July On Our Front Porch

Hi there!!  Have you had a good summer so far?  Since I haven't been posting much, I thought I would take some time to do a re-cap of July.  First of all, it's unbelievably hot here (for us).  These temps. would be no big deal for people in Texas and Arizona, but whew!  I even saw that North Carolina was mentioned in the The New York Times yesterday in reference to the heat wave we're having.  I'm not a fan of The New York Times, but I get e-mails from them because I play Wordle on their website.  Anyhoo, the temperatures have been in the 90's consistently, with the heat index in the triple digits.       Aside from this heat wave, July has been a nice month for us.  We made homemade ice cream to take to my mom's house for July 4th.  We had a cookout, and I got to see my niece's little foster child; I tell you I'm smitten with that child. 😊 I've gotten some really nice fresh vegetables and fruit so far; this has been a good summer for the produce.  We're engaging in our annual tradition of watching the Tour de France here.  It actually ended Sunday, but we're a few days behind.    

In addition to enjoying fresh produce, we've really enjoyed our flowers this summer, so I'm sharing some pictures of the front porch plantings this year.  I have to tell you; I've been so pleased with them this year!  I gave up on those silly boxwoods that died after being pampered for a couple of years.  This spring, I asked the owner at our local nursery, and she recommended these dwarf Arborvitaes for our largest pots, and I love them.     

They're soft and ruffly and so green.  These are a variety of the Arborvitae we have planted in our backyard.     

   The above picture was taken in 2022, and you wouldn't believe how much these trees have grown since then.  They were babies in this picture! 😁 I'll have to take a current picture and share with you.     

I didn't plant any petunias this year.  They're pretty for a while, and then they get leggy and spindly looking.  That just doesn't work for me.  Mine never seem to look like the ones I see in pictures.  My mother-in-law had some pink begonias left over from her planting, so she kindly shared them with me.  I love, love this combination.  Caladiums are one of my all-time favorites, along with the variegated vinca vine and the begonias.  I found the cute snail at Home Goods at the beginning of summer.     

A big change that I made this summer is my geraniums.  I have always had salmon pink geraniums everywhere we've lived, but this year I got a late start and salmon pink geraniums were thin on the ground.  I saw these bright pink ones where I bought the Arborvitaes, and they came home with me.  I have so enjoyed having something different.  They blend so well with the other plantings, and these will probably be my new color in the future.   

     Bought a new house number plaque last summer; it looks so much better than the old, tarnished brass numbers we had. 

We purchased a new front doormat this spring.  I loved our other one, but some critter ate part of it.  Sigh.  Hal has had to spray my geraniums multiple times with Liquid Fence because something was pulling the leaves off.  We've had a few baby fawns this year (still with their Bambi spots).  They live in the woods behind us.  They're so cute, but I really don't want them to eat my flowers.   

   

My autumn fern is doing much better than the one I had last year.   

The limelight hydrangeas are loaded with blooms.  I can't get over how much they've grown in just a few years.     

Limelights in 2021.    

These were our Crape Myrtle trees in April 2022,   

and the Crape Myrtles this week.  Some of these trees are larger than others; we're going to prune them this fall to make them more uniform in shape.  We made sure to keep them well watered the first summer, and they've grown like gangbusters.    

Our Eastern Redbud tree in 2022,      

and this week, 2025.     

Love this spinner my mom gave me!     

We are so glad we took the plunge to have all those ugly, overgrown poplars removed from our yard.  It has made a world of difference, and we don't miss them a bit.  Do you enjoy gardening?  What is growing in your garden this summer?  I'd love to hear from you!     If you enjoy reading blogs about gardening and gardens, you might enjoy visiting The Charm of Home blog.  Sherry has a charming cottage garden, and she makes lovely bouquets and does posts on tea, as well.  Thank you so much for visiting, dear Friends, and stay cool!!     

     Hugs,