And the Clouds Opened…

The chance of precipitation today was extremely high and the rain did appear around 10 am or so with a nice soaker drenching the gardens.  It never really became sunny with overcast skies and periodic drizzle throughout the day.  I hope it’s not too wet for our Home Garden Tour tomorrow!  We were able to get some work done out in the gardens and had a combination of grounds staff (Cindy, Ibhar, Shania, Alex and me) and volunteers (Kathy P., Eva, Lloyd and Kristin) working on various projects.  We had some indoor projects as well once the rain arrived.  We also saw Sue, Cora, Marsha M., Marcia N., Barb, Janet and many others.  Nice shot above of the archway (originally from the Parker Pen World Headquarters here in Janesville) leading down in to the sunken garden.

rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium) – perennial

the newly dedicated Wellness Garden (above and two below) was looking vivid this morning after some rain

‘Blue Armor’ kale (Brassica oleracea) – annual

‘Nero di Toscana’ kale (Brassica oleracea) – annual

great coneflower (Rudbeckia maxima) – perennial

‘All Gold’ Hakone grass (Hakonechloa macra) – perennial

Derrick, our resident Aussie volunteer, decorated the Australian section of our Plants of the World Collection as seen above and below….(with recent rains, the little kangaroo below looks like it’s drooling…)

‘Australian Butter Pumpkin’ (Cucurbita maxima) – annual

‘Costata Romanesco’ zucchini (Cucurbita pepo) – annual

‘New Zealand Purple’ castor bean (Ricinus communis) – annual