Backyard Plant ID: Asters

So there was this one low bushy plant in the middle of our backyard that we had no idea what it was.... that was until about 2 weeks ago, when it started blooming!



The plant has these GORGEOUS little purple flowers, they almost look like daisies of some sort.  Someone told me that it could be some sort of Aster, so I went online and did a bit of Googling....

From my online research, I'm guessing this could be New England Asters (a.k.a. Michaelmas Daisy)
http://ontariowildflowers.com/main/group.php?id=1
http://www.woodlandgardensct.com/fallplants.html
What do you think?

BEAUTIFUL!

Front yard - Plant ID - Rose Mallow

In our front yard, there are these GORGEOUS red/magenta flowers.  They bloomed mid-summer and the colour was absolutely stunning.  I recall a neighbor walked by and said "wow, they are so big, like a satellite dish!".

I went to Sheridan Nurseries and saw the same plant, so I checked out the plant tag to see the details.  I guess the full name of this plant is "Rose Mallow" (Hibiscus moscheutos Luna Rose).  I also found a link online with more detailed info: 

http://www.learn2grow.com/plants/hibiscus-moscheutos-luna-rose-luna-series/

A photo from Sheridan Nurseries - they had some beautiful ones there too! 

Happy Gardening!!!

Front yard - Plant IDs

So our front yard was quite over-grown when we had moved into the house.  Again, there was lots of material to work with so I was more than happy to go in to do a bit of clearing and weeding. I will have more "after" pictures to show on a later date.  But for now, with the help from some family members, we've identified some of the plants in the front yard...

Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudbeckia_hirta

(These seems to be very common in this neighborhood - feels like every house has a bunch of these)

Veriegated Weigela...

http://www.brighterblooms.com/product/variegated-weigela.html

Cosmos http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/plants/plant_finder/plant_pages/228.shtml

Again, these seem to grow like wild weeds in our neighborhood (I don't mind them though, they are so pretty, and they make beautiful cut flowers!)

and Sedum
http://www.mooseyscountrygarden.com/perennial-plants/sedum-autumn-joy.html

I'm so excited to find so many different kind of plants in both the front and back yards.  It's so much fun to find out what each plant is, their characteristics, and visualize how it can look in the context of the garden with other plants and over time.  I plan on moving some of them around as currently many of them are overshadowed by taller plants that are at the wrong place.  There's so much to do, but so little time!

Backyard Plant ID - Japanese Spurge

New plant identified!  The plant that is in the middle of the backyard under the tree is called Japanese Spurge.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pachysandra_terminalis

 It has a very nice jade colour groundcover and in late summer there were even little white flowers blooming from it.  I think the previous owner did a nice job picking this plant for this location of the garden.

  The only problem is, the neighborhood raccoon family has decided to make the Japanese Spurge patch their bathroom, which I am not happy about.... so their "business" has been killing some of this beautiful Japanese Spurge plants.  I guess that wild life comes hand in hand with gardening, so I'm sure this is just the beginning of it.  I'm trying a few "natural" different anti-raccoon remedies to deter them from coming back.  I'm sure that will be featured in another blog post in the near future ;) 

(Here's a plant tag I saw at Sheridan Nurseries the other day of a Japanese Spurge)

Backyard - More plant IDs

With the help of a very knowledgeable family member, here's a few more plants identified in the backyard (Click on the image above for a zoomed in view)...

 we have.... Strawberry... (woo hoo!  Can't wait till next year's harvest, as long as the raccoon don't get to them first)

Purple Clematis...(it could be the Jackman clematis species)
http://www.canadiangardening.com/plants/vines-and-groundcovers/demystifying-clematis/a/30322
http://www.floridata.com/ref/c/clem_xja.cfm

 Daylily  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylily)

Coreopsis... (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coreopsis)
and some sort of hostas plant behind it...

Backyard Plant ID - "Black Lace" elderberry

Plant ID Round #1 - so what is that beautiful purple shrub in the right hand side against the fence?

When we bought the house, the plants hasn't fully bloomed and at one point we thought this might have been some sort of Japanese maple....

 

But as the plant grew, we noticed the shape of the leaves were not Japanese maple....

And in late Spring, these gorgeous pink flowers were popping up, so it was a clear indicator that this was some sort of elderberry shrub (I didn't figure it out on my own, thanks to several of my family members who are into landscaping and plants!).  

 

I did a bit more research online and concluded that this species is the "Black Lace" Elderberry (Sambucus Nigra).  It's a hardy shrub, with the dark purple leaves resembling Japanese maple (OK, so I wasn't the only one that got fooled!) and big "clumps" of purple berries forms after the pink flowers are gone. Apparently the elderberry are edible, but I don't think I'm going to try though... 

Here's a nice little website I found that gives detail description about the plant (http://www.colorchoiceplants.com/black_lace.htm) and (http://www.provenwinners.com/plants/sambucus/black-lace-elderberry-sambucus-nigra)

Backyard Before & After - round 1

(BEFORE)

When we first got the house in the middle of the summer, the plants in the backyard were pretty over-grown, to a point where you couldn't really walk through the pathway.  There are definitely lots of material here to work with but the first step is to clear up all the overgrown plants and weeds.

For some reason, I find pulling weeds and pruning plants quite therapeutic.  Other than the physical aspect of gardening (it's a great workout!), I also find it extremely relaxing.  I seem to lose track of time when I'm in the garden (the next thing you know 3 hours has past by and you have a nice tan and it's close to dinner time).  I feel so good and accomplished after working on the garden - the overgrown plants are gone, weeds are gone, and now more space for the plants to properly grow :) 

(AFTER)

Here's a "After" view, post-clean up.  This is only round "1" of many many more rounds of cleaning.... stay tuned for more ! :) 

Beginning of a gardening journey

I have a garden that I can call my own, finally!  I'm very excited about all the design possibilities but at the same time a little bit intimidated with where to begin, when there are so many things to do.  I began with a lot of online and magazine research and am starting to have an overload of information.  That's when I decided to start this blog so that I can keep track of useful gardening tips, my observations, and my learning experiences (whether it's good or bad!). 

So here's to happy gardening, and stay tuned for updates!