Front Yard, Front Porch, and Back Steps

This is obviously my day to play catch-up on my blog! I took these shots a couple of weeks ago.

The Endless Summer Hydrangea in the front yard has been absolutely gorgeous this year. And soooooo blue! I feel like it was more purplish / lavender last year. The acidity of the soil must have changed in this spot. You can see my hanging Dragon Wing Begonia here, too. I like to use them in my hanging baskets because they do better than anything else I’ve tried on my mostly shady front porch.

Endless Summer Hydrangea and hanging Dragon Wing Begonia.

Endless Summer Hydrangea in the front yard.

I had to move my small pot of succulents from the front steps to the porch because of all the rain we were getting. It was drowning! The Coleus on the right is called Kong Mosaic. It’s a showy one with really large leaves. I have at least three different types of begonias in this shot, some variegated ivy and some Goldfinger Sweet Potato Vine.

Front porch plants.

A fern, more begonias, etc...I should be better at keeping track of these things! The flowering plant in the bottom center is Holanda Justicia – I know that much!

Front porch plants.

The steps to the back porch is a hot spot, so there’s some heat-loving plants here. Mostly different types of succulents, plus the big shallow bowls of bog and carnivorous plants.

Plants on the back porch steps.

Lots of herbs near the back porch for easy accessibility: Germander, Chives, Lemon Balm, and Mint (with a purple clematis on the trellis).

Germander, Chives, Lemon Balm, and Mint.

On the other side of the back porch steps are some more herbs, like rosemary, thyme, and sage, along with Green Velvet Boxwood, an iris and a “box” of succulents. Oh look, there’s Molly on the screened in back porch.

Herbs and such.