Vinca, thy name is weed.

Among the pantheon of gardening mistakes I have made, one had a light shed upon it yesterday.  Namely, the planting of the supposedly happy-go-lucky blue flowering periwinkle known as Vinca major.

More like "nasty-go-evil"! It was slow to get started, due to the dryness at P Garden, and it's preference for damp, shady spots. Just as I had planned - it would not get out of control and would be a good ground cover. At least, that's what I said to Matt when he spent a lot of time telling me it was a bad idea.

Yesterday however I noticed a patch of it had taken a firm hold and Matt went on to spend a lot of time telling me "I told you so" which as we all know is one of the most annoying things a person can say. On the other hand he was so delighted to be right that he helped me yank it all out and as a result we have cleared a spot for a yellow bush lupine to be planted shortly.

In other news, Emily came back from her trip and spent several hours watering (that's me watering at left, too). The ground at P. Garden is dry, dry, dry - all the way down as far as you can dig and then reach for the digging bar (about a foot) so this is it plants: Who needs more water to make it? Right now I am looking at the standard roses, the Brugmansia, the ginger, the yellow wallflowers I recently put in, and the Dahlias that Emily's looking after. We shall see who can make it on once a week water... fingers crossed.

Emily also planted some baby burgundy Cosmos in the left bed, and some Zinnias and Rudbeckia hirta "Cherokee Sunset" in the red bed.

Photo shows yellow Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) "Coronation Gold" with California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica) "White Linen" and some calla lilies in the background.