Garden Victories This Summer

 Joe Pye Weed was first grown as an herbal medicine.
Butterflies love it and the plant grows easily.

I did not have our regular helper to keep down the weeds this summer, so we went from potential jungle to reality when heavy rains were followed by melt-down combinations of heat and humidity. Now the front and back are cleaned up, thanks to some reliable and hard-working helpers.

 Early this summer, the mother of all Crepe Myrtles bloomed and went to seed instantly, so I pruned off all the blooms and seeds, mulched the plant with the trimmings.
Now all the other CMs are quickly going to seed
while ours is in full bloom.

1. We have a wide variety of butterflies in the garden, thanks to planting many different kinds of bushes and flowers to keep them happy, fed, and nurtured in the caterpillar stages. 
2. Birds entertain us daily. Nestlings stay on the ledge to eat. Young squirrels eat at Jacksons when weaned.
3. More members of the carrot family grew this year. The rabbits ate the parsley but the dill grew to seed, which is promising. Caraway was neglected and grew too. 
4. Shasta Daisies - who knew? They keep flowering and beneficial insects love them.
5. Elderberries - now I know. They are impressive when flowering and fruiting - and the 12 foot tall plants screen well too. 
6. Sunflowers grow best when I plant no seeds. Birds do it for me. I finally had some sunflowers this year and watched Goldfinches eat the seeds from a few feet away (indoors).
7. Hostas flower and hummingbirds come to them. We are going to have more of both in the future. And they are like roses and humans - loving sun in the morning, shade in the afternoon. 
8. Crepe Myrtles are a great choice in this area, and we will add some later in the right places.
9. Joe Pye Weed  is an attractive tall bush that butterflies love.
10. Mountain Mint - very tall and total chaos in pollinators enjoying the three bushes. One little plant was buried under mulch and newspaper but it burst through anyway.

 Mountain Mint is famous for attracting a buzz
of pollinators, plus bees and butterflies.
The tiny insects are often the most beneficial.