Turning of the Season

The front yard in mid-September.

 

Despite the recent unseasonable heat, now that the days are becoming shorter, the quality of the light begins to change. In the evenings, during "the golden hour," the light becomes like liquid gold that washes over my garden, drawing me in to admire the turning of the season.

 

Hardy Begonias

 

The hardy begonias in the front garden are putting forth their blooms, while the red and white impatiens around my potted Camellia have grown out to cover the bed where the Narcissus bloomed last spring. The roses  are starting to re-bloom now that the temperatures have turned down somewhat. The dogwood's leaves are starting to turn bronze, setting off their charming red seeds.

Unlike our usual Septembers, rain has been plentiful: the month kicked off with over three inches from the remains of hurricane Ida, and several other big thunderstorms have brought a total of more then seven inches thus far. It's raining again today, so I wonder how much more we'll get.

Zinnias in the rose bed.

My zinnias are still looking good--I'm hoping they will re-seed themselves next year, but if they don't, I can always buy more. A walk around to the west side of the house reveals that my shrubs and trees are making progress, despite the damage from the seventeen-year locusts this past spring. These locusts lay their eggs in the young twigs of trees and shrubs by piercing long slits in the bark, and once weakened, the branches break off easily, setting back the growth of several years. Thank heaven they only surface once every seventeen years!

The back yard from the west.

The aisle between Herb's bed and the Little Indians.

Herb's bed is looking great with the 'Autumn Joy' Sedum flowers coloring pink, echoed by the sedums in the Little Indians bed. The feathery seed heads of the Muhly grass are just starting to emerge-- the yellow and orange Chrysanthemums add splashes of color as the Amsonia hubrichtii's feathery foliage begins to turn yellow.

 

Autumn asters (Symphyotrichum laevis) and Amsonia hubrichtii

My veggie patch

 

My veggie patch is currently producing a nice crop of wax beans. When these die back I'll plant some garlic cloves from this season's crop. As soon as the asparagus roots I ordered arrive, they'll go in where the dying flowering peas are now. The flowering peas were a disappointment--I must to face the fact that our hot and dry Virginia summers are not a suitable climate for these old-fashioned, scented climbers.

I'll be expanding the enclosure to include the asparagus. Deer generally don't eat asparagus, at least that was the case in my previous garden, but here, who knows? Better not take any chances. I love the way the wild goldenrod and woodland asters left to grow around the enclosure decorate it--they may be weeds, but much more interesting than plain grass.

 

The Badlands

The rear bed which we call "The Badlands" continues to improve despite the depredations of the deer. The Purple de Oro daylilies managed to display a few flowers despite being frequently devoured, but the Shasta daisies don't appear to have many flower buds this year--the hot and dry summer was not to their liking. I was hoping that the aromatic asters (Symphyotrichum  oblongiflolium) behind them would grow tall enough to be seen behind the Shastas, but for some inexplicable reason, this one plant stays short in this bed, whereas the one I have next to the house is at least 36-40" high with a similar spread. These will soon begin to flower along with the swamp sumflowers.

 

Black cotton (Gossypium herbaceum 'Nigrum')

I grew several black cotton plants from last year's seeds but only two of them have grown to blooming size. The deer invaded my front yard several times earlier in the summer, and ate some of these back as well as other potted plants. After moving the pots onto the deck, late in the season this one plant decided to unfurl several flowers at the same time.

 

Butterfly bush (Buddleja Lindleyana) with red-hot poker flower (Kniphofia)

Buddleja lindleyana

The new Buddleja planted last fall is growing well despite being attacked by deer--it's classified as deer resistant, but only a garlic oil clip on it kept the deer from chewing it down to stubs. It finally started to bloom in late August, and hopefully as it gets taller the deer will do less damage. The hummingbirds loved the flowers!

 

Colchicum 'Waterlily'  bud

Close-up of Colchicum bud

I was surprised to spot this lovely pink bud coming up out of the bare earth, until I remembered that I'd planted an autumn crocus, Colchicum 'Waterlily,' there. A little earlier than expected--the autumn equinox is taking place today. I hope the Colchicum will produce a few more flowers than last year, and begin to multiply.

Herb was looking out from the deck while I was out take these photos, and I couldn't resist including him in the last photo. We finally had the stairs sealed this past summer and the deck got another coat of sealant.

Herb overlooking the back yard.

Soon I'll be going into my fall planting frenzy once again. Fall is a wonderful time to plant in our area!

After the Rain

Back yard beds.

After a good rainstorm night before last, I got up this morning to see everything in my garden glistening with dew. My backyard beds are getting ready to put on their annual display of flowers. The Asian lilies are in bud, and way in the back, a native common mullein (Verbascum thapsus) with silvery leaves is sending up a flowering spike. I have another mullein growing in the front yard--these biennials are volunteers that seeded themselves and since the flowers are attractive, I left them alone. Later on, the Cone flowers and Phlox will fill the rear bed with color.

Bed with blue starflower (Amsonia tabernaemontana) and white salvia behind.

Close-up of Amsonia

My veggie raised bed

I like to have lots of plant variety in my garden so that there will always be something to enjoy--flowers or seed pods, or foliage of different colors, in every season. Even in winter, plants can display something of beauty and interest, though spring is, of course, the most spectacular.

Looking down from the deck, catmint and Coreopsis.

Ninebark tree (Physocarpus opulifolium)

It took several years before this Ninebark tree offered its first blooms, and the dark foliage makes a lovely backdrop for them. I liked this genus so much I planted another ninebark last fall, a different variety with lovely red-gold leaves called 'Coppertina.' It will take another few years for this new one to bloom.

Foxglove beardtongue (Pentstemon digitalis)

Next to the Ninebark I planted some native flower seeds which have yielded a curious plant I'm unfamiliar with--I think it may be a Foxglove Beardtongue, but I'm not 100% certain. I'll have to check with my friends at VNPS. The plant has attractive pale lilac flowers that pollinators seem to like.

Manna Ash tree (Ptelea trifoliata) in bud.

The Manna Ash tree planted a few years ago is going to bloom soon for the first time! Above are the flower buds. This native under-story tree had a rocky start (pardon the pun) in my garden since the deer kept eating it back every winter, until I put up a barrier last winter. I think this year it will finally grow tall enough to be out of their reach. It will be fascinating to see the flowers and seeds as they develop.

The east bed.

The three Japanese maples and the fringe tree (Chionanthus virginianum) in the bed on the east side were damaged by a hard frost in mid-April, along with many of my other trees. It was heart-breaking to see this happen just as the young leaves were emerging; they are now recovering slowly, but this year's growth will likely be much less than normal.

Pink foamflower (Tiarella hybrid)

I bought the pink foam flower above last year on a whim (it was on sale), not having any idea of where to put it--this woodland native plant prefers shade. I tried it out in one spot, but it didn't do well there, so I dug it up and tried it under the fringe tree on the east side of the house, and with much watering (last summer was a dry one) it managed to survive. It seems to be flourishing now, so I hope it will prosper and begin to spread.

Plants and weather vary so much from year to year, season to season... you win some and you lose some, that's the gardeners lot!