Do you have a favorite plant in your garden?

[Zeedman]

Really? I have never had problems with anything eating daylilies; but I have definitely had deer eating other plants

Count your lucky stars. Deer don't touch the leaves (they have all of my hosta for that ) but as the day before the buds would open, they will be mowed to the last bud. Which really irks me, since I had 20+ stems emerging, and was really looking forward to a great show.

Deer have good memories, and will return year-after-year for something they like. Unfortunately, that appears to be the case for my day lilies... they must be watching for the buds to appear. I don't see deer as Bambi - I see them as ravenous plant wolves, preying on innocent defenseless plants. A pack of those plant wolves seems to call my yard home.

 

[ducks4you]

Yeah, some people think Mice are cute.
THEY didn't see the "Crock Hunter" episode with waterfalls of mice chewing on pigs and other livestock.
One thing that Illinois does right, deer hunting.

 

[Branching Out]

This year I tried growing a few perennials from seed, and two varieties of gallardia -- the red and the apricot-- have stolen my heart. They are so very beautiful!

 

[Blueberry Acres]

This year I tried growing a few perennials from seed, and two varieties of gallardia -- the red and the apricot-- have stolen my heart. They are so very beautiful!

They are so pretty! I have always called them blanket flower, I had never heard 'gaillardia' and had to look it up lol

 

[Blueberry Acres]

One of my favorite flowers that attracts pollinators is goldenrod.

I had a "volunteer plant" pop up a few years ago; it looked like a flower, so I left it to see what it turned out to be. It sprung up into a huge goldenrod that attracted more bees than any plant I have ever had. I love it! It's so funny that even though I did so much research on which flowers pollinators love, a volunteer from the wild would be so much better than any store-bought plant.

(Not my picture, mine has a whole lot more pollinators on it! )

 

[digitS']

After the goldenrod has completed its season in the sun, gaillardia, with its honey bee enthusiasts, can play a dominant role.

I don't believe any other flower in my yard receives so much attention from the bees.

Steve

 

[baymule]

I moved here a year ago. 25 acres that needs everything. Must clear fence rows. Take down old fence. Build new fence. Put up barn. Spend money$$$$$$$$. That part will slow me down considerably but fortunately I have 40 years worth of tree, brush and green briars in the fences to keep me busy as I scratch up money to buy building materials with.

No flower beds here. No garden. No fruit, nut trees, no berries, NOTHING planted for food. Nothing. Don’t even know where I want to plant a vegetable garden , have some old sheds and crappy chicken coops to tear down.

I put up a cow panel enclosed flower garden in the front yard. Since I wean lambs n the yard, I surrounded the fledgling flower bed to protect it from the lambs. Due to weeds, 105F temperatures and drought straight from the fires of hades, I named it the flower graveyard. It’s where perennials go to die.

Friends gave me various things. I count 2 crepe myrtles among the living. I’ll weed it to see if anything else survived.

So my favorite plant will be anything that is still living!

 

[Zeedman]

One of my favorite flowers that attracts pollinators is goldenrod.

I had a "volunteer plant" pop up a few years ago; it looked like a flower, so I left it to see what it turned out to be. It sprung up into a huge goldenrod that attracted more bees than any plant I have ever had. I love it! It's so funny that even though I did so much research on which flowers pollinators love, a volunteer from the wild would be so much better than any store-bought plant.

(Not my picture, mine has a whole lot more pollinators on it! )

Goldenrod is one of the last wild flowers to bloom in my area, along with purple aster. It is one of my indicator flowers too; flowers turning brown usually signals the beginning of Fall weather.

Just be aware, though, that goldenrod spreads by roots, and can take over an area very quickly.

 

[Blueberry Acres]

Just be aware, though, that goldenrod spreads by roots, and can take over an area very quickly.

I plan on dividing it around every two years. Thanks for the tip!

 

[SPedigrees]

I love my goldenrod. It grows wild in the unmowed areas on my property and attracts pollinators by the bucketload. Eventually the trees we planted in those areas may grow to overshadow my wildflowers, but I hope goldenrod and others will still adorn the edges of these reforested spaces.