In a few weeks, you'll have a jungle there! Looking good!

PV

NICE!

Mary

Lots of interesting seedlings in your pics. Is that your Tennessee Coneflower that's budding? I like Violas too, they are very pretty in the Spring. But I weed them out of most of the garden beds except for a semi-wild woodland garden out back. I would worry that the ground cover and Violaswould be too aggressive for your WS babies.

I like jungles hopefully it won't be to horribly mish mashed!!

Terrene I believe you and I share a love for natives, I figured if anyone would know what I had planted it would be you. Yes that is tennessee coneflower at least what I sowed as tennessee coneflower about to bloom. I am so thrilled about that. The bud has been progressing for about a week or so. It looks like it may be a tint of pink but the center is purple. Who knows what it may look like in another week. I will so keep you posted on that.

Ya know the violas are horrible, lol. I rip them out as I plant, the seedlings luckily are easy to pull. The reason I have ground covers is cause our climate is horrid in the summer. Look at the 8th picture. The crack in my soil, well that is cause we hadn't had any rain since all of the flooding and my ground was dry. A few days ago a rain storm was about to come in, so I ran outside to water and plant. I know I know ya are thinking WHAT, lol. Well I notice after we have a long dry period and then a quick rain my ground is so dry it never is absorbed, but if I water before the rain storm and dig in my dirt the water gets absorbed. Well the ground covers actually help keep my soil from becoming a rock. Believe it or not it has taken me a long time to get the ground covers to be this lush and since they are this full my plants look 10x's better. I go out every day and move the ground covers away from the base of the plants till they get established. So really the creeping jenny looks like it is over running the plants but it is easily controlled.

When my ground dries out again I will show you what I mean, seriously I have concrete when it is dry. No lie in order to dig in our soil once it dries out we have to take a water hose and water and slowly shovel water then shovel then water then shovel. We don't dig in summer!! Unless you have an auger or a huge tractor, LOL!!

carolyn, do you add organic matter to your soil? Sounds like compost might help you a lot.

Karen

Yes Carolyn, we do share a love for natives! My first year WSing I started more than 50 native species from seed, and sow new ones every year. Some have thrived, others not so much. I also love to try out cultivars of native plants, and would like to do some plant breeding myself.

Wow your soil sounds like a real bear, plus you have much hotter summer weather than we do here. I am spoiled with a well-drained sandy loam, which also dries out badly during dry weather but doesn't turn into concrete!

I agree that compost and mulching would help your soil. Although I keep mulch well back away from my seedlings - would encourage the slugs too much (also routinely sprinkle organic slug bait around seedlings).

I actually use to mulch, bad problem is that I am a total hands on. I am constantly in these beds. The mulch just doesn't last long in these beds and I blame that on me and maybe not placing it thick enough. I quit mulching when I found termite swarmers hanging around.

My theroy was the ground covers act as a mulch I don't have to replace and it doesn't mind my anal hands on ways.

Terrene, I have actually thought about crossing plants. That is about as far as I got. I guess you can call me a purest, I don't care for cultivars and hybrids make me cringe. This years wsing results reinforces my dislike greatly. I will probably never buy another cultivar or hybrid again.

Hello Carolyn, really nice Garden. I know what you mean with the Clay soil. Mushroom, Banana Peels, Strawberry ends will gradually change the grade of the soil. Coconut Mulch works really well (but pricey).

We go through a lot of bananas around here, so that may be a good option.

Lady rose your garden is the one looking good. My veggies did horrible this year, I managed to get 2 tomato plants. I did notice the farmers struggled horrible this year also. Some are just getting in crops and they are planting soy beans. So I may sow a few containers of beans in the next few days and just see what happens.

Carolyn, I have your soil, here in northern AL. LOL, they say you shouldn't dig clay when it's wet, but when else can you? Anyhow, I am adding compost whenever I can, but can't make enough fast enough to cover 1.5 acres - slow process! Anyway, my question for you - don't the ground covers compete with your other plants? Do you yank them from around the area where you are planting a perennial?

Loading a picture sucks on this device but I will show you how I do it this evening. The chamelon ground cover is a pain that I have been trying to get rid of. The creeping jenny has tiny roots so it is extremely easy to pull and move. I always forget the real name to the purple ground cover but I call it persian chocolate, that also has a tiny root.

Once my plant gets established they come up right through the ground cover. I just moved a bunch of gailardia that came up in a patch of viola and creeping jenny. That would of been a perfect picture to show how it works but I didn't get the shot.

Though to answer your question, yes to plant I rip enough of the ground covers and viola out just to plant. Then I try to replant the creeping jenny around the circumference but not the base.

I scheldue my digging around the rain, so whoever came up with that must not have our soil or tried to use a typical shovel in it. Hey drippy one investment I will advise you on while you are here in our wonderful south. Buy one of those heavy duty metal handled shovels and one heavy duty small hand ones. I have broke a many shovels with the wooden handle and when they split while you are digging it HURTS.

Alright here ya go a little closer shots of the base of the plants.

This is the best example I have here. The l. perennis was one of the first ones to plant. This is a great example though of what I have been doing.
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I totally planted this one in the wrong spot, verbena bonairenisis. Man I didn't realize how tall this booger got. It is starting to bloom now so there is no chance in me moving it. I was reading and you know it is hardy to zone 7. Well even though I don't consider myself zone 7 I do notice stuff hardy to zone 7 does over winter here and I believe it is contributed to the ground covers. Though this is how I would normally do my annuals.
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The virginia stock is going to seed so it doesn't look great.
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It is looking to be pink, and yes I plan to move that gailardia. Karen we talked about g. aristata coming true from seed and for me it has. I found a reseed of my painter's palette gailardia and it has a bud now so hopefully in a week I will know if that comes true.
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Drippy here are a few perennials sowed last year. I did have to pull some of the viola away from the base this spring but the ground covers nor the viola chocked them out.
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LOL, I got to show this!! I purchased seeds that were suppose to be cherry brandy rudbeckia. Well I sowed them last year and this plant was tiny and it bloomed last year. Well this shot was taken last night. They bow their little heads, how cute.
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Today they are standing up right. I just think that is adorable, lol.
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