An elevated view really shows how the grasses hold the meadow together.
An overview shows the bare spots left by early summer's blanketflower
Some dotted horsemint begins to bloom behind some Elliott's lovegrass.
It's been a few days since we've had any rain so the tropical sage isn't covered with flowers, but a few bright buds still remain. Rosinweed pops up in the background.
A closeup of some tropical sage still flowering nicely.
A closeup of two nice flowers on the top of one Rosinweed.
Rosinweed flowers reach an impressive size. That, combined with their relative height, makes them stand out in the garden.
I think there are several insects that use saliva to stick random plant parts to their back to camouflage themselves. These brown pieces were plucked off a dotted horsemint. This looks like an inchworm but I've seen another type exhibit this same behavior.
Dotted horsemint competes with red-tipped cocoplum for a spot in the front bed. I don't mind crowding these plants because the horsemint will die off for the rest of the year and the cocoplum will then occupy the space.
Creeping through the meadow reveals a flowring ironweed (purple) among the red tropical sage.
The beautyberries are almost completely purple now.
A quick view of the backyard with the recently completed paver patio in the back corner.
The little bog area stays green year round.
The marlberries are doing pretty well. Although this one hasn't filled out too much it certainly has gained some height.
A closeup of the ironweed.
A rosinweed bud thinks about flowering.
I didn't even see the spider in this photo until I looked at it on the computer.
These giant bumble bees are among the many pollinators paying the horsemint a visit.
Another ladybug explores the horsemint.
The purple horsemint stands out against the blue sky.
I'm still not exactly sure what kind of bees/wasps these are, but they LOVE the muhly grass. You can see the beginnings of a purple flower forming here.
A red dragonfly matches the red tropical sage nicely. Muhly grass and horsemint add some interest to the background.
We may not have amazing fall foliage, but if you pay attention, nature will let you know changes are happening. I'll be keeping an eye out for the horsemint and grasses exploding with flowers in the next few months. Unfortunately, the beautyberry leaves will fall eventually, but the brilliant berries will stay through most of the winter.
