Now it is officialy autumn, the colours of autumn are making themselves conspicuous in the garden. Slowly but surely, the main colour is changing from green to yellow, we wake to misty mornings, which highlight all the spiders webs when the sun comes out. The sun is still hot, when we see it, but we can’t deny any longer that summer has finished and we are now into autumn.
The purple Berberis by the drive changes to red at this time of year, the leaves matching the bright red berries before they fall.
At the other side of the driveway, all the red stemmed Cornus leaves are changing to the wonderful pinkish/red colour which means that soon we will be able to see the beautiful red stems.
At the gateway, my little cherry is telling me that the weeks are passing far too quickly!
In the island bed round the dead oak, Viburnum plicatum Maresii is changing and having a second flowering.
The leaves of Acer Osakazuki haven’t started to change yet, but soon they will be the same colour as the winged seeds. I must plant more seeds this year.
In the gravel area at the back, the leaves of Melianthus major are contrasting nicely with the very thin leaves of Acer palmatum dissectum purpureum.
Another Acer in a pot in the gravel area, sold just as Acer palmatum dissectum, started out green but now has such beautifully coloured leaves – love it!
A few of the evergreens are standing out with their shiny foliage, probably due to all our rain. This is Ilex Golden King, but as you can see, there are berries, so he must be a female!
My Fatshedera, in a corner of the gravel garden has grown so much this year, again, it must be the rain. The leaves are so much bigger and so glossy, reflecting any light in the dark corner where it has been planted.
All the foliage plants in the new Meconopsis bed have settled in nicely and are growing well. More flowering plants will be added next year, but I like to get the interesting foliage in first.
That is my selection for Garden Bloggers Foliage Day this month. I was so sad to see that Christina at My Hesperides Garden is giving up hosting this meme, as I love foliage so much. I will probably continue to post about interesting foliage, as and when I can, as I feel that it just as important as flowers in a garden.
Thank you Christina for hosting this meme for so long, I have really enjoyed it.
Happy Autumn! Always enjoy your foliage posts Pauline.
Thanks Susie, Autumn is a very special time!
Who needs flowers when autumn provided such stunning colours from foliage! Having said that I love both flowers and leaves of the Viburnum plicatum Maresii. I must check if I can grow that here! I do hope you continue to do foliage posts Pauline. I find there’s always something I didn’t know about before!
I agree Denise, although I still think flowers are beautiful too! I am very fond of Viburnum Maresii, she looks good at all times of the year, I do hope that she is hardy enough for you. I can see that more foliage posts will get done, especially Oct/Nov when we have lots more colours developing!
Oh there it is, autumn. I wish I could say I’m happy but here the trees are changing color and the temperatures are so high I’m sure they will dry brown rather than turn into something worth going out for. Glad to see yours doing so well, and thanks for continuing with the foliage posts!
It has definitely arrived Frank, there can be no denying it! Our night time temperatures have dropped quite a bit and I think this is making the leaves change colour. I think any foliage that demands attention will get a post, I love all the colours, shapes and textures that they bring to a garden.
You have lots of autumnal colour already, Pauline, and your new meconopsis bed looks great already – when did you start planting it up?
Thanks Cathy, it gets better and better as the days are going by. Glad you like the meconopsis bed, it was started last year when 2 evergreen shrubs decided to die on me. It was when digging one of the roots out that I found the dormouse hibernating.
Does your Viburnum plicatum Maresii usually flower again while the foliage is changing colour; it looks amazing! Thank you so much for contributing each month to GBFD, your contributions have always been inspiring.
Yes Christina, the Viburnum usually flowers again at this time of year, but with fewer and much smaller flowers. I have really enjoyed taking part in GBFD over the years, having had an interest in foliage since I started gardening, many years ago!
You do have some wonderful, vibrant autumn colours. Lovely foliage.xxx
Thank you Dina, the colours all depend on the weather, the sun, the rain and the temperatures, they all help to make the colours sing!
It is wonderful to see the signs of autumn in your garden, Pauline. Your garden is gorgeous throughout the year, but I am especially fond your autumn foliage. The new Meconopsis bed is looking good!
Thank you Deb, the colours get stronger each day. I try to have plenty of plants for each season, each plant must have more than one season of interest.
I enjoyed your fall colors, especially the Berberis. I’m afraid this year’s weird weather will mean fairly dull autumn foliage.
We certainly depend on the weather for autumn colour Jason, some years it is much better than others. The peak of our colours usually comes half way through October, we just have to keep our fingers crossed!
Beautiful autumn colors! The show is just beginning here but the predominant color is still green for the time being.
Thanks Peter, the garden and the surrounding countryside now have a definite golden glow, getting better as the days go by.