Returning to the Garden

It has been awhile since I have written a blog post, but it's also been awhile since I've done much in the garden.  When August arrives and dried stalks and brown seedheads are the only reminders of the daylilies and coneflowers that once brightened my garden, I get the gardening doldrums.  Keeping all the containers and new plants watered in the summer heat is enough to get me dripping with sweat, and I prefer to retreat into the cool indoors.  It's also been a busy time for family: in mid-August my daughter and family arrived for a visit from Texas, and it's always a joy to spend time with the little ones I only see a few times of year.  Before they left, my dad had some health problems and was hospitalized for almost a week and needed extra help when he returned home.  Then the local grandkids started their fall sports season, and we have been busy attending volleyball, baseball, and soccer games, and cross-country meets.  My calendar is full!

I'm not complaining, however; with over a month's hiatus, I'm ready to get back into the garden for fall chores--if it ever cools down and stops raining, that is!

Though the bright blooms of mid-summer have long since faded, there have been some new blooms to replace them.  'Heavenly Blue' and 'Flying Saucers' morning glory seeds were planted in a pot in early summer, but I thought they would never bloom.  The vines grew taller and taller and meandered through the dried coneflowers, but finally some blooms appeared.

I usually plant a variety of leftover seeds in an old whiskey barrel planter at the back of the garden and then forget to water it.  A few hardy seeds survived the neglect like this tall Celosia (name forgotten).

A favorite, Rudbeckia 'Prairie Sun' also survived.

Late August brought the Zinnias, including my favorite 'Zowie Yellow Flame.' 

 They are looking a bit more tattered now in October, but from a distance they still look good and add some bright fall color, especially in the roadside garden above.

Other zinnias in shades of pink, orange, red, and purple are still going strong 

and providing nectar for the late butterflies.

Speaking of butterflies, I thought the Monarchs might have all migrated, but this afternoon I saw several floating through the garden.  They were enjoying some late blooms, but their favorite was the Tithonia.  The Tithonia planting was an accident--I think I dropped some seeds here--but I definitely need to plant more of this on purpose next year, because it really is a butterfly magnet.

"Better late than never"--I have no idea what took the Cosmos so long to bloom, but I'm happy to see them, especially since most of the flowers around them have finished.

There are some new perennial blooms as well--this is the first time I've ever seen blooms on my hardy Begonia.  I bought this plant because I love the foliage and have been surprised it has survived in my zone 5b garden.  These sweet little blooms are an added bonus.

Turtleheads, Chelone, are a welcome sight in the shade garden as the hostas begin to die back.

Many of the annuals are starting to fizzle out this time of year, but the Lantana is going strong in the Lily Bed.  I think it has doubled in size in the last month!

Coleus are also going strong and have taken over a couple of pots, which is fine with me.

Many of my containers are looking pretty sad right now, so it's a good time to evaluate what plants do best in our long summers.  All the begonias are looking great, but especially this dragon-wing begonia.  This is one plant I definitely want to try to over-winter indoors.

Supertunia Vista 'Silverberry' is one of the few petunias still looking good.  I've replaced a few plants elsewhere with fall annuals, like mums, kale, and pansies, but I don't get too carried away with fall plantings.  Autumn is just too short a season here to make it worth my time or money--we're still in the 80's, yet a frost could happen any day.

Though the summer-like temperatures are still hanging around, it definitely feels like fall.  Days are getting shorter, and there are subtle changes all around.  I took this photo of our lane a month ago, more for my benefit than to post it.  The trees lining the lane are all flowering crabapples, and they have never looked as good as this year.  The leaves are beginning to turn and drop now, but usually they look that way in August.  I think consistent rain throughout the summer really made a difference this year.

And every tree is full of fruit--no wonder my yard is filled with birds!

Other changes can be seen in the garden--Blackberry lilies showing their beautiful seedheads.

Fall perennials are blooming, like the New England Asters.

The shorter 'October Skies' Asters line one edge of the Arbor Bed.

A Tatarian Aster at the back of the Butterfly Garden--I wish I could get more of these to grow!

I have no trouble growing these, however--Frost or Hairy Aster, Symphyotrichum pilosum, is a native plant that many would consider a weed.  But I happen to like these little white blooms, not to mention they are a valuable source of nectar for bees and other insects in the fall.

In the Arbor Bed, Japanese Anemones are making an appearance.

Another Japanese Anemone--I vowed I would remember what variety both of these are, 

but naturally I've forgotten.

I'm also happy to see the Pineapple Sage in bloom.  So often, it blooms so late that it is hit by frost before it can even bloom, but this year it looks like I will have more time to enjoy it.

And finally, one of my favorite shrubs this time of year, the Beautyberry.  I love these purple berries!

