November Bloom Day

'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). 

 

Aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium)

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.

 

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'.

 

Nandina

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.

Native witchhazel trees in the woods.

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.

Yellow hibiscus

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!

Phalaenopsis orchid in bloom.

Dendrobium orchid

Orchids in the bathroom.

My Bearss lime tree is covered in blooms too, and setting fruit.

 

Bearss lime blossoms

 That's about it for November's Bloom Day.

October Bloom Day A Bit Late

Agapanthus 'Galaxy Blue'

The first flower scape of Agapanthus 'Galaxy Blue' was devoured by deer in early summer, and with it being so dry, it is only now that the plant has decided to re-bloom. Its deep blue flowers complement the red bush Salvia next to it. I kept thinking this Salvia was 'Windwalker Royal Red' and referred to it as such, but today I ran across the plant label (I save them so I can later identify the variety, but I sometimes lose track of them) and found out it is actually a red bush Salvia 'Maraschino.'

 

Red bush salvia

I was away the week before, attending the ASBA Annual Conference in Mobile, AL and missed posting at Carol Michel's May Dreams Garden's "Bloom Day" on the 15th. When I tried to post, I had trouble loading the images onto my blog. It took a while to figure out how to change the settings to fix the problem, so it's only now that I'm catching up with October Bloom Day. 

The pink Muhly grasses are sporting their feathery plumes as the leaves begin to turn--amazing what a transformation can take place in one week!

 

Herb's bed in October.

The Verbascum 'Southern Charm' my sister gave me is re-blooming, and the few Chrysanthemums that didn't get eaten by deer over the summer are also in bloom. The red variety is very pretty; I bought the orange one at Lowes' recently and am looking for a spot to plant it in the ground.

 

Verbascum 'Southern Charm'

Red Chrysanthemums

Orange Chrysanthemum.

The yellowwood tree ( Cladrastris kentukea) in the west side had turned gold when I got home last week, and this week the hickories in the woods behind our house are turning. The oaks are just starting show a bit of color.

West side bed with yellowwood tree turning gold.

The woods in back from the deck.

The back yard from the west side.

 

The aromatic asters are starting to bloom, but aren't fully open yet. My oldest clump seems to be hollowing out in the center, an indication that it will need to be broken up and re-planted next spring.  Two other clumps that were separated and planted in other beds aren't making much of a show yet.

 

Aromatic asters (Symphyotrichum oblongifolius)

 

I brought in most of my tender houseplants before leaving on my trip, just in case there might be a frost while I was gone. When I got back from my trip, the yellow hibiscus greeted me with lots of flowers--I rarely see this many at one time.

Yellow hibiscus.

I wonder if there will be any flowers in my garden for November Bloom Day? Surely the first frost will come before then.