Hey GPODers! Today we’re getting a summertime update from Lee Miller’s garden in Long Island (check out her first submission: Long Island Garden Tour). She sent over lots of photos and great information, so I’ll let her take it away:

Welcome to my summer garden! I am a Long Island, New York, native, having grown up, and still residing in my childhood home in the town of Sayville located on the island’s south shore. Gardening since the age of five, and now in my mid-60’s, my never-ending passion of all things green continues to grow. As a retired educator I started a second career doing what I have loved since childhood. Most of my days are spent in my element, living life as a landscape designer, garden coach, garden communicator, blogger at A Guide to Northeastern Gardening and the author of five gardening books, each where I share my passion and knowledge of horticulture. Over the years our once bare grounds have transformed into a sanctuary my husband and I can enjoy. Join me for a tour of my garden.

As mid-summer rolls around, it is a wonderful time in my zone 7b garden as the third major round of blooms and changing color comes about. It has been an especially banner year for hydrangea.

This old fashioned ‘Nikko Blue’ hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Nikko Blue’, Zones 6–9) is a knockout with its voluminous deep blue blooms which deepen in a more acidic soil. This variety of hydrangea prefers partial shade, grows to approximately five feet in height and blooms on the previous year’s growth. I find that removing only the faded flowers after they bloom to be best, as the plant thrives and flowers best with as little pruning as possible. If you feel the need to prune, do it immediately after flowering and do it sparingly.

Here is Endless Summer® hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Bailmer’, Zones 4–8), which is a sure winner that blooms on the new growth of the season and produces either pink, blue or purple blooms depending on the pH of the soil. As you can see, this plant displays all three possible colors with pink as the main feature. The shed that the shrub is growing next tends to create more pinkish blooms (basic soil), I also get to see some blue blooms (acidic soil) and purple blooms too. Growing in zones 4-8, Endless Summer® hydrangea performs best with some partial shade and a moderately moist, well-draining soil.

Another later blooming hydrangea in the back island bed is Limelight Prime® hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘SMNHPPH’, Zones 3–8). It is starting to show off its greenish white blooms that turn to pure white, then pink as the summer progresses. It is joined by evergreens Hinoki cypress ‘Compacta’ (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Compacta’, Zones 5–8) (back left), and Mugo pine (Pinus mugo var. pumilio, Zones 5–8) (back right). ‘Limelight Prime’ is an improved hybrid of ‘Limelight’ with darker leaves, a more compact habit, and stronger stems. It is hardy in USDA zones 3-8, grows best in partial shade and reaches a height of 4-6 feet tall at maturity.

With the perfect combination of a milder winter, cooler spring and plenty of rainfall, echinacea is having a banner year as well. The blooms seem even more glorious that in the past and I am enjoying every moment! This variety, ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ (Echinacea x ‘Cheyenne Spirit’, Zones 4–9) has become a favorite with its multicolor blooms all on one plant. Native to the northeast and hardy in USDA zones 4-9, this beauty enjoys full sun and a well-drained soil. It is bee and butterfly friendly, deer resistant and easy to grow and blooms in summer. Blooms start in summer and last until fall. Dried seed heads are a treat for birds.

The next stop is along the patio garden with echinacea PowWow® Wild Berry (Echinacea purpurea ‘PAS702917’, Zones 4–9) with its glorious rose-purple blooms on strong stalks. Hardy in USDA zones 4-9, this beauty starts blooming in late spring to early summer and just keeps on giving. Its flowers are also bee and butterfly friendly and deer resistant too.

Here is the echinacea Pow Wow ‘Wild Berry’ accompanied by juniper ‘Blue Star’ (Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’, Zones 4–9) in the patio border.

Spirea ‘Candy Corn’ (Spiraea japonica ‘NCSX1’, Zones 4–8), balloon flower, and lamb’s ear also join the mix. This hybrid balloon flower, ‘Komachi’ (Platycodon grandiflorus ‘Komachi’, Zones 3–8), is the only one in which the flowers do not open but remain as puffy “balloons” which you can pop when they are done flowering!

As we stroll around to the front of the property, the front island bed features displays a mixture of varying foliage and color, including evergreens, flowering shrubs, and perennials. Here we encounter weeping Norway spruce (Picea abies ‘Pendula’, Zones 2–8) (in the backdrop) with dwarf cryptomeria (Cryptomeria japonica ‘Globosa Nana’, Zones 5–7) (far left), osmanthus ‘Goshiki’ (Osmanthus heterophyllus ‘Goshiki’, Zones 6–9) and dwarf Norway spruce (Picea abies ‘Pumila’, Zones 2–8) (far right), Rock ‘N Round® ‘Pure Joy’ sedum (Sedum hybrid ‘Pure Joy’, Zones 3–9) and hosta ‘Gold Standard’ (Hosta ‘Gold Standard’, Zones 3–9). The sedum ‘Pure Joy’ will produce pale pink blooms to bring in the later part of the summer.

Moving around to the other side of the front island bed is a view of dwarf golden Anna’s Magic Ball® arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis ‘Anna van Vloten’, Zones 3–8), dwarf Japanese Andromeda ‘Cavatine’ (Pieris japonica ‘Cavatine’, Zones 5–7), dwarf Mugo pine, and hosta ‘Big Daddy’ (Hosta ‘Big Daddy’, Zones 3–9). Weeping blue atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Pendula’, Zones 6–9) in the backdrop. I get a lot of inquiries about the dwarf golden arborvitae, as it is something that is not seen often. Its petite size of just 2-3 feet in height makes it perfect for combining with other plantings.

Last, but not least is a long view of the front lawn with a majestic blue atlas cedar, which I brought home 28  years ago at just 4 feet tall in the back seat of a Ford Probe, before finally  purchasing a pickup truck for work. That tree now towers over thirty plus feet tall and is joined by a 30-year-old weeping Japanese maple (Acer palmatum dissectum ‘Viridis’, Zones 5–9), which has now reached its maximum height of 8 feet with a spread of 12 feet. Along with its amazing lace-leaved foliage, its multi-stemmed trunk adds an added dimension especially in wintertime as the snow covers its branches.

As the tour comes to an end, I hope you enjoyed your stroll around my Long Island garden. A garden is a sanctuary, a place to find solitude and peace, and it brings joy to those who encounter it. I hope the views brought you some joy too. As always…happy gardening!

Thank you for sharing your beautiful garden with us again, Lee! All of your plantings are impressive, but your attention to foliage is a real sweet spot for me. Let us know in the comments, are you drooling over Lee’s flowers, foliage, or the perfect combining of both?

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