Although I haven't been very industrious in the garden the past month and a half, I have enjoyed spending time just sitting and observing nature.  The hummingbirds have been a constant source of joy as I watch them dancing in the air and flying from flower to flower.  Yesterday I saw two in my garden, the latest I remember ever seeing them here, but I know that very soon they will all be on their way to warmer climes. It's a good time to enjoy the many beauties of nature before the snow flies.

October Bloom Day

It's time for another Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.  Although I don't post as often as I used to or would like to do, I always try to participate in this monthly meme because it's a great way for me to keep a record of what is blooming each month.  It's interesting to compare a month to previous years as well, especially in a month like October.  Some years we have had a frost by this time and there's very little left in bloom.  But unseasonably warm weather this year has kept the garden plugging along.

The garden is definitely winding down, however, There are still many green leaves on the hostas, but most are in the middle of their fall decay.

But there is still quite a bit in bloom.  

What is more appropriate for this month than 'October Skies' Asters?

The New England Asters, which I have the most of, have long since turned to seedheads, but besides the later Aster oblongifolius I have a few others, including some Aster tataricus, a tall aster that somehow found its way into the back of my butterfly garden.  And yes, I do know the botanical name has changed to Symphyotrichum, but that is such a mouthful and I am getting older and stuck in my ways, so they will always be asters to me.

There are also some large clumps of Aster pilosus, known as Frost Aster or Hairy Aster, that escaped the weeding tools this spring.  This is not an aster for everyone, because many consider it a weed and it tends to spread pretty aggressively.  Still, the bees love it, which makes it worth keeping a few.  If you would like to know more about this plant, you can find it here.

Speaking of bees, one thing you won't see today are any flying visitors in my garden.  There are still some bees around, but I think many have started making nests for the winter. There are few butterflies as well.  I have a seen a Monarch or two floating through the air this past week, but I think they, too, are sensing the change in seasons and starting their migration south.  And Tuesday was the last day I spotted a hummingbird at the feeders.  I only wish he had said goodbye!  I wish them all safe travels and a warm winter and look forward to seeing them again next spring.

Autumn days have brought a fresh flush of blooms on the Knockout roses. 'Radsunny' adds some cheerful color to the Lily Bed.  

One of my favorite flowers this time of year is the Japanese Anemone.  I think this is 'Honorine Jobert,' but the tag has long since been lost.

The vegetable garden is pretty much done for the year except for green tomatoes that will probably never ripen.  But on one end closest to the house, I always plant a few marigold seeds, and this fall they have taken over four to five feet of the garden!  I'm not sure why they have spread so much this year, but I don't mind since they are choking out any weeds and certainly add a bright spot of color to this area.

Autumn also means the 'Victoria Blue' Salvia has come into its own.  This is one of my favorite annuals, and I have it planted in many places.  While other annuals have faded or will turn brown at the first hint of frost, 'Victoria' will keep going until a killing frost.

'Wendy's Wish' isn't as hardy and won't last past the first touch of frost, but I do enjoy this larger, fuschia Salvia, and it's a favorite of the hummingbirds.

The past two weeks I've been thinking about fall chores and slowly starting to prepare for the winter.  My bulb orders all arrived this past week, and I've made a little headway in planting bulbs.  Soon it will be time to put things away and dig up tender plants.  I know you can't tell from this photo, but this caladium leaf is huge!  A friend gave me a few bulbs this summer, and I put them in a pot, having no idea how big they would be.  I want to make sure to pack these safely away before winter--these are going directly into the shade garden next year, instead of being crammed into tiny pots.

Looking around the garden for a few photos on this breezy, rainy day, I found a few surprises.  There are a few new coneflower blooms, and the white phlox have a few fresh blooms as well.  But most surprising of all was this--a bloom on my huge lilac bush!  This is not a re-blooming lilac, but an old-fashioned shrub.  The warm fall must have it confused.

And, in case you're wondering, yes, I still have zinnias!  Some of them are even taller than I am.

'Zowie's' are blowing in the wind, but still standing strong, with a few new blooms opening up every few days.

It really has been a great year for zinnias, and I had to show them off one more time, because I'm sure this will be the last Bloom Day for them this year.  The first frost will bring them to an end, so they remind me every day to enjoy each and every moment of this fall.

The leaves on the trees have just begun to turn, and with the warm weather we've had for most of this month, it's hard to think of winter just a few weeks away.  If you'll pardon the pun, it's been a "berry nice" fall.  Viburnum 'Cardinal Candy' above is full of little berries to tempt the birds.

My non-gardening daughter asked me one day if these were blackberries, and I told her she was close, but I wouldn't recommend eating them.  I enjoy this stage of blackberry lilies as much as I do their earlier blooms.

The crabapples are full of fruit this year--enough to keep the birds happy for awhile.

And one of my personal fall favorites--the Beautyberry.

The weatherman has promised warm weather through the end of the month.  I certainly hope he's right, not only to finish all my fall chores, but also to enjoy the remaining beauty of the garden for as long as I can.  I hope you are enjoying Autumn as well!


