Fall Prep

I haven't been up to a whole lot these last few weeks, other than some yard maintenance. And by yard maintenance, I mean vigorously pulling Mexican heather from my rain garden. Those babies have a tendency to take over! And they're obscuring shorter, more attractive plants like my Cahaba lilies and ginger lilies.

After removing 90% of the Mexican Heather

We've had a dry summer which has damaged the woodland ferns in the rain garden. Lucky me! I also plan to dig those out as soon as I'm done with the Mexican heather. Hopefully that will enable my canna lilies to progress as it seems their growth has been stunted the last few years.

Totally Overgrown!

On the hillside, I am going to replace a small island filled with irises and daylilies with another fruit tree. I have my eye on a dwarf pear tree that will fit the space perfectly.

Its a long to-do list with very little time. Hopefully I can get most of this done before we have another cold snap which forces me into hibernation.

Rare Cahaba Lily

I'm so pleased my Cahaba Lily is in bloom in my rain garden. It's so unusual and smells divine.

The natural environment for the Cahaba Lily is rivers across the southeast United States, namely Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. However, if grown in full sunlight and moist soils, they usually last for many years in rain gardens. In its natural environment, bloom time is early May to late June, but flowers later otherwise. The flowers last for one day and seeds germinate to produce new plants.

As the rate of Cahaba Lilies are in decline, it is important to note that they should not be picked from riverbanks. If you are lucky enough to know someone with this plant already, patiently grow one from seed. (see http://www.cahabariver.net/lily.htm ) It's well worth the effort.