Last month, I planted some things in containers on my backyard deck. I was a little late getting to these, since half of summer was already gone, but I was just in time for the big extended family water party in our backyard.

These photos were taken on July 24th, about a week after planting them. So, now it’s been about three more weeks since the photos, and they are filling out a bit. The one on the left shows a Hibiscus moscheutos ‘Blue River’ in the middle, with some New Guinea Impatiens planted around it. This site is a bit of a challenge, because it gets some hot sun in the morning but has shade the rest of the day. The New Guinea Impatiens should be a good pick, since they’re flexible about more sun than regular Impatiens, although I am disappointed that they’re not flowering very well. I don’t know if the Hibiscus will flower this year, since it’s a new plant grown from seed this spring. When it does, it will have huge white flowers.

The other photo shows some tall Coleus in the middle, with regular pink Impatiens all around it. These aren’t actually planted in that box — I just have them in the pots they came in with some dried moss packed around them. It’s working OK, and the Impatiens are starting to flower more profusely lately.