Hot Weather/Gardening style


I've been reading the same sort of lament from a few people on this list.
Summer has already arrived!  Here in Kentucky, we will have temps in the
high 80's all week.  Humidity has been over 70% every day.  My roses are in
full flush, the peonies have all opened, and the dahlias I left in the
ground over the winter are about a foot high (I was too lazy to dig them up
this past fall).  While the yard is just bursting with bloom -- I'm not
really complaining -- I am wondering about what it's going to look like in
July.  Perhaps the mums will bloom...

In the past few years I have noticed that things that are frost sensitive,
like dahlias, cannas, and such are surviving our winters.  I actually have
foxglove returning the second year.  I have more annuals reseeding that
never have before (begonias, vinca, impatiens, zinnia).  I cannot take the
credit as I am pretty much a hands-off sort of gardener, preferring to grow
plants that can fend for themselves with little help from me.  It must work
because I only lost a few plants to the drought last year (first year
plants).  I love the bold colors and will buy almost anything red or
purple.  One border is pastel due to the roses, but even it turns
technicolor later in the season when the roses have finished blooming.   I
prefer the cottage garden look -- borders filled to overflowing with color.
I also choose plants and garden ornaments that will attract birds and
insects.  I love flowers that I can cut for bouquets, so I also use lots of
bulbs and annuals to complement the perennials.  My selection criteria, in
order, is this:  hardiness, color, form, scent.

Which brings me to a few questions:  what is everyone else's philosophy on
gardening?  How do you choose what you grow?  Is it based on color,
hardiness, form?  Do you find joy in the unusual that you must nurse along
for your growing zone for the challenge?  Do you just enhance nature or cut
out formal patches of garden in your yard?  Are you an
impulse buyer or carefully choose your plants according to some scheme you
have?

Val in KY
zone 6a

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