cabanafrau
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- May 10, 2006
Currently my iris, peonies, Siberian bugloss and bachelor buttons are putting on a pretty spectacular show. My Scotch broom is set to hit peak bloom sometime this week.
Had to dig out and redo one of my back beds that had gotten out of control and so infiltrated with grass that it could not be tidied. The many, many varieties of mint scattered around the area had completely overrun the corrals they were planted in and the chives had managed to scatter seeds throughout as well. The one-inch lavender I planted in 2020 had gotten wider than I could get my arms around and was fighting for space with various varieties of thyme that had somehow managed to cross breed and gotten way to large and woody. My poor bee balm, Chinese lanterns and cardinal flowers didn't stand a chance.
The trailing roots of all the varieties of mint were interlocked like a woven carpet, making it absolutely impossible to clear the invading grass, other weeds, or even try to downsize any of the plants. With our schedules being so tight anymore I had to bite the bullet and decided it was just time to dig it out and start fresh. Honestly I was never going to conquer the mint mat anyway, so I'm better off. I anchored the area with a quick fire hydrangea variety that will go from white to pomegranate blooms, put in several bee balms, turtleheads, sages and a specialty-style lavender with large feathery blooms. The honeysuckle vine on the trellis behind the bed is already bursting with blooms. Heavenly scent, just wish the prevailing breezes blew our way more often.
Had to dig out and redo one of my back beds that had gotten out of control and so infiltrated with grass that it could not be tidied. The many, many varieties of mint scattered around the area had completely overrun the corrals they were planted in and the chives had managed to scatter seeds throughout as well. The one-inch lavender I planted in 2020 had gotten wider than I could get my arms around and was fighting for space with various varieties of thyme that had somehow managed to cross breed and gotten way to large and woody. My poor bee balm, Chinese lanterns and cardinal flowers didn't stand a chance.
The trailing roots of all the varieties of mint were interlocked like a woven carpet, making it absolutely impossible to clear the invading grass, other weeds, or even try to downsize any of the plants. With our schedules being so tight anymore I had to bite the bullet and decided it was just time to dig it out and start fresh. Honestly I was never going to conquer the mint mat anyway, so I'm better off. I anchored the area with a quick fire hydrangea variety that will go from white to pomegranate blooms, put in several bee balms, turtleheads, sages and a specialty-style lavender with large feathery blooms. The honeysuckle vine on the trellis behind the bed is already bursting with blooms. Heavenly scent, just wish the prevailing breezes blew our way more often.
