October 2026 Bloom Day

Aromatic asters and Muhly grass

 

It's October the 15th, Bloom Day, hosted by Carol Michel's May Dreams Gardens blog. I'm writing this a day earlier because I'd planned to hike in WV with a friend today, but the weather predictions weren't good, so we postponed our hike. Happy Bloom Day, welcome to my garden!

The rains from tropical storm Isaias last weekend brought almost three and a half inches to our area, and very welcome it was. As usual, the rain brings out wonders in my garden; let's take a look.

The Aromatic asters (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) I planted in Herb's bed in the spring have opened just in time for this post, as well as the Muhly grass with the big plumes--I believe this variety is called 'Flamingo.' Anyway, it's a beautiful combination. The insects love these autumn flowers!

Aromatic asters and Muhly grass

Herb's bed in October

Herb's bed with red Salvia

The pink Chrysanthemums near the veggie pagoda are starting to open, the red ones are farther behind in opening. I couldn't resist buying a couple more potted mums that were on sale at Lowes. I'll tuck those in somewhere after they finish blooming, for now they decorate the front walk.

Pink mums

Pink mums with grasses

Orange mum along the front walk

I spotted a few of the Crocus speciosus I planted last fall in the back bed, but the ones I planted some weeks ago in other beds haven't popped up yet. They have such lovely delicate flowers, I wish mine would multiply and cover large expanses... maybe someday.

Crocus speciosus

The leaves are showing more autumn color: the Redbud tree in the back yard turned yellow practically overnight, and my Yellowwood tree (Cladrastris kentuckea) is showing nice color.

Back yard with Redbud tree

Yellowwood tree on the west side

The west side looking down from the deck

In the same bed with the Yellowwood there are a few Shasta daisies--I should prune them back hard next spring to see if I can get denser blooms. The hydrangea's flowers turning rusty pink make a nice contrast with the foliage.

Shasta daisies

No ID hydrangea

Blanket Flower (Gaillardia 'Arizona Sunset') still blooming

Though not a flower, I bought this gorgeous ornamental cabbage at Oak Spring Garden's Rokeby Festival a couple of weeks ago with an eye towards turning it into a painting or colored pencil drawing--the colors are so fabulous! Ditto for the large Turk's Turban pumpkin sitting on my work table (our dining table) behind my drawing board. I wonder how I could combine them for one painting? Nah, that might be too much--each one is a worthy subject on its own. 

I need to get started on them right away, specially the pumpkin, it won't hold its color for too long. But I'm torn between working in my garden or painting, both need so much attention!

Ornamental cabbage

Turk's Turban pumpkin

That's about it for today, thanks for dropping by!

In Search of Big Run Bog, Part 1

Freeland Run in Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge

 

My friend had read about another high-altitude bog in West Virginia--Big Run Bog, and we wanted to explore it, so one morning back in late September (my birthday), we set out to find it. Google was of little help: they showed no location for it, but there was a Big Run Falls shown on their maps. We figured the bog had to be somewhere nearby.

The leaves were starting to turn in the WV highlands, making for a colorful drive along the way, although the day was cloudy and the colors subdued. Mist and fog wafted up from the valleys and mountains, looking like smoke. We reached the town of Davis, WV, not sure in which direction to proceed. My friend's husband had obtained some GPS information, and directed us to a location south of the town, past Blackwater Falls State Park, and there seemed to be a boardwalk there. We parked and started walking down the Freeland Boardwalk Trailhead.

Bracken Ferns along the boardwalk

The fall colors along the boardwalk were lovely, with several varieties of Goldenrod--there are so many species of Solidago that I couldn't venture to say how many or which, but Narrowleaf (Euthamia graminifolia), Zigzag (Solidago flexicaulis) and Canadian Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis) were three I could identify. Spent flowers of Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum), Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) turning russet, and wild asters (Symphiotrichum racemosum) made for some beautiful arrays. Meadowsweet, elderberries and other shrubs were abundant.

Wild asters, Narrowleaf and Canadian Goldenrod

CanadaGoldenrod

Walking along the boardwalk I looked for cranberries, a classic bog plant, but saw none, nor any cotton grass. I guessed that this was actually a wetland, not a bog, and therefore, not the Big Run Bog we were looking for. Still, it was a lovely place full of interesting plants. A spring-fed stream, Freeland Run, was visible in places from the boardwalk, and an old beaver dam had left a pond of sorts.

