Seredipitous Seeding And Happy Plant Combinations, Summer 2023

If you’ve been following along here for long, you’ll know I love self-seeding plants, and volunteer plants that pop up in interesting places. This year, I’m trying to document these happy accidents a little better, so I’m presenting here, three lightly planned plant combinations that made my heart sing this summer.

Delphinium + Monarda + Conflowers. The purple Monarda at the back (Monarda ‘Purple Rooster‘) and Delphinium (Delphinium ‘Connecticut Yankee’) have been growing in the same spot for a couple of years, but the purple coneflower seeded itself there, and took this little color-study vignette to the next level. Hooray for self-seeding and seredipity!

Centaurea montana + Orange Calendula + Rudbeckia.  This blue perennial Centaurea montana has been growing in the same spot for a couple of years, and I seeded orange calendula there this spring. When a yellow rudbeckia ‘Prairie sun’ popped up nearby (upper left corner in the photo), this color trio was complete – another victory for self-seeding plants!

Rose Peony Poppies + Purple Cloud Mallow. I can NOT remember the source for these Rose Peony poppies that bloomed so profusely this year, but I can tell you were I got the Purple Cloud Mallow – True Love Seeds via Allandale Farm. Whatever the source, the poppies were magnificent against a backdrop of the purple mallow blossoms. Sadly, right around the time the poppies quit blooming, the purple mallow plant was felled by a storm, despite my rigorous staking. Both were beautiful while they lasted but I’m not sure if they’ll be back next year or not.