Summer days

Its been so hot down here in south Louisiana! We got some rain a few days ago and that helped to cool things down some. As I'm writing this blog post, I can hear thunder and I'm hoping that we'll get some rain this afternoon. Here are some of my plants that have held up to the hot/humid summertime!

In my opinion, Black eyed Susans are the best perennial for Southern flower beds. There is hardly another perennial who: 1)blooms all summer 2)takes the heat 3)doesn't mind periods of drought. Here is another grouping of Black eyed Susans who have a solid yellow face. I like these the best!

Coral Nymph Salvia is doing great too! The bees love the flowers and I think I've seen hummingbirds dart around this plant too.

I took this picture in the afternoon, so the color is washed out but it has very pretty pink and white flowers! The heat doesn't bother this plant either. It bloomed non stop since spring. I'm definitely adding more of these next spring.

This is another new addition- Indigo Spires Salvia. I love the soft purple flower color. The flower spikes are fairly big, around 4-5 inches. I'm going to start some of these from cuttings and give away to friends.

I love the foliage of Purple Heart! Its such a tough plant too! I dug a small clump from my neighbor's yard and planted it in my garden! My neighbor didn't mind that I took some Purple Heart from his yard...he didn't even know it was there! This plant looks so nice in mass plantings.

This picture serves as an update on my progress in rooting a Pride of Barbados. I took this cutting several weeks back, and it is growing! Soon it will need to be transplanted into a bigger pot.

Finally, this is my dog Max. He is part Akita, which means he has very thick fur! He tries to stay cool by digging a hole in the dirt and laying in the shade all day. He also sheds alot when summer rolls around. I guess he is just trying to stay cool.