Around a bend, we spied small spikes of white flowers that turned out to be Nodding Ladies Tresses orchids (Spiranthes cernua) in the distance. A wonderful, unexpected find!

Nodding Ladies Tresses orchid

Nodding Ladies Tresses orchids

Signs said that the Canaan fir, native of this area, was in danger due to the Wooly Aldegid insect, and some of the trees looked to be affected, but they were attempting to restore the habitat by planting more fir saplings, protected from deer with wire cages.

Canaan fir (Abies balsamea var. phanerolepsis)

Lichens covered the dead branches of the Canaan firs and other stands of bare trees and shrubs.

Lichens on dead branches of Canaan fir

Here and there we saw the seedpods of Clematis vines, likely Clematis virginiana. And also, several strange-looking caterpillars with long hairs, which turned out to be Tussock Moth (Lymantriidae sp.) caterpillars. Those long hairs usually have stingers, so we didn't touch them.

Virgin's Bower seed pods (Clematis virginiana)

 

Tussock Moth caterpillar

Boneset, goldenrod and asters

I really enjoyed the rich wetland from the comfort of the well-kept boardwalk, and have so many ideas for paintings from these photos, it may take me years to do some of them. But, this definitely wasn't the Big Run Bog we'd set out to find. We took off again in search of it, heading north on Rte 32 towards Thomas.

To be continued in Part 2.

October Country

Muhly grass

We're entering October Country, when the seasonal changes become more dramatic in the garden. I named this post after Ray Bradbury's classic "October Country" a collection of sci-fi short stories with a weird, ominous feel... I read it some fifty years ago, but I still remember some of them despite the years! When I first met my husband, a sci-fi fan, he introduced me to his library of favorite books, wanting me to learn about a genre that I'd never seriously considered before.

In my garden, the changes in foliage begin showing up in late summer with the dogwood turning bronze, then gradually red, then the maple 'Autumn Blaze' starts to turn red. Clear cloudless skies dominate while the summer flowers in pots and beds are still hanging on. My front porch baskets look particularly full this year towards the end of the season-- probably the best in years-- just before the first frost cuts them down, such a shame! But to everything there is a season.

Along the front walk, with dogwood tree.

Maple 'Autumn Blaze'

Front porch hanging basket

My thermometer marked 37 degrees yesterday morning, signaling that it's time to start bringing in my tender tropical  plants in pots. This is the time for me to get a lot of work done in the garden, fertilizing, mulching, weeding, planting new bulbs, etc. I wish I could afford to hire an extra hand to help, I hardly have time to enjoy fall flowers as the asters and mums begin their display. 

The plumes of the Muhly grass begin to unfurl their airy pink flowers, looking lovely in the late afternoon light. The perennial red Salvia is blooming profusely, and the last of the migrating hummingbirds came by a few days ago to sip its nectar. That may be the last hummingbird we'll see this year.

The path in Herb's bed.

The veggie pagoda from the deck

I finally took down the Blue Lake green beans that had grown to the top of the veggie enclosure, to make room for some lettuce and spinach. Next, I'll be harvesting some of the Jerusalem artichokes, or sunchokes, as some call them.

I love the little wild aster plant growing along the path. I was amazed to see how many bees and wasps were foraging on the flowers! I managed to capture just a fraction on the action in this shot with a little skipper butterfly and a bumblebee.

Skipper butterfly and bumblebee on wild asters.

The Nasturtiums are blooming their heads off in the basket on the back deck, and the other plants back there still look fairly decent considering the late season.

Nasturtiums

Plant stand on the back deck in October

My variegated black cotton plant never developed much variegation, but my friend's did, and she loaned me hers so I could do a sketch of it in my new botanical sketchbook. Here's a shot of the almost finished sketch.

Variegated Black Cotton watercolor sketch on Bockingford paper.

Another sketch, in colored pencils, of a Miniwarts pumpkin.

