November GBBD: End of Another Season

What a difference a few weeks can make!  Last month I was counting butterflies and enjoying the beauties of autumn's late arrival.  This month we are headed straight into winter.  We haven't had any snow, other than a few stray flurries, but it's been cold--frost on the windows in the morning is now the norm.

As for my garden, well, this is pretty much the scene everywhere.  The hostas stayed green longer than usual this year, but when the first killing frost came, they seemed to say, "Ok, ok, we give up!"

As I looked around the garden a few days ago for something still blooming to show for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, the only thing I could find were some blooms on the Yarrow.

And one errant 'Stella d'Oro' bloom that was frozen in time for awhile.

Even the Knockout roses have given up for the year.

Although the temps dipped below freezing several times in late October, it didn't seem to affect my garden.  Then we left the first of November to visit my daughter and family in Texas for a week, celebrating my youngest granddaughter's first birthday.  The morning after we returned, a killing frost finally signaled the end of the season for the garden.

No more zinnias for butterflies to enjoy--and no more butterflies this season, for that matter.

  But there is still some beauty to be found in the garden, even in winter.  'Wendy's Wish' Salvia (in the forefront of the photo) gives one last lovely gasp before succumbing to the inevitable.

Behind it, the Amsonia hubrichtii and the berries of Beautyberry add some pops of color.

A glaze of frost gives the seedheads of coneflowers a little extra pizzazz.

They will look even better with a topping of snow.

The cold can bring some other surprises--I never saw any blooms on my milkweed, but they did produce seed pods!  I'm so happy--maybe next year there will be more than just one or two plants for the Monarchs.

Anyone recognize these plants?  They're asparagus--finally, it's time to cut them back.  In fact, I haven't done any clean-up at all in the vegetable garden.  I managed to get all my bulbs planted before we left for Texas, but that's about all I've accomplished in the garden this fall.  I'm hoping for a couple of warm, sunny days to finish up the must-do fall chores before the snow flies.  Everything else will have to wait till spring.

The blooms on the 'Limelight' hydrangea are aging well.  They will hang on through winter; the branches of this shrub are a favorite of the birds since the suet feeder is nearby.

The trees were slow to change color this year, and once they did, they didn't last long.  It took weeks for the maple in our front yard to fully turn gold/orange.  Luckily, we arrived home from Texas just in time to see it in all its glory.

Now, a week later, half the leaves have fallen.  With any luck, a few windy days will blow these all away into the fields . . . if not, it looks like a good job for the grandkids:)

Although I am sorry to see the season end, I'm not really sad. I'm ready for a break from garden chores, time to enjoy the holidays and re-charge for a couple of months. And time to dream and plan for next year's garden, which I'm sure will be the best ever!


Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is held the 15th of every month.  Thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens for hosting this so faithfully and keeping me motivated to keep a monthly record of what is blooming in my garden.

November GBBD: End of the Season

What a November this has been so far!  The month began with the Cubs winning the World Series, the first time in 108 years.  This die-hard Cubs' fan was ecstatic and walked around in a joyful delirium for at least a day.  Three days later, a new baby granddaughter entered this world, and Grandma was filled with joy, not to mention impatient anticipation as we wait to make the drive to Texas to see her for the first time.  And then three days after that was Election Day.  Like many others, I watched in disbelief as results came in that night, and woke up the next morning filled with dread and worry.  Talk about running the gamut of emotions in just one short week!

But I'm not going to talk about politics today, nor the fairy-tale ending to this year's Cubs' season, nor am I even going to show off my precious granddaughter today.  Instead, let's talk about the garden.  The beginning of November was amazing with warm weather and many annuals still blooming in the garden.

Just a few days ago, November 10, to be exact, I was admiring this 'Senorita Rosalita' Cleome.  I've planted this cultivar in pots the last several years, and it never did particularly well. This year I decided to plant it in a bare spot in the sidewalk garden, and what a difference!  Topping out at 3 1/2 feet tall and spreading even more in width, it is obviously much happier here with room to grow.  Lesson learned for next year.

