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| 'Queen Charlotte' violet |
By mid-November there aren't a whole lot of flowers outdoors in my Zone 6b Virginia garden to celebrate Bloom Day on the 15th of the month (hosted by Carol Michel's May Dreams Garden blog). My 'Queen Charlotte' violets are among the few flowers that persist this late in the season. There would be none if I didn't cover them with a wire cloche because the deer like to eat them ( I remove the cover to photograph them).
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| Aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) |
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| Aromatic asters among the leaves. |
Some blooms persist on the aromatic asters even after the first few frosts, but it's the leaves that are most colorful at this time of the year. I love the colors of the trees in the woods behind my house! This shot was taken a few days ago, most of these are native oaks. The hickories have lost most of their leaves.
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| The woods in early morning. |
A few shrubs in my garden are still colorful too, like this dwarf Nandina that doesn't fruit (I've forgotten the name of this variety), and the Viburnum 'Brandywine'.
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| Nandina |
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| Viburnum 'Brandywine' |
The witchhazels in the back woods are also blooming at this time, although two other varieties in my garden don't bloom until late winter or early spring.
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| Native witchhazel trees in the woods. |
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| My back yard in November. |
To make up for the lack of flowers outside, there are plenty of blooms in my indoor garden. The yellow hibiscus my sister gave me is still offering a flower or two after being brought indoors. I brought in the white heliotrope plant hoping to keep it alive during the winter for a larger plant next summer. The begonias next to them are among the plants I keep alive indoors from year to year to decorate the back deck in summer.
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| Yellow hibiscus |
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| White heliotrope with begonias in back |
One of the small Phalaenopsis orchids I bought for one of my botanical art classes a few years ago decided to re-bloom for the first time, along with a miniature Dendrobium. The two orchids in the master bath are usually very prolific with their blossoms--I can't believe they're blooming for the second time this year!
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| Phalaenopsis orchid in bloom. |
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| Dendrobium orchid |
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| Orchids in the bathroom. |
My Bearss lime tree is covered in blooms too, and setting fruit.
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| Bearss lime blossoms |
That's about it for November's Bloom Day.
