the lion's share update~

its been a while since i posted about the lion's share garden progress, i love looking back as the years roll by, i use my blog like a visual diary. right now things have come to a screeching halt in the garden, just at the pinnacle of fun i injured my leg and have not been able to stand, much less stroll, walk or work my garden... perfect time to update the pics from the last month in the lions garden...

at the end of june we began laying the pavers, we have to work from the top down with the pathways.

next comes the exterior wall and planter to sharply define the lion's share garden

the raised planters are to hold my dahlias, we laid hardware cloth to stop the gophers from dining

i have been collecting dahlias in pots for 2 years for these raised planters, i could not have been happier to finally get them in the ground! this bed holds 70 dahlias, i pruned them all to 12-18" before planting to encourage bushy multi-stemmed healthy blooming plants... 

the side beds flanking the ivy house are doing terrific, filled with fall colors of sages in purple and blues, with long blooming red crepe myrtles, red twig dogwoods for winter interest next to the boxwood hedge and the path is lined with lavender.

i wanted red to tie the garden back to the barn

the first week of july, it was time to order several transfer loads of fill dirt and begin contouring the lion's share

sadly, we were hit with 110 degree temps for days, despite watering the dahlias daily they couldn't take the shock of summer and every single dahlia lost every ounce of green... i have a flat bed of nothing, not sure if their eyes are viable after weeks, ok months of endlessly high temperatures...

  

only time will tell if the endless supply of mulch i cover every single plant with, the moment they are i the ground, is working miracles down under...

the lions share is set up as 4 quadrants of 4 to be filled with annuals and perennials. i am SO close to having the color garden i have been craving since we moved in. we were just doing the pathway to define my first 4 beds when i tore a tendon, i was flat on my back for 3 days, on the 4th day i went nursery shopping to fill those beds coming, i overdid it and have been back on my back for more days then i can count. my knee is so unstable i have crutches arriving today, i will happily hobble around my garden, i am sure just being back outside will be my best medicine and maybe get this healing process speeded up because i have so much i want and need to do outside i don't want to let to let these days keep slipping by...

Plants in the lions share garden

 top ivy house border

Variegated red twig dog wood 3

Mexican sage 6

Red rocket crepe Myrtle 2

Skyscraper dark purple salvia

Rocking fuchsia salvia

Lavender meerlo 3

Green beauty box wood 18

English lavender Super blue 10

Ivy house 

star showers virginia creeper 4

Lions 

creeping fig 4

Red rocket crepe Myrtle 2

Variegated red twig dog wood 3

Mexican sage 5

Ruella

Salvia amistad

Green beauty box wood 18

English lavender 10

Allen chickering salvia 3

Variegated pride of Madeira

South border

Snowdrift crabapple  2

Rice flower dark pink 2

North border dahlias

Colarette 8

Tirza	Tirza?
Pacific Ocean	Seattle
Seattle	Seattle
Double Jill	Double jill
Cambridge	A
Show and tell	B
Bodacious	C
Santa claus	Santa claus
Color spectacle	D
Belle of barmera	Hercules
Myrtles folly	E
Lake tahoe	F
Duet like	G
Penhill dark monarch	H
Thomas edison	Thomas edison
S	I
T	J
Nadia Ruth	Nadia Ruth
Nadia Ruth	L
Nadia Ruth?	O
Rosella	Rosella
Rip city	Rip city
Lavender perfection	Lavender perfection
Avignon	Arabian night
Aliens clair-obscur	Avignon
Hy trio	Lilac time
Marble ball	Moms special
Tartan	Tartan

Top border left

Palladia border

Row 1

Dancing blue koi 5

Wall flower

Blue king Siberian iris

Honorable lord 2

Blue king Siberian iris

Wall flower

Runaround sue 4

Row 2

Emile debatene peony

Clematis

Emile debatene peony

Row 3

Cyber grape 4

Sarah Bernhardt

Whales tail 3

Row 4

Plum fun 4

Cheesecake Japanese iris

Concord crush Siberian iris

Damsel in a dress 2

Concord crush Siberian iris

Cheesecake Japanese iris

divergence 3

scilla Peruvian 5

Blueberry Pie Japanese iris

....Plants for the first quadrant A ...

All Center pots 

Muhlenbergia capillaris

Square 1 top left

Deep red and burgundy

Row 1

Dahlia city lights purple 4, reddish dinner plate Dahlia .... pennisetum Rubrum purple fountain grass, New look celosia 18 ... Red Monarda 2  (fireball?), Monarda red Jacob cline, blockbuster dark red vinca 12

Row 2

Purple fountain grass, 2 Indian summer coleus, 2 ruby slipper coleus .... Red hibiscus Vintage wine ... Purple fountain grass, 2 campfire coleus, 2 sweet potato vine

Row 3

Xxl taxco Dahlia 4, mystic enchantment Dahlia 5, cosmos choca mocha 4

Square 2 top right

Blue and white

Row 1

Russian sage 2, lacey blue 2 ... Shasta daisy 6 ... Agastache blue boa 3

Row 2

Obedient plant ... Salvia black and blue ... Gaura belleza white evolution, l. whirling butterflies 2 (red stems pink buds), Lindheimeri sparkle white

Row 3

Pep talk penstemon, veronica speed well 3 ... Freak daisy 4 ... midnight penstemon 2, salvia nemorosa meadow sage 3

Square 3 bottom right

pink and purple

Square 4 bottom left

Org and yellow

Row 1

Stella de oro 8, butterfly weed butterfly kisses 2 ... Picasso dwarf canna 10ish, crocosmia Lucifer 5 ... Cheyenne spirit cone flower 5

Row 2

South seas daylily 3, Dahlia 2 yellow red Xxl, Santa Cruz daylily 3

Row 3

Mystic illusion (yellow) 4 ... spin top orange halo blanket flower 3 ... Creme de cognac 4 ... Uptick gold and bronze 3 ... Mystic Haze 5 ?