When I first came downstairs this morning and looked out of the kitchen window, there was a wonderful sunrise to greet me.
So beautiful, but it doesn’t last long does it. Anyway, on to the business of photographing flowers for this months GBBD hosted by Carol at May Dreams Garden.
This is the time of year when the few grasses that I have are at their best. Miscanthus sinensis Malepartus isn’t as tall as it usually is, probably due to lack of rain this summer, not something I can normally say!
But I think we had rain overnight, for the water droplets to be caught by the strands on the flowerheads.
The Pampas Grass is a shadow of its former self, is this the weather or is it because it is getting rather hemmed in by other plants, I think I will have to give it more room next year.
Stipa gigantea has as many stalks as usual but they are not as tall as they usually are, normally it is quite a bit taller than I am, but not this year.
Most of my dahlias have finished flowering except this white one. They were all new this year so have a bit of bulking up to do, I think I need to water and fertilize them more than I did if I want to have a display like the ones at Haddon Lake House in my previous post.
Hydrangeas are still flowering, even putting out new flowers, this one is under our kitchen window. I think the rain that we have had in the past few weeks is making them bloom again.
Roses are still opening new flowers, non more so than R. Bonica which never seems to stop, it has flowered non stop since June, even through the hot weather we had this summer.
Sedum are adding their pink flowers to the autumn borders, providing much needed pollen and nectar for any bees and butterflies that are in the garden.
Asters have been strutting their stuff for a while now, all looking good in the autumn sunlight, this is Aster f. Monch, the bees have loved them.
Rudbeckia has also been flowering for such a long time, can it carry on much longer? The yellow daisy flowers are so cheerful, even on a dull day, they make you think the sun is shining.
Where would we be without Verbena bonariensis, now a stalwart of present day gardening. It flowers for so long, starting in early summer and carrying on until the frosts, encouraging bees and butterflies into our gardens.
Seeding gently round the garden like the Verbena above is Feverfew. We are never without it, it never becomes a nuisance on our heavy clay and lifts the planting around it.
In the woodland, Cyclamen hederifolium are still twinkling out from under bushes and in dark corners……
……the white ones show up especially well. The leaves with their beautiful patterns are joining the flowers, they should hopefully be good for GBFD next week.
Campanula portenschlagiana has flowered on and off in various places, not stopping, no matter what the weather.
All the hardy fuchsia bushes were late starting to flower, but they have made up for it since then by being covered with flowers, and no sign of them stopping yet.
But the definite star of the garden at the moment is our Yucca variegata which has sent up a beautifully tall flower stem. This is planted on the alpine scree so it has the good drainage that it needs.
I was hoping it would flower this year, with us having more sunshine than usual, but I’m wondering how the flowers get pollinated as the individual flowers don’t open up very much. Do you have a flower that is the star of your garden at the moment?
There are lots of flowers out in the garden, but they are spread around, one or two here, a couple more there. This is confirming that I must make a border that will be at its peak at this time of year, just like the wonderful gardens that we visited last week!
The owl is so fabulous! I love it!
Thank you Janie, you’re very kind, thanks for stopping by and leaving a message.
A great selection. The grasses add real interest and the aster is very pretty too. 🙂
Jenny, I like the mixture of grasses and perennials, must get more for my border by the field, the same with the asters, I need some taller ones to put at the back of the border. Thank you for leaving a message.
Beautiful, beautiful sunrise! You have many things in bloom that are past here. Enjoy your lovely October garden.
Sally, I really woke up when I saw the sunrise, it was so beautiful! Our cold weather will come soon, then everything will fade, I’m enjoying it while I can.
Lovely, I really wish I had got round to buying some cyclamen, such pretty flowers, and I love the leaves too. The yucca flowers are extraordinary, I was going to plant one here but I have seen how enormous they grow round here. I miss miscanthus, but I haven’t yet worked out where I can plant one in this garden. Stipa gigantea, on the other hand, makes such a wonderful screen, without spoiling the view, that I just need to work out how well the stems will stand up to gale force winds, because that is what they would have to contend with in the front garden. What do you think?
The cyclamen Janet,just get better each year, corms get larger and the ants spread more seeds which take a few years to flower, but when they do, they look so pretty. The yucca doesn’t flower every year, but I’m sure the hot sunshine this year made it send up a huge flower stalk – I love it! Stipa gigantea stands up well to wind in our garden, but it has a deciduous hedge for a bit of protection, I’m not sure how it would stand up to gale force winds I’m afraid, sorry.
