October's Blooming!

There's still a fair amount of color in the garden, thanks to the unseasonably warm fall we're having. Over the weekend, we broke an old record high temperature. Sunday's previous record high was 83° and we reached 87°!

Though we had a couple of light frosts at the beginning of the month, we've yet to have anything that was damaging to any of the plants. Some of the perennials have foliage that is turning yellow, but others seem as if they are laughing in the face of the approaching cold weather. I snapped some photos of many of the blooming beauties still present.

Each year, I save the seed from the marigolds for the next year. Right now, the bees are really enjoying them!

'Rhumba' mums are a gorgeous coral color.

Xeranthemum annuum was a new annual for me, and I will definitely grow them again next year. Once they started blooming, they've never stopped, even though I didn't do any deadheading.

Though the foliage doesn't look exactly healthy on this Spanish Flag annual vine ( Ipomoea lobata), the blooms are gorgeous and plentiful. I hope the frost holds off long enough for me to get seeds for next year.

'Clara Curtis' mums are in full bloom.

These are the Coreopsis 'Limerock Dream', which are the most beautiful color of Coreopsis I've ever seen. They're a tender perennial though, being only hardy to zone 7. I'm doing an experiment by planting them in a microclimate at the south of our family room, which is also protected from the west wind, making it at least a zone 6. I plan to also cut the bottoms out of some black plastic pots and put them around them and mulch them heavily to see if I can winter them over.

The white Cosmos are blooming like crazy and the bees are loving them.

Though it is troubled by powdery mildew, the Honeysuckle (Lonicera x brownii 'Dropmore Scarlet') is still producing some nice blooms.

I had great success with the Scotch Heather (Calluna vulgaris 'Robert Chapman') last year, so added another variety of Heather. No identifying tag on these though.

The Convolvulus I grew from seed struggled this year, unlike last year, but it managed to eke out a few small vibrant blooms. That's Echinacea 'Twilight' in the background.

Ornamental strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa 'Pink Panda') is growing by leaps and bounds and producing blossoms and berries, even now. And wow, do they ever taste good! Just like the wild ones I used to pick as a kid!

The Plumbago (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides) has turned a beautiful shade of pink for fall, while blooming its true-blue flowers.

Another annual planted by seed - Snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) - finally decided to bloom over the weekend, for the first time since planting the seed this spring!

It's easy to see why Sedum sieboldii is called October Daphne. This is really its time to shine.

This Calendula officinalis is one that I grow each year from the previous year's seed. Every year produces many different shades of yellow, orange, and a pinkish shaded one.

Knautia macedonica

One of my new Japanese Anemones - (Anemone x hybrida 'Party Dress')

I love this annual - Scarlet Tassel Flower (Emilia coccinea) - but hate the beetle that's shown here. They like to eat EVERYTHING. I can see that this annual will self-seed, because it's already doing that. This is continually-blooming annual that just gets better and better as summer and fall wear on - deadheaded or not!

This is my third attempt at growing Japanese Anemone 'Whirlwind'. It's done better than any of the previously planted ones, so maybe the third time's a charm?

The Delphinium elatum ('Magic Fountain') just keeps on going...


Endless Summer Hydrangea macrophylla 'Blushing Bride' was my best bloomer of the hydrangeas this summer. It truly was always in bloom, as was my original Endless Summer 'Bailmer'. This bloom just opened this week! You can see earlier blooms that have turned papery and pink on the same plant.

Other plants in bloom at the moment are:

• Verbena bonariensis
• African Daisies (Osteospermum)
  
• Wave™ Petunias
• Gaillardia (several different cultivars)
• Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias currasavica)
• Roses - 'Cinco de Mayo', 'Lavaglut', 'About Face', 'Memorial Day', several miniatures
• Geum coccineum 'Cooky'
• Morning Glories 'Chocolate' and 'Blue Star'
• Seed dahlias
• Oxalis deppei
  
• Pelargonium 'Mr. Wren' and 'Red Happy Thoughts'
  
• Chinese Forget-Me-Not (Cynoglossum amabile)
• Lavender (Lavandula)
  
• Zinnia angustifolia
• Zinnia 'Profusion Apricot' and 'Profusion Fire'
• Zinnia 'Chippendale'
• Cosmos sulphureus
• Corydalis 'Berry Exciting'
• Obedient Plant (Physostegia virginiana)
  
• Annual Candytuft (Iberis umbellata)
  
• Cleome (self-seeded plants from those grown two years ago!)
  
• Bachelor's Button (Centaurea cyanus)
• Globe Amaranth (Gomphrena globosa)
• German Catchfly (Viscaria oculata)
• Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
  
• Sweet Pea
  
• Dianthus
  
• Tropical Hibiscus
• Heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens 'Fragrant Delight')
  
• Gazania
• Love-in-a-Puff (Cardiospermum halicacabum)
  
• Love-in-a-Mist (Nigella damascena)

Somehow, I have a feeling that next month the garden won't be as freely giving of its blooms. But for now, we'll enjoy the bounty!