To see what else is blooming around the world on this mid-October day, be sure to visit our hostess Carol of May Dreams Gardens.

GBBD: Bloomin' October!

Every October, it seems, I get lulled into a sense of complacency.  Although the days are getting shorter, they are warm and sunny, making me think fall will go on forever, and I have all the time in the world to get all my fall clean-up done in the garden.  Instead of planting the bulbs that keep arriving on my doorstep, I spend my time watering, trying to keep a few new planted perennials and the fall mums alive.  I keep hoping for some rain--we haven't had any significant rainfall in over a month--so that I don't have to water, and so that I don't need a jackhammer to drill through the concrete-like soil to plant bulbs.  But time is running out--I know it, and the garden knows it.  Any day a frost could arrive, putting the garden into hibernation till spring.

Although the growing season is winding down, there are a few new blooms since last month, surprisingly.  What would October be without 'October Skies' asters? I especially like these asters because they form nicely mounded masses of sky-blue blooms, perfect for the front of the arbor bed.

The butterfly garden is mostly green and brown these days now that the New England asters and goldenrod have stopped blooming.  But at the back of this area is a latecomer, Tatarian asters that mysteriously appeared here last here and happily have returned again.

In the front of the butterfly garden, as well as several other places throughout the garden, Frost asters have burst into bloom in the last week or two.  While many may think of these as a weed, when they're in bloom, it's hard to think of them as anything but another pretty aster.

A new bloom this month that has me excited is the Pineapple Sage.  I usually plant one plant each spring, but in the past it has bloomed for a week at the most before getting zapped by the first frost.  This year, though, it bloomed early enough so that I have been enjoying it for a couple of weeks.

Not only has it put out numerous blooms, it's grown into quite a monster!

Also new since last month are the Japanese Anemones, which have actually been blooming for at least three weeks now.  It took a few years for this plant (now plants??) to get established, but once it did, it took off and now provides lots of lovely white flowers when the rest of the area is fading away.  I'm pretty sure this is 'Honorine Jobert.'

I have a pink Anemone, too, one I had forgotten I had planted. I don't remember the name for sure, but it may be 'Robustissima.'  It's a shorter variety, which in my garden means it gets lost among all its neighbors, including the dark burgundy sedum flopping to its right.

Not actually a bloom, but one of my favorite sights each fall is the Beautyberry covered in purple berries.  This year the berries are partially hidden by a tall switchgrass that I temporarily planted near it---one more plant that didn't get moved to a proper place this year, sigh.

Everything else that is blooming has been around for awhile.  The 'Golden Guardian' marigolds at the front of the veggie bed are going crazy.  That's a good thing, because they're hiding the rest of this area that desperately needs some pulling of plants and cleaning up.

The Arbor Bed is pretty wild and crazy right now, too.  But this is the time of year when I appreciate all the annuals that are tough survivors, holding up in spite of no rain for what seems like forever and some serious neglect by the head gardener the last two months. Annual salvia, nicotania, zinnias, and gomphrena should keep on blooming right up until frost.

One of my long-time standbys, 'Victoria Blue' Salvia farinacea, can't be beat for a long-term bloom.  It will even stand up to a little frost.

And of course, one of my very favorite annuals can't be overlooked this month--'Zowie Yellow Flame' zinnias still going strong and still attracting the pollinators.

Volunteer Debbie deadheads the Zowies at the nursing home--I rarely deadhead mine, though.

I've not only bragged about this annual over and over again in this blog, but I also convinced my cohorts at the Nursing Home garden to plant some this year.  As you can see, they are doing well, and my fellow volunteers think I'm a genius:)

The trees are just beginning to turn in our area, but there are other signs of autumn everywhere.  'Limelight' hydrangea blooms are tinged now in pink.

Hostas are turning yellow and crinkling up.

Ornamental grasses are swaying with the autumn winds.

The white crabapple is loaded with fruit--the birds make short work of these once it turns cooler.

Pokeberries are turning a deep purple at last.

Blackberry lilies are showing off their seedheads, actually my favorite stage in this flower.

There are other obvious signs of fall in our area, too.  The last two weeks have been a busy time for farmers as they put in long days harvesting all the corn and soybeans.

Surrounded all summer by tall corn, we can now see for miles once again.  Of course, that also means I probably shouldn't go out to the garden in my ratty blue robe anymore:)

It's a time for gathering pumpkins at the popular local pumpkin patch.  We took two of the grandkids when they had a day off from school last week--Jack's sister was too "cool" to have her photo taken.

And it's time to spruce up a few containers with fall annuals.

Although there are near-freezing temps in the forecast for this weekend, next week promises to be warmer once again, and there's even a chance of rain--hallelujah!  I'll be covering up a few plants like the pineapple sage for a couple of nights, trying to prolong the season.  And most of all, I'll be enjoying the garden for as long as I can.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is hosted the 15th of each month by the indomitable Carol of May Dreams Gardens.