Don’t need much care and yet still lovely.

Finally the rains came, tempest mostly.  We don’t seem to have normal rain any more.  It’s either no rain or it’s pouring cats and dogs.  It doesn’t really matter what type sky juice come down  – drizzle, rain, shower or thunder storm – it’s better than a drought. The heat wave we had in our area last month subsided to just a high humidity. Trees and flowers in our garden seem to be able to take a deep breath again after having held their their breath through temperatures exceeding 90 degrees with not a drop of rain in anywhere.  Just standing outside in the shade brought rivulets of perspiration down my skin. The vegetables didn’t seem to care very much since they had the privilege of having someone water them daily and without fail.

Droughts are a good test for flowers.  We don’t want to grow flowers that need too much care and watering since we use well water here.  We love roses.  They only need a lot of water during the first couple of years until their root structure is established.  Then, if they are well mulched, they will be fine, especially the Rosa Rugosa.   Aside from the roses, most of the flowers we put in the ground are either native species or drought tolerant.

Most of the flowers in the front yard are self-sown or plants that can last for months on moisture they can pull from their surroundings. I let Echanecia, Rudbeckia, Garden Phlox and Coreopsis grow freely.  I only have to weed out the seedlings when they get too crowded.  They still happily produce abundant flowers during high temperatures and last month’s drought.  Since they have such a will to live, we support and nurture them a little by providing them with good compost once a year.