First Frost

Re-blooming iris before the first frost.

One of the irises I planted last year seems to be a re-blooming variety; this is what it looked like on Halloween. Halloween night was very stormy, with almost an inch of rain coming down in howling gusts. The following afternoon it became still, the temperature began to drop at nightfall, and by morning we had our first hard frost.

I wish I'd had the presence of mind to cut the iris flowers and bring them into the house the day before, but I went out the next day and cut the spikes, hoping to save some of the buds that hadn't yet opened.

Purple chrysanthemums.

Pink mums in the Little Indians bed.

The chrysanthemums don't seem to be affected much by frost, and are still putting on a show, as was the foliage until the Halloween storm blew away most of the leaves.

Back yard in late October.

Last week I took my plein air student up to Skyline Drive, and we painted at Gooney Run overlook. It was one gorgeous afternoon, with the fall color at its peak. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling my best (still recovering from a nasty virus), and while I had made a good start on site, I tried finishing it at home. The results are not very satisfactory--darkening the foreground too much, I lost a lot of the light on those colorful slopes!

The view from Gooney Run Overlook.

Gooney Run Overlook watercolor.

Oh well, not every painting can be a masterpiece, but I wish I'd waited until I was feeling better.