After a week’s haitus for family business, I joyfully returned to Bee Balm blooming! This is year 4 for this area, which is nearly self-sufficient.
To add diversity to this area, I’ve allowed Deer Tongue Grass and Goldenrod to thrive, and added a Native Grass Seed mix that includes Indian Grass, Side Oats Grama, Bottlebrush Grass and Canadian Wild Rye. The grasses were planted last fall, and filled in this Spring. The fall seedings are about knee high at this time…crowding out invasive Creeping Charlie, Garlic Mustard and others.
Clearweed is filling in the empty areas, which is fine until the other species get larger.
The back yard area is serving as a Native seed nursery, and doing well. (The Phlox are Annuals, but I wanted some color while waiting for Obedient Plants to flower.) The Elderberry is providing cuttings for the woods. They grow very easily during rainy periods.
The Bergamot is very happy this year too! I thinned this area and transplanted Natives in the woods before blooming. With all of the rain, it filled right back in though. Tidy gardens were never really “my thing.”
