It's a jungle out there!

We had inches and inches of rain in July and already this is what our early August forecast looks like! Everything is growing like CRAZY! And unfortunately, almost everything needs to be moved to a new spot. We're in a holding pattern right now, still waiting for repairs from the hailstorm we had in May. We have a sturdy new roof, but there's still a window to replace, new siding and guttering to be put on, and the deck to be power washed and painted.

Come fall, we have our work cut out for us! Almost everything in the flowerbed in the front has to be thinned out and moved. We've already moved some of the barberry bushes to a spot in front of my office window. The beautiful Japanese Magnolia is too tall and covers up everything else in the flowerbed, so it will get moved to a new spot, too.

And this volunteer redbud tree will be moved to a spot in the backyard. We tried to move a smaller one in the heat of July and it didn't make it. (We had no choice about moving it since it was in the way of some repairs.) We'll be patient and wait until fall to transplant this to the back yard. It's a beautiful little tree and growing VERY fast!

If we thought the front flowerbed was crowded, the back is jam-packed! All wonderful plants that we'd like to keep but they simply can't all stay here! We have a Rose of Sharon that is bursting with blooms. . .

. . .three hibiscus plants––two red and one white, that give us dinner-plate size blooms. . .

 . . . plus, the Weigela is blooming again, there are lilies and fleabane and a thistle that's too pretty to cut down yet, a huge hydrangea, and several still unidentified plants all growing together in a messy jungle!

Meanwhile, in the shade garden under the deck the roses keep blooming and filling my vases, the caladiums are lush and beautiful, and the sweet potato vine is trying to take over the world! The checkerboard patio needs to be mowed, but it's starting to look like it's been here forever. We're excited for fall when we can thin things out and start to see the flowerbeds take shape for next spring.