Leslie, is that plant with the flower spikes (bottom of last pic) your coleus?! If so, that is huge and gorgeous!! You must have some incredible soil! Your volunteer Lantana is so beautiful, too, even in shade! Are you planning on transplanting it, or just removing it entirely?

Yep, that's what those taller growing Sedums tend to do without support. They start out compact and pretty as they're returning from winter dormancy, then when bloom time rolls around, they're so tall, they can't hold themselves up. Too much water will make them do that, too. Mine don't get much water (every 3 weeks during the hottest times), but they don't appreciate my abundance of shade. :D

I think one of the Sedum spuriums would look great in there, maybe 'Dragon's Blood' or 'Tricolor', and maybe some S. sieboldii 'October Daphne'. They somewhat resemble the leaf shape of your large Sedum, only in miniature, and they don't need much attention. I really like the look of them even when not in bloom, since the foliage is so colorful.

Brenda

Hi Brenda! That Lantana likes the shade so much and is so healthy I can't throw it away, I'll move it to the side of the house where it can grow and spread all it wants. Nothing over there but fence and a view of the neighbor's house:)

That bed was rototilled up and then heavily amended with Kellogg clay soil a couple of inches and then I planted the roses with Miracle Gro Rose soil. Big fat juicy worms in that bed too:)

Pretty coleus huh, grew from two 4" potted plants from Lowe's last spring. I know you're supposed to cut the flowers off, I like the flowers, LOL* I'm going to attempt to take cuttings and grow them in the house for next year. There is one very large one on each side of the garden. The Lantana is swallowing the other one up on the other end, it actually is larger than the one clearly in view.

It's amazing what that garden did especially since I was frustrated with it and just threw in some plants and then some more that I had planted else where in the sun and they didn't like it and threw them in there:) Essentially I ignored this area other than giving it a little extra water when we hit all those high 110's for 3 weeks.

Yeah, I think Sedum would do better elsewhere, with the roses that bed is watered 3 times a week. It didn't mind it though but I would like a much shorter one. I'll look up your others.

So, what have you been up to for fall in your garden??

I just can't get over that coleus! I love it that you kept the blooms on it. I'm also happy to hear that you're going to keep that gorgeous Lantana. It obviously likes its new home. :D

I've just been (slowly) getting the new purchases in the ground (ok, I've only planted the redtwig dogwood so far...LOL), and I finally started some of the Centaurea montana seeds I received from a lady in Connecticut. I can't wait to see how they do. I'm going to plant my 'Purpurea' hop bush today, and I have some CA poppy seeds to toss out front along the driveway. We're supposed to get some more rain this next week, so I might put them out there right before.

Tons of herb seeds are waiting for me, too. It feels like they're impatiently staring at the back of my head....LOL

Brenda

I like the flower spikes too on the coleus. My SIL visited and informed me that I was supposed to cut them off. They are like a pale lavender, I LIKE them, I don't care I'm supposed to cut them off. No one but me sees this little garden anyways:)

I'm all for that kind of planting, throw the seeds down:) Worked for me on the alyssum and on my CA poppies.

I still don't know what I really want to do for companion plants to the roses and in my flower beds, wish you would flash more pics of your plants:) I am going to get a couple more repeat daylillies, I still have a few going now, have since they started in the spring. I want to plant some more Iris' but other than that, I'm waiting.

I wish we had gotten more of the rain that northern CA got. Son in Modesto said they got a lot. It kind of pooped out here. Maybe the next storm.

One plant I've heard makes a great rose companion is Salvia involucrata (roseleaf sage). I don't have it (WISH I did!), but it would probably do better with your roses that will eventually get bigger (not miniature), since it can get up to 5 ft. or more before bloom. :D

There's also S. azurea var. grandiflora (prairie sage). I used to have that one, and I LOVED the color of the flowers, but I forgot about it, and it didn't get watered. :( I'll be getting that one again when I find it. :)

I really need to take more pics of my plants soon! It's been a while. I'll see what I can find out there that you might like, Leslie. :)

Hoping for more rain (for ALL of us) today through Wed.!!

Brenda