The Front Garden Report- 1

 It's not quite completely weeded, but I've been working on the "Front Flower Bed." I just call the various beds things so I know what I'm talking about. This is west of the birch tree (most of it).

You can tell that I still don't have the lawnmower running. I'd just like to shoot lawnmowers. Eventually, I'll need to work on that problem

This is east of the birch tree. Not much to see, except you can tell I've been working on it.

You probably don't remember- no reason you should- but last year I transplanted a whole lot of the things I already had. Some of them were doing quite well, but there was no rhyme or reason to their placement. A lot of them had just been stuck in there when they were given to me. Also last year, I bought the 'Peach Flambe' Heuchera, Margaret gave me some 'Firefly' Heuchera, I bought two Brunnera, and I got a couple more hostas for almost nothing on clearance tables. The daisies just come up wherever, and I let them bloom unless they are really in a bad place.

True confession time. I bought some plants today. One was marked down, and two were reasonable because they were smaller pots. I now have enough foliage colors of things that this is approaching the vision I've had in my head for about 30 years. I put my new plants in and moved a couple of hostas to better places. This is the view looking east.

This is the same space but looking to the west.

Now for the lowdown on my new plants. This one I was just suckered into buying. I wanted Heuchera with bright colored leaves. But I couldn't resist this. It's called 'Dark Knight.' I love the very dark, ruffled leaves. I think it will look great with that yellow-green hosta around it. It stays fairly small, and so does that hosta. The 'Frostbite' Brunnera behind it is perfect.

But then I focused on my mission, and chose 'Amber Lady.' I wasn't sure about the color of this one in the store. I almost bought another 'Peach Flambe,' but they were $3 more, and I really want different ones. So I got it. I think it's perfect! It looks much brighter in the garden than in the store. It's keeping company with my 30-year-old purple Heuchera that never thrives, and a few non-descript hosta in front of it. No clue what cultivar.

And now, for the find of the day... this was probably an $8.99 pot, marked down to $5.99 for no reason I can ascertain. This is Heuchera 'Electric Plum.' The leaf color is stunning! The flowers are supposed to be a little more interesting than most Heucheras. We'll see next year.

I got a lot done today. Laundry, shopping (really, I needed groceries as well as plants), 4+ hours of editing, some volunteer stuff, and some garden work. Looks like we might get a little more rain tonight.

See The Sedum on the End of a Stick