This summer's star plant?

We are still waiting for our one surviving sunflower to flower and have to keep trimming the tree above it!

My garden is mainly hard landscaping less work involved and for coloured foliage and summer flowering I grow small shrubs less time consuming in their care than plants. My favourite is myrtus comunis which I learn royal brides have had in their bouquet.This year it has excelled itself sorry for the lack of a picture useless at sending photos and if it wasn't for summer could believe was covered in snow.

It's been such a wonderful summer for flowers- my garden has never looked so colourful. I think I would nominate the petunias which are just stunning but I have to mention a form of Lobelia- not the blue stuff -which I bought online & is growing tall & in a variety of lovely colours- mauve, purple, pink, red etc. I have a vague feeling that they said it is a perennial too.

Esspee perhaps you need a hedgehog family!

The spring clematis were just wonderful but the summer flowering ones have been absolutely dismal - one died, one disappeared, onehad three flowers and Mr President managed just one.

I have several fuchias and they have all done well and are still flowering after many weeks. However I have noticed a lot of deformity on one, which is spoiling it.
I don't know what the problem is. It is well away from the others so hopefully wont infect them.

Callistemon I've thought of that but apparently I am unsuitable for adopting hedgehogs as there are a lot of foxes in the area. I haven't seen a hedgehog locally for the last quarter of a century.
I did make a small wildlife pond about 4 years ago and now have frogs which are supposed to eat slugs but to be honest the slug population is actually increasing. I've tried almost everything and would be willing to try anything fellow gransnetters have found helps.
Any suggestions?

Esspee
Wait until nearly dusk after a wet day. Take a jam jar with you and wear rubber gloves. You will be able to pick up and jar dozens of slugs and snails. I once caught 160 just on one night.
Happy hunting.

The fight against slugs this year has been very challenging. There are egg shells all over my garden but they seem to not mind and still eat my petunias.

I didn't realise you wouldn't be allowed to adopt hedgehogs if there are foxes around - but surely foxes are everywhere? Unless they are practically tame urban foxes, of course, which could present more of a problem.

It is a perennial but doesn't flower. My tarragon has just performed beyond belief. Have loads in the freezer and been using it regularly since beginning of July.

I've only discovered Cosmos recently, and they have been fantastic this year, especially the pink ones. Something has been eating the petals of the white ones.
There are still loads of buds yet to open as I deadhead them regularly. Next summer I shall definitely have lots more Cosmos.

Pansies and lavender absolutely lovely.

My three sunflowers. Bluddy 6ftplus monsters! Wonderful.

Cosmos - just some cheap and cheerful seeds from Wilko but have flowered prolifically.

This summers star plant? Oh that's an easy one to answer..............WEEDS, lots and lots of WEEDS! ???

I have had Nicotiana in pots on my deck and they have been beautiful all summer. They're finished now and I'd like to replace them with something that will provide some Autumn colour. The pots are big so I would need plants that grow quite tall. Has anyone got any ideas? I'd be so grateful.

Beautiful fuchsias from last year's tubs, ignored all winter, fabulous all summer

Weeds! Oh yes and the damsons

Everything has gone mad this year, the roses are on their third flowering, my hellebores have not stopped flowering since last October and my hydrangea is absolutely smothered in flower heads, and on top of that the hydrangea has white, pale pink, pale blue, lilac and salmon pink flowers on the same bush!!! Everyone keeps asking me what I did to it and the only answer I can give is that I cut it down to the base 2 years ago.

Antirrhinums have gone feral, popping up all over the place in lots of different colours, so pretty. All from one yellow flowered plant from the just about to die section of B&Q.
Red, cream , yellow and orange nasturtiums are doing a sterling job - and you can eat them. Bonus. I am hoping that will come up again next year.

My hydrangeas and hebes were magnificent until the rain knocked them over. Not too fond of begonias either, but they have lasted for months with little care and are so colourful that I will plant them again.

I've had the most wonderful good fortune with lilies this year. A new one for me - and a nursery freebie to boot - is the tree lily. Exquisite to the eye and nose. All I did was dig a hole a plonk the bulbs in. Amazing!

Thank you Annaram1. When my boys were young we used to do slug safaris. They loved it for a while. They would dress up a la "out of Africa" with a torch and bucket each and compete against each other to see who collected the most.
Unfortunately the novelty wore off.
Strangely the overall density of the little blighters never seemed to reduce.
Just in from the garden where simply tidying up resulted in collecting about 30 slugs/snails.???

Kim19.....any red beetles? If not why do you think you escaped them?