Late summer survivors

The wet spring turned hot and dry, with barely any rain for six weeks in July and August. Who survived? This begonia ('Bubbles'?), a bit odd-looking but with this darling hidden bloom. Planted in a clay pot but never showed any sign of drooping.

 

The hostas did just what they were supposed to do. As summer marched relentlessly on and the summer sun beat down, they became more golden. They're particularly beautiful in the early morning or on a cloudy day, when their ripening foliage glows.

 

The volunteer morning glories did extremely well this year, I can only think because they had sufficient moisture in the early months, for once.

 

 

Who had trouble? The new hydrangeas, of course. 'Little Lamb' has some crispy leaves, but I think it will do fine next year. 'Annabelle' was kind of a mess - big and droopy and suffering terribly from the drought. I hope these were not a mistake. The kirengeshoma kept promising to bloom, but when I looked at it yesterday, even the last few days of rain couldn't save it. It's lost most of its leaves, and the promised buds are now tight little dried-up husks. Here it is in its glory days in mid-July:

 

And here's how it looks after a drought:

 

Sad, isn't it.

A few others that didn't make it: two of the tiarellas that I loved so much this summer. At first I thought they were drooping from lack of water, but I soon realized that the evil voles had been at work again. When you pull up the plant, you get nothing but dead leaves on the top, and no roots. Death to all voles! Here are the horrible remains.

 

After all, not everything in the garden is beautiful, not by a long shot...

Wildlife

A few weeks ago, the bumblebees were buzzing around the oregano. I'm never sure exactly what kinds of bees I'm seeing but always hope they are honeybees. Anybody know?



The voles seem to have done their dirty work and gone away. They ate the hosta 'Sieboldiana elegans,' which really annoys me, but they left the much larger Krossa Regal alone. Maybe the key is to plant larger, better-established plants? Maybe they like only the young tender roots?


I have purchased Liquid Fence Mole and Vole Repellent and just need to get out there and spray. I fear that they will be repelled only briefly, but it's worth a try.

This other-worldly creature is perched on the lip of a pot filled with coleus. You can see it better if you click on the photo to enlarge it. I ought to know what it is, but I can't quite place it. A June bug??

Vile voles

I've been so lucky over the years - no slugs on the hostas, no deer, no squirrels digging up tulip bulbs...but my good luck is over. I have had voles in the front garden for the past couple years. Initially, the only damage was piles of dirt in the front lawn, but last year they ate two hostas. This month, I came back from a week away to find one of the 'Gold Standard' hostas had utterly vanished, and 'Blue Cadet' was lying sideways on the ground. These little, evil creatures tunnel underneath and eat the roots, leaving the beautiful leaves to wither and die.

Google "voles hosta" and you'll find more remedies than you can shake a stick at, most of them imperfect. This posting sums up most of the tips:

You know you have voles if your entire hosta clump disappears into a subterranean hole, or returns in the spring as a fraction of it's last years size. Voles (herbivorous mole relatives) are easy to control if you follow all three steps. First vole bait (rat poison) must be applied every 10 feet through the infected area. If you can find the runs, then apply the material there. If a run isn't evident, then put the material on the ground (they find your hostas don't they). Secondly, cover all of the bait, as the voles only feed in the dark. We like to use clay flower pots (it makes visitors ask questions). Thirdly, repeat the procedure in 2 weeks. This doesn't mean three or four weeks...TWO. If you follow this procedure, you will get rid of your vole problem.

It sounds too good to be true, and I despise rat poison, but maybe that's what I'll have to do. You'd think the neighbor's cat, who's a good hunter, could help me out here, but apparently not. She spends a lot of time in the driveway staring at the junipers - if she'd just turn around she'd find some delicious voles to eat!!

The other suggestion is to pot your hostas and plant them pots and all, or add pea gravel to the bottom of the planting hole. Anyone have any other ideas??