last year I planted two varieties of Euphorbia in tall galvanized planters to flank my front door. Look how much they've grown in just twelve months. The light green on the tall Candelabra variety is new growth since I put the pots outside late this spring.

Summer, 2013

We planted daylilies in the bed around the trellis, and they've already produced some spectacular blooms this year. They're easy to grow in any soil, and they're authentic mid-century plantings. My grandmother was an avid daylily grower, and I've become as enthusiastic about the plant as she was. Unfortunately, I don't have as much room to grow them as she did.

My grandmother with just a few of her daylilies.
I'm guessing this photo was taken in the 1960s.

The photos of daylilies on last year's post were taken from the Oakes Daylilies catalog. I'm happy to report that these were taken in our own garden this summer.

Gertrude Condon

Rosie Meyer

Wounded Heart

Amber Sunset

Awesome Blossom

Daylilies can be planted in the ground or in pots. They do well anywhere that they can get at least 6 hours of sun each day. Mine are in full Texas sun all day. They're not picky about soil and they don't require a lot of special care.

Daylily color and variety are almost endless. They come in bright and pastel colors, in shades of apricot, melon, gold, lavender, near white, orange, pink, purple, red, yellow and even brown and near-black. Some blooms have contrasting centers, called eyezones, like most of mine have. Some have ruffled edges, others have double blooms, and some have spidery fingers,. (I have one called Spooky Fingers that hasn't bloomed yet. I'm sure it will show up on my Facebook page or Instagram when it does.) Some are dormant in the winter, while others are evergreen. Different varieties have different bloom times, and some re-bloom. Some blooms are under 4", while large varieties have blooms over 6" in diameter. Bloom height varies too, with some dwarf varieties staying under 20", while others are more than 36" high. Some varieties are even fragrant.

If you're looking for a popular mid-century plant that will give you a dramatic show of color throughout the summer, you can't go wrong with daylilies.