Miniwarts pumpkin in colored pencils on Bristol 300 Vellum finish paper, 14" x 11"

Yesterday our Plein Aire painting group went out to paint at the farm of one of our friends, and this is my sketch from it. This farm is in Rappahannock County, the next county from mine, and the mountain behind is in Shenandoah National Park, where the Bear Wallow Overlook on Skyline Drive is. I'll have to stop and take a look the next time I'm up there, to see if I can spot Donna's farm below.

Persimmon Springs Farm, plein aire watercolor, 14" x 10"

I have another colorful pumpkin I bought for painting, but haven't had a chance to start on that one yet. I hope to have some time next week for it. Next week on the 15th will be October Bloom Day--tune in for Bloom Day.

Fall Equinox 2026

Colchicum 'Waterlily'

 

The Fall Equinox came last week with over an inch of rain, and my Colchicum 'Waterlily' sprouted three lovely flowers. The previous year it didn't bloom at all--I dug it up and re-planted it just a foot or so from where it had been--it was being crowded out by other plants-- it seems a lot happier now.

 

 

As the summer flowers in other beds fade, the classic fall flowers begin their show, and berries decorate my bushes. Along my front yard the Salvias in pots are still hanging on, feeding the hummingbirds that are now migrating, while the leaves of the dogwood tree turn to autumn shades.

 

Along the front walk

 

The Viburnum 'Brandywine' on the east side of the house is displaying its berries in pinks and blues. My Pink Turtlehead in the woodland garden managed to produce one flowering spike; the deer ate all the other buds, despite having a deer repellent on a stake right next to it! I'll have to try to protect it more next year, in hopes it will become a respectable clump. The Anemone 'Honorine Jobert is still looking good.

 

Viburnum 'Branydwine'

Pink Turtlehead (Chelone obliqua)

Anemone 'Honorine Jobert'

 

In the back yard the swamp sunflowers have opened up, making a nice display. Last Friday I had agreed to lead a workshop drawing flowers for Art in the Park, an annual weekend event at Shenandoah National Park. I had to provide my own flowers, as one is not allowed to cut any plants from the park, so I went out that morning and cut a bunch of my sunflowers and little wild asters that I let grow all over my yard, along with a few of my Agastaches and ornamental grasses. 

 

Swamp sunflowers (Helianthus angustifolium)

Wild asters growing next to my veggie pagoda

The workshop turned out very well, I had about 20 people, four adults had brought children with them, between the ages of 6 and 10--I was impressed by how well-behaved and attentive the kids were. It was wonderful to see them doing art, brought back memories of myself at that age.

Driving south on Skyline Drive on my way in, I almost ran into two wild turkey hens eating something in the middle of the road. I slowed down and carefully drove around them--they didn't even budge, they were so absorbed in whatever was there. Two other cars behind me did the same. I wish I'd had the time to stop and take a photo, it's seldom one sees a wild turkey these days, much less two! But I was running late...

Yesterday I found a neat surprise in my back yard--a circle of lawn mushrooms growing in front of the back bed--these are the edible Agaricus campestris, same variety that are sold at the grocery store as button mushrooms. Naturally, I went out this morning and collected enough for dinner tonight. These will have more flavor than the grocery-bought ones, which have had the flavor bred out of them.

 

Edible lawn mushrooms (Agaricus campestre)

 

Lawn mushroom harvest

In the backyard the Muhly grass is starting to open its airy plumes, and Herb's bed still has some Agastaches, Sedum 'Autumn Joy' and ornamental grasses. The yellow Chrisanthemums are holding their own, while the other mums are getting ready to open.

 

Muhly grass

  

Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

Yellow Chrysanthemum

 

Pink mum in bud

 

The two Beautyberries 'Early Amethyst' in the back yard have a nice crop of berries--the color is so lovely against the yellowing leaves.

 

Beautyberry (Callicarpa dichotoma 'Early Amethyst')

Recently I've been working on a new piece on a material new to me--Aquabord. This mineral and clay surface is quite different from working on paper, it absorbs water and dries at a very different rate from paper. It's challenging whenever one tries something new, but the idea is to be able to seal it and mount it in a floater frame rather than put it under plexiglas and a mat. Below is the new work in progress.

 

Monarchs on Prairie Blazing Meadow Star, 16" x 20"

 

As the nights get colder, the leaves will soon begin to turn shades of red and gold. I wonder if we'll have a colorful fall this year?