On the same day, I walked around admiring the zinnias, knowing their days were numbered.  To my surprise, I found a late visitor enjoying the blooms.  This poor Monarch looks like he's had a rough time, and sadly, I don't think he had time to make it South before the cold set in.  Many of the zinnias were looking just as tattered, but there were still enough fresh blooms to enjoy one last time.

One last time...because this was the scene the next morning.  Our first frost arrived on November 11, and what survived that first morning was given a final blow the next morning with even colder temperatures.  Seeing the end of summer/autumn blooms is always a bit sad, but I'm not complaining.This was the latest first frost ever recorded in our area, so we had an unusually long season to enjoy the garden this year.

While the frost pretty much zapped the garden, there are still a few annuals blooming.  'Victoria Blue' Salvia is still looking good as are the geraniums, and surprisingly, some verbena in a pot survived the cold.  Of course, the few pansies I have are thriving.

As is the ruffled kale, which seems to get more colorful as the temperature drops.

The few roses I have don't mind the cooler weather either; 'Zephirine Drouhin' has even put out a few new blooms.

As the garden winds down for the year, it is a good time to enjoy the last days of autumn color.  The leaves turned late this year. My maple, the star of our front yard every fall, still is hanging on to many of its leaves.

Grasses are at their peak right now, and the seedheads of switchgrasses, for example, add beauty to the garden as they rustle in the breeze.

One of my favorite vignettes in the garden each year is this, Amsonia hubrichtii with a Beautyberry next to it.  My camera wants to wash out the color for some reason, but this Amsonia is a dramatic gold right now and positively glows in the sunlight.

While November doesn't have the riot of colors that summer has, there is still much to enjoy in the garden.  Even seedheads have a beauty all their own and sometimes an extra surprise if you look closely enough.

 I've really appreciated the extended season this year, especially this past week as I've found once again that there's nothing quite like gardening for soothing your soul.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is brought to you each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

The Colors of Autumn

The "S" word is in the forecast for this week.  It's far too early for wintry landscapes, in my opinion; I want to enjoy the remaining colors of autumn for as long as possible.  Predictions of snow and temperatures in the teens always remind me of Frost's poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay."  We've had a beautiful fall, and although the colors have not been as dramatic as some years, there has been no shortage of golden hues.

The locust tree in the front yard is nothing spectacular during the summer, but in the fall it glows.

Is there anything better than gold sparking against a blue, blue sky?

Amsonia Hubrichtii proves why it's more than just a pretty spring face.  We have a very large specimen of this in the section of the Idea Garden where I volunteer, and I noticed this year how many visitors were drawn to this plant and asked about it.  In the late fall everything in the garden is cut down for the winter, even the amsonia.  I understand those in charge want a public garden to look tidy over the winter, but it makes me sad that they are missing out on a beautiful late-season show of color.  I'm almost glad I didn't have time to help on "Putting the Garden to Bed" day--I wouldn't have had the heart to take the pruners to this lovely.

For the last month, I've enjoyed the spectacle of autumn at its finest around town and while driving to meetings and appointments or running countless errands, but never the time to stop and capture the scenes, even if I had a camera handy, which I didn't. But it doesn't matter--I'm not a great landscape photographer, anyway, and there are small scenes of beauty to be found even in my own back yard, like the foliage and fluffy seedheads of the asters.

Or the glowing foliage of the spirea.

Even the hostas go out in a blaze of gold.

Gold is definitely the predominant color of fall in my area, surrounded as we are by fields of ripe corn. For a time, spots of green (or red, depending on the farmers' preferred brand of machinery) were also seen throughout the fields.

 

The harvest was completed a few weeks ago, but not before a little boy had the ride of his life.  I posted this photo on my Facebook page, but thought it was worth posting here, too.  My youngest grandson, now 2, is obsessed with combines, and so Grandpa made arrangements for him to get a ride on a real combine and see the harvest up close as they made two rounds through the fields.  It is all Grandson has talked about ever since--his favorite fall color is definitely green!

