Tropical Storm Andrea

Tropical Storm Andrea rolled through Williamsburg on Friday evening.  I knew that this was going to be a key opportunity for the deer to feast on my daylilies.  With so much rain water pelting down on the daylilies, the deer repellent that I spray on each week wears off quickly. 

Saturday morning I went out to inspect and my friend had been in the garden munching away as suspected.  It's taken years, but my daylilies have multiplied to such an extent that the deer only made a small dent in his destruction.

I knew after such a large storm like Andrea that the wildlife would be out in full force.  I was on the look out for snakes in particular.  I don't like to be surprised by them in the garden and it has happened several times.  We have had Black Racer Snakes and Virginia Brown Snakes in the garden and yard before.  We are fortunate not to have seen any Copperheads, although other people on our street have found them in their back yards.  The only snake I found this morning though was a little Virgina Brown Snake which I don't mind at all.  It was draped up on my pea vines, probably in an attempt to not get swept away by the torrential rain.

My kids love snakes.  They came running outside in eager anticipation, as soon as I said there was a snake in the garden.  One of the best things about gardening as a mother is that it tends to pull your kids outside too, away from the TV and video games.  Anytime I find something interesting in the garden I always tell my kids and they coming running out to take a look.  They end up staying outside for hours then investigating other features of the great outdoors. 

 

I added a new perennial to my garden this spring called Verbascum 'Banana Custard'.  It's flower form is similar to hollyhocks.  It is a wonderful back of the border or along a fence perennial, adding height without taking up a lot of space. Mine are planted in between a row of peonies.  I love peonies, but their bloom period is so short, so this should give a little more color to that area for a longer period of time.  It was an easy plant to tuck in between the large peony plants. I love the light yellow color.  It would look really nice planted next to hydrangeas with their deep blue and purple blooms.  Their forms would also complement each other, one being round and the other being tall and narrow.  I will have to pick some more of these up next year!