October in Bloom - Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

I actually thought there would be more things blooming in the middle of October than there are. The hot dry weather has taken its toll on the fall garden, most noticeably on the asters. Remember how I had them blooming in July? Those aren't blooming now, when they should be and even the ones that weren't blooming then aren't blooming now either. I miss their brilliant purple and pink show.

Some of the mums aren't performing up to their usual standards either, but others are outstanding, such as these dark reds:

All the same, there are a few things blooming, including my beloved toad lilies (Tricyrtis sp.). Their foliage is a bit crispy around the edges, no doubt due to the lack of rain. I'm glad I've been watering, trying to keep things from dying. I'd hate to see how the gardens might look if I hadn't.

Tricyrtis sp. was labeled 'Amethystina' but looking at other photos of
that cultivar leads me to believe it was mislabeled. In any case, it's pretty!

The offspring of last year's pink Wave petunias continue to bloom like crazy, unfazed by much of anything.

Other things in bloom are:

Those amazing delphiniums are still blooming! They're one of the first in
the spring and apparently are going to be one of the last in the fall. Gotta
love that!

This Echinops ritro (Globe Thistle) is a surprise. It's been blooming for a
few weeks now.

Dianthus 'First Love' blooms all summer, no matter what.

 

This Coreopsis 'Cosmic Eye' is a new one this year. I picked it up at the
Royal Oak Farmers' Market when I visited my Soil Sister Jan in August.

Annual Xeranthemum in the foreground echo the color of
fellow annual Cosmos 'Rose Bon Bon'. Both were grown from
seed - the Xeranthemum from saved seed from last year's blooms
and the Cosmos from new seed from Renee's Garden Seeds.

Dendranthema  'Bolero'

The Miscanthus sinensis is in full plumey bloom.

Called October Daphne, this Hylotelephium sieboldii (used to be Sedum) is in full
bloom and looking its best. It's pretty all spring and summer, too, even when it
isn't blooming. I love how each stem grows out from the center and
they splay out in a circle.

This wasn't a very good year for my roses, but the best one was this
'Cinco de Mayo', which is still pushing out blooms and has been largely
unaffected by pests or disease.

Thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day each month.  Visit her site to see more fabulous blooms from other garden bloggers!

What Will Happen to the Native Flora?

Many of you know my thoughts on climate change. We obviously are experiencing changes and whether or not it is warming permanently, extremes are driving gardeners crazy. I doubt we can do anything to change things, so we'd better adapt. This got me thinking about our native plants.

Silene virginica

Will they stay and do what they need to, to survive, or will their native range simply change?

Discuss, please. 

Trillium grandiflorum

Chris Tidrick, Gardener and Photographer

Several weeks ago, fellow garden blogger Chris Tidrick had a contest and the prize was a print from his extensive photo library. Guess who won? I was allowed to choose a print from the many he has for sale in his From the Soil store.

Since I saw the Buckeye butterfly in my own garden for the first time this summer, I chose one of his stunning photos of it:

You can follow Chris on his blog, From the Soil, and on Twitter. He's on Facebook too at From the Soil. You'll love his insights and seeing the world through the lens of his camera.

Thanks, Chris!