There are cyclamen on the tuffo at the edges of the lanes that go into town. I love seeing them and actually think I should plant some under the Mulberry; they’d get enough shade and add a touch of light at this time of rear. I like the idea of different borders being highlighted in each season so you can really fill it with colour; I’m in the process of doing this in the back border. Your Yucca flowers are beautiful, I think they will open a little more but probably there aren’t the correct pollinators anyway in Devon.
It’s worth giving Cyclamen a try Christina, they are so lovely at this time of year. I find it easier to have borders coming to a peak at different times, rather than spread everything out and try and have everything all singing and dancing at the same time.
Well done for catching that sunrise – what a nice surprise to get up to! Thanks for sharing your blooms – you have reminded me that I completely neglected the rockery in mine, where there are a couple of campanula which have been flowering continuously for months. I do like the Bonica rose – how tall does it grow? And does your Verbena bonariensis regularly self-seed – I nearly picked a half price one up from our garden centre today, and think I will go back and get it…
Cathy, the sky looked as though it was on fire, then 5 minutes later, it was all gone! Bonica grows to about four and a half feet, maybe less if you give it a hard prune.Its only fault is that it has no perfume, but then you can’t have everything! My verbena self seeds, but only gently on my heavy clay, I have only ever bought one plant, although when I eventually deadhead them, I leave the seedheads on the border trying to encourage them.
The cyclamen signals autumn for me, but otherwise you still have so many “late summer” blooms – that Hydrangea is wonderful!
But Cathy, my cyclamen usually appear in late July so that would make them summer flowers!
My sedums are probably the stars at the moment. Such brilliant plants which give so much. However, I also have a cosmos which very oddly did not come into flower until last week. All the others have been at it for months and I wondered if this one was ever going to do anything. It’s now covered in pink flowers. I’m just wondering how long it will be before we get a frost.
I hope WW, that the frost doesn’t come for a good while so that you can enjoy your cosmos! I agree Sedums are a good plant for this time of year, so many varieties to choose from now.
I just planted a miscanthus, and then Monty said on Friday it’s a bad idea at this time of year. Well, I’m not digging it up again!
Gorgeous sunrise!
Hopefully Jessica, your miscanthus will be ok, maybe a mulch would be in order? The sunrise was so beautiful but so fleeting unfortunately.
Beautiful sunrise. One of the good things about autumn/winter is that I get to see them because they’re so much later! You have some lovely autumn flowers, especially those loved by the pollinators and your cyclamen are also very pretty; I have two clumps but for some reason they don’t look very happy this autumn.
Sunflowers are the highlights of my garden at the moment. I planted some of them late and they are still looking good.
It was beautiful Wendy, for just a few moments, I stood there just gazing at it, then it was gone. I think I need some sunflowers here, they are such sunny, happy flowers, you can’t help smiling when you see them.
Oh what a perfect start to the day Pauline with that sunset which must have put a big smile on your face. I enjoyed seeing your October blooms. “Bonica’ deserves a prize for flowering over a long period. My stipa gigantea is at the allotment so I don’t get to see it every day. Must remedy that and plant one at home.
It was perfect Anna, and yes, I was smiling! Stipa gigantea should stay like that until the wind batters it in about February when eventually it needs tidying up.
I always end up adding to my “plant wish list” when I come to your posts, Pauline! How nice the Yucca variegata is this week! wow. Stipa gigantea is on my list… hardy fushias, though I know they will need lots of help here… V. bon, which I tried to grow this year but never got it going.
I do not remember noticing your book owl before! And, it is hard to make out, but that is G. Jekyll and R. Verey I see, yes?? Oh. I must have one just like it! 🙂 love it.
Happy October, Pauline!!!
Julie, you have lots of lovely plants that inspire me too!! The owl with his pile of gardening books was the first one that I made for the garden here about 20yrs ago. It was an exercise in carving letters when one of my students wanted to learn, teacher had to learn first! There is every letter of the alphabet there with The Green Tapestry by Beth Chatto, R.Verey,G. Jekyll, Gt. Dixter, Sissinghurst, P. Hobhouse, Geoff Hamilton, then at the end I just had Q,U,W and Z left so made up the title of The Quest for Kolkwitzia! You will find a better photo at http://www.leadupthegardenpath.com/uncategorized/countdown-to-opening-for-the-n-g-s/
You have a lot of blooms but I am partial to the cyclamen. Mine bloom for two to three months and I love the leaves.
