Hydrangeas and Herbs

When I was out taking pictures of Mary's container garden yesterday there was no getting around the seasonal beauty of one of our summer favorites, the hydrangeas.  So today we'll have some photos of them in bloom.

When we first moved in here in 2003, they had basically taken over the place.  This is apparently a natural habitat for them and they thrive, and the previous owner said that it was a situation he just took advantage of - he did no work to maintain them, and let them survive or fail on their own, he told us.

There are fewer of them now then they were back then.  We've had some hot, dry summers and then there have been those winter storms, so a few of the shrubs have died off.  But we still have quite a selection and they occupy some major territory in the backyard.

Yesterday I showed off Mary's container garden featuring the vegetables.  For the last few years, we've also had a permanent rosemary plant going in the back yard, some lavender, and then containers of parsley and basil.

This also reminds me of something important.  They tell me that this will be the weekend that sweet corn starts showing up at the Luray Farmers' Market.  That's one thing Mary hasn't taken on yet in the back yard.