After the Storm, Japanese Maple Seedling Update & Creative Container Gardening

The five (three red and two yellow) wax begonias fell victim to the big storm we had at the end of June and that caused widespread damage and power outages throughout our region. I wanted to replace the begonias with three creeping Jenny plants and two miniature rose like double impatiens but Ben bought five little lavendar plants. It's pretty shady back there so if they don't survive and the garden center still has the plants I wanted we'll replace them. If they do survive we'll have plenty of lavendar to rub (I love the smell).

Our bird bath got toppled by the storm so my hubby weighted the base down. It needs another cleaning already but the birds don't seem to mind. On really hot days we see many birds using it at the same time but most days they use it one at a time.

Our potted African daisies weren't looking so good so my husband got this orange echinacea (coneflower) for in front of the garage. I don't recall seeing echinacea grown as container plants but I hope it does well. If it starts to fail we'll pop it in the ground and get something else for this spot. I'm trying to nurse the African daisies back to health but hubby thinks they're past saving. We'll see. Potted plants need frequent watering when the temps get above 90, never mind 100 degrees.

This is our "mother" echinacea plant. It's the first one we planted here and it's almost as big as the Josee lilac to the right of it. The storm split it down the middle and had it flopped all over so my husband used a creative blend of stakes, trellises and twine to support it and it's doing fine. In the fall we should probably divide it.

Of the four Japanese maple seedlings we started with this spring I think this is our lone survivor. It's semi shaded by the dahlia that shares its pot.

Here's an overview of the creative container garden that holds the Japanese maple seedling (the seedling is in the far left corner). The main plant in the pot is a dahlia that I had forgotten about and accidentally pulled out in early spring. So the dahlia will be a late bloomer. There's also another mystery plant that I'm hoping is a portulaca.

If you like beautiful photos, please remember to check my inspirational blog for the best flower and foliage photos of the week (every Tuesday; it's my "this week in my Maryland garden" series there).

Happy gardening!