Gold is not the only color of autumn, of course.  This time of year I wish I had a red maple, but the burning bushes at the end of our drive provide a dramatic dose of red.

The white crabapple changes its hue, too. 

Unlike last year, when fruit was sparse due to the drought, the tree is loaded with tiny red crabapples this year.

The birds are happy about this, too, and have made this their favorite tree of the season.

The old apple tree was also covered in apples this fall, and I spent a good deal of time preparing sliced apples and making applesauce for the freezer.  There were so many that I didn't get them all picked, though, before Husband gave the lawn a last mowing before winter. I guess this is applesauce for the birds:)

There are some non-traditional fall colors in the garden, too, if you look closely enough.  The purple berries on the beautyberry bush are another winter treat for the birds, but I hope they let me enjoy them first for awhile.

More purplish-pink in the late blooms of a potted mum.

Less dramatic, but pleasing all the same--the muted pink undertones of the fading 'Limelight' hydrangea.

The fall color show begins in my front yard each year with the ash tree and its purple and copper-colored leaves.

And it climaxes with the turning of the large maple which shines even on a cloudy day.

Autumn's winds are stripping it a little more each day, leaving only remnants of the colorful show--and one more fall project to do before winter sets in.

"Then leaf subsides to leaf 

 . . . Nothing gold can stay."

I hope you are enjoying the colors of Autumn wherever you are!

GBBD November 2008

It's that time again--the 15th of the month when garden bloggers post what is blooming in their gardens right now. But it's also November, which means the "pickins' are pretty slim" here at the "Prairie." Ten days ago we were in the middle of Indian summer, and I was outside in short sleeves planting bulbs under a bright, sunny sky. The maple tree hit its peak of color and lit up the front yard.


Then . . .the cold set in and the rains came. The wind blew the leaves from the trees, one by one, until now the maple stands with only the hem remaining of her autumn ball gown.

The garden is in much the same state. It took some hunting to find any blooms at all yesterday.
And I apologize ahead of time for the quality of some of these photos. By the time I downloaded them and realized they were blurry, it was raining again and too late to re-take them.

Even the faithful autumn bloomer, the chrysanthemum seemed to shiver in the cold rain yesterday, refusing to pose for me.

A few stray petunia blooms in the porch planter valiantly hang on, but their days are numbered.

The verbena "Homestead Purple" that I showed in a recent post is still blooming, though, one reason it received such high marks from me this summer.

One plant that has had a second wind and is blooming once again, though, is the yarrow. I guess that it's appropriate that it should be on what is probably the last post of the season of real blooms, since it was the only plant on my first Bloom Day post last March.

Some of the salvia "Victoria Blue" have already shed their purple petals and turned silver for the winter, but a few hardy ones still refuse to give up the fight.

Also hanging on are a few galliardia blooms. These first year "Oranges and Lemons" impressed me all summer with their abundant blooms. Along with a few salvia, they are the last flowers standing in the roadside flowerbed.

Finally, a rather ordinary bloom I've never highlighted before--the sweet alyssum. I plant it as a border every year on the edge of my main flowerbed. This year it was the only annual there, and I didn't even have to plant all of it--some of last year's crop actually reseeded itself this year.

Do you spy a theme here in my November garden? That's right--the one thing that is really blooming right now is . . .

Leaves!

By tonight these may be the only blooms left in the garden. As I sit here typing this late Friday night, I am watching the forecast for Saturday carefully. "High's in the 30's with freezing rain or snow showers likely." Besides thinking that this may be the last day for the garden, I have another dilemma. It's the last home football game of the season for Illinois against tough rival Ohio State, a game my family has looked forward to for weeks. Should I be a true blue (and orange) fan and go to the game, walking a mile each way from our parking spot to sit in the stands, huddled in my parka and layers of clothes, cheering the team on while the cold wind and rain/snow whips through the stadium? Or should I be a fair-weather fan and stay home to watch the game on high-definition TV with instant replays and announcers who explain what just happened in the last play? Sigh. At least the garden doesn't expect me to go out in the cold.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is brought to you each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens; be sure to visit her to find other Bloom Day posts from around the world.