The cyclamen are very pretty at the moment and the leaves have just started coming, so they should look good for foliage day in a few days time. I always find it so amazing that all the leaves have different patterns, no two are the same.
So many beautiful plants, Pauline, but the one that caught my eye was feverfew. It’s such a gentle little plant and one that I’ve overlooked but would like to add to my shade garden for ground cover. I’ve been spoiled by being able to see many beautiful plants in the Capel Manor college grounds every week – in fact I’m thinking of starting another blog about this as the seeing the seasons change through the gardens is something else!
Caro, feverfew is such an unassuming little plant, it seeds about gently in my heavy clay so is never a problem, and is lovely to find that I still have it each year, dotting itself around the garden. I was given one plant, the rest have appeared all by themselves. It would be wonderful to see Capel Manor through your eyes as the seasons change, you have one reader already!
Pauline your garden is always so full of good ideas! Love wandering through it with you. I had a yucca that came with our previous house. We were there for more than twenty years when several nearby trees came down during a storm. Afterwards the yucca bloomed every year. The coloration of yours is especially nice. Enjoy your day. Susie
Thanks Susie, it was nice to have your company! I think probably the tall trees on the south side are stopping the yucca from flowering more often, but they form part of the woodland and I would hate to lose them.
I can see why you say the Yucca variegata is the star in your garden at the moment. Gosh it is impressive! I like the Stipa gigantea grass- I am always looking for new grasses to think about adding to the garden. The cyclamens are so pretty. I wish they were hardy here. Is the owl sculpture one of yours Pauline? I love it!
Jennifer, the Yucca doesn’t flower every year, so I was so pleased to see the flower spike form this year. Sometimes it starts to flower and frost strikes it down, hopefully I will have it a bit longer this year. I love my Stipa gigantea, that looks good from about June onwards, its a big plant, but you can see through it. Yes, the owl sculpture is mine , made about 20 yrs ago when I was teaching lettering to my woodcarving students, I’m glad you like it, thank you!
I must find some hardy fuchsia to plant here! I have seen it several time on various blogs, and I love it! Your sunrise was wonderful. Thanks for the tour of your garden, which is lovely in all seasons!
I hope Deb, that you find some hardy fuchsias, they really are fantastic in the late summer /autumn garden. You have a wonderful garden, so thank you for your kind comments.
My pampas grass is a sad sight but all my grasses are pure bliss and I shall plant more of them, especially around the pond where they look great mirrored in the water. Stipa gigantea was splendid but is long after its best – quite amazing how fresh yours is looking still, Pauline. Yucca is a great architectural plant all year round but beware of these nasty thorns! Made my face bleed the other day while weeding and a friend lost his eye through an unfortunate meeting with Yucca. Don’t worry answering, I know how busy you are with all your followers but I do like to pop in from time to time and admire your garden. Have a splendid autumn 🙂
Lovely to hear from you again Annette, usually our Stipa gigantea stays upright until February, but then it needs cutting down as the winter wind has made such a mess of it. My yucca gets the fierce tips of the leaves cut off, I got so fed up of being spiked by them! One day it will be tall enough for me to work safely underneath, but until then, the tips get cut before I start work. So sorry to hear about your friend who lost an eye, that was the reason I planted it up on the scree, so that our dog at the time, wouldn’t suffer the same fate. Gardens can be dangerous places.
Still no joy at leaving messages on your blog, I tried again this morning, we are visiting my son soon, hope he can sort my problem out! We can’t see the harvest moon here because of all the rain! Must try your quince recipe with the 3 fruit that my ornamental quince has produced!
Beautiful sunrise, be glad you still have roses and hydrangeas blooming, it has already gotten cold here and they are all gone until next year.
You have a beautiful garden, I love all your pictures. Check out my blog if you get time, caught a beautiful cold front sunset the other evening; Sunset and Icicles
Michael
Hi Michael, thanks for stopping by and leaving a message. I certainly appreciate the flowers that we have blooming at the moment, they are very precious at this time of year/ Next week the weather is all going to change to freezing weather coming from the North Pole so I think that will be the end of the flowers for this year!