Gardening, Home and Nature Thread, July 4!

Happy Independence Day! I think the Cleome flowers above sort of resemble fireworks.

Hi KT!

The sunflowers are growing so tall in this heat. The one below is way above my head and is almost ready to bloom although the flowers will be very hard to see without a ladder

Other summer flowers are just now blooming. The cleome or spider flowers are something I started from seed this spring.

The bee balm is full of bees, as advertised

The gray headed cone flowers have just started to bloom. Yellow finches love them!

Hope you have a wonderful Independence Day!

Mrs. Leggy

Well, the birds and bees are loving your yard! Can't wait for those big sunflowers!

Edible Gardening/Putting Things By

Intrepid Liaison/Admiral Ackbar and his wife have moved to Hawaii, and send us a recipe idea to remind us of where they are:

As a 100% pureblooded cracker, let me offer everyone a friendly, culturally-appropriated "aloha" now that I'm fully moved and integrated on these conquered isles. . .

We will be posting many of their photos in the future, but for today, "a culinary abomination guaranteed to traumatize CBD's food thread (and give diabetes to anyone even gazing upon it)"

Hi,

I have had this strawberry plant for 3 yrs now. It produces smaller berries but sweet ones. I would like to know, do I cut off the stems where the berries grew or leave them? I can't remember them being so strong or apparent in the last couple of years?

Thank you for a wonderful gardening thread.

Sidney

Are these regular strawberries, alpine or wild strawberries?

Any cultivation instruction from those with experience?

FOODS FROM THE AMERICAS

Growing corn this year? How about popcorn? What is your favorite type?

I keep imagining how someone one day pulled this out of the ground and had the idea to eat it

eu fico imaginando como alguém um dia tirou isso da terra e teve a ideia de comer pic.twitter.com/NkLgWgmISL

— out of context brazil (@oocbrazill) July 3, 2026

Are you a fan?

Landscapes

From George V:

A few days ago the sunny humid day brought some pop-up showers and thunderstorms in the late afternoon to our home in southeast Michigan. With the sun low in the sky we were treated to magnificent sun showers as the storms pulled away. I was in our sun room out back watching it rain and as the last storm moved out it left a little rainbow that just spanned our back yard. I ran inside as quick as I could to get my phone. I was able to get a picture through our family room window just before it faded away. It was truly wonderful to see, and felt sort of like a blessing.

W0w. What a great thing!

"The countryside is not a slice of untilled nature. It is a human institution built over centuries in the image of the people who made it."

— Sir Roger Scrutonpic.twitter.com/tE8F8rXjX6

— The Culturist (@the_culturist_) July 1, 2026

A giant tower of bougainvillea in village in Mexico pic.twitter.com/ifBNAVS7Dq

— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) June 27, 2026

Weather

The jet stream is broken and it’s been broken since the 9.0 Fukushima earthquake in 2011. https://t.co/HlCchOQxFM

— Jimmy McJimmyFace (@Jimmy_McJohn) June 28, 2026

Gardens of The Horde

What's going on in your garden or neighborhood?

Hope everyone has a nice weekend.

If you would like to send photos, stories, links, etc. for the Saturday Gardening Thread, the address is:

Remember to include the nic or name by which you wish to be known at AoSHQ, or let us know if you want to remain a lurker.

Week in Review

What has changed since last week's thread? Gardening, Home and Nature Thread, June 27

I closed the comments on that post so you wouldn't get banned for commenting on a week-old post, but don't try it anyway.

posted by K.T. at 01:31 PM

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