2025 in Photos

It's nice to look back through my gardening photos from the past year and choose some highlights for My Suburban Garden Journal. Here is my garden in 2025 as my old cell phone camera captured it.

Scarlet Bee Balm and Mountain Mint bloom in the Driveway Bed mid season. Sunflowers, Black Eyed Susan, and Little Bluestem glow at sunset in the Patio Bed late season. Asters and Rough Blazingstar show off in purple in the Patio Bed late season. Hummingbird Mint, Wrinkleleaf Goldenrod, and Big Bluestem are late season stars in the Driveway Bed.

Harvests were abundant in 2025. Cabbage, Beets, Tomato Sandwiches, Shallots, Figs, Butternut Squash, Carrots, Eggplant, and Aleppo Pepper are some of the foods we enjoyed from the garden.

Early in the season, plants for the vegetable beds grew indoors under grow lights. Moss Phlox, Pawpaw Trees, and Golden Ragwort bloomed outdoors. Skipper Butterflies enjoyed the Threadleaf Bluestar flowers. Wild Red Columbine charmed us with their red and yellow bell shaped flowers. We enjoyed a bounty of Napa Cabbage. Bumblebees enjoyed Penstemon flowers. Roast Beef, Feline Intern Gardener, tended his catnip. A Spicebush Swallowtail puddled in a garden bed. Green Lacewing eggs dangled on silk attached to leaves.

We enjoyed watching butterflies in the garden. Swallowtails, Sulphurs, Admirals, Monarchs, Skippers, Crescents, and Fritillary butterflies stopped by regularly. A highlight was watching a Monarch eclose from its chrysalis.

In fact, we we enjoyed watching insects of all kinds in the garden. We saw Carolina Mantis mating on the Clematis and shamelessly took closeup photos. Metallic Sweat Bees posed photogenically on Coneflowers. A female Carolina Mantis hunted on the corner of the house near a patch of Zig Zag Goldenrod. A Black Soldier Fly rested on a Corn leaf near the compost pile. My favorite garden activity is finding the Sunflowers where male Longhorn Bees sleep. They're so adorable. I watched an insect close itself inside the petals of a Pink Tickseed flower. Hoverflies dressed in bee suits failed to fool me with their disguises. I saw a Bush Katydid nymph rest on a Nasturtium flower. My Pearly Everlasting hosted countless American Lady Butterfly Caterpillars, who wrapped themselves in their leaves.

I enjoyed gardening in 2025 and sharing my photos and thoughts on Substack. I wish you all a happy and healthy 2026. Thank you for engaging with me here.