Pond Clean up

A warm day here today, perfect for cutting back the growth around the pond. I have tried to do it in the fall because come spring there is so much else to do.  Also the dead leaves of the iris seem to be harder to trim and all laying down so harder to get too.  Besides it makes the pond look neater all winter long.

Here's the grass blocking the view of the pond.   I had trimmed this earlier this fall because it was making it difficult to drive in to my side of the garage.  Now the rest needs to go.

The iris ring the pond and need a good trimming too.

Here's the after with the grass and iris cut back.

I didn't have boots on so didn't wade in to trim the cattails or the iris growing in the water.

I'll wait until a very cold day when the pond is frozen to walk out on it to trim the cattails.  The dark plant in the background is the Joe Pye weed.  I'll wait until Spring to cut that down and use the stalks in my brush fence.

Joe Pye Time in the Pond Garden

Joe Pye weed is blooming in the woods in PA.  Spotted this stand while hiking in Hills Creek State Park.

At home my Joe Pye weed is a bit taller.

It hangs over the pond which is buried in greenery.

Black eye-susans are also in bloom.

Here's a younger stand of Joe Pye weed, seeded from the parent plant.

Miscanthus grass and foxtail are sizable at this point in the summer.

Here's my study window and the photo following the wild scene I view.

A great change from this earlier this spring.

WW - August Blooms

Pond Garden

I was out taking photos of the iris in the gardens yesterday morning and had to take these photos of the Pond Garden.

Here's the lilac in full bloom - a Mother's Day gift from Sarah.  Lilacs are the city flower of Harbin, China where Sarah was living in 2009 when she told me to buy myself one for Mother's Day.

I spotted the goldfish.  Not as many as last year, but it's neat to see they survived the winter.

This water lily is getting bigger every year.  I hope to see blooms again this year.

The water iris are not in full array yet but soon will be.

The Joe Pye weed is sprouting well.

This is a volunteer don't know if it's a seedling from the plant pictured below it.

The butterfly weed is doing well too.

There's my study window where I have a fine view of the Pond Garden.