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October 14, 2010

Bloom Day - October

They say that the real gardening season in San Antonio is the fall. My bloom day flowers are proof of that.

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In honor of the cooler weather, here's Autumn Joy sedum. This is the first bloom cycle since I bought this plant.  I was expecting pale pink flowers, but I'm excited to see the red. I wonder if the flowers will turn pink when they open fully. Either way, I'm looking forward to running my hands across their fuzzy broccoli-looking tops.

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In the same bed as the sedum, the asters are going strong while the moonbeam coreopsis are waning.

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This coneflower is a late bloomer. I have three of these plants. Two bloomed on schedule in the summer, but this one is on its own schedule. It has two bright blooms while the other plants have brown, crispy stalks.

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The last blooming plant in my new bed is black and blue salvia. Since it started blooming in June, it hasn't stopped. Sometimes it takes a short rest only to come back a week or so later.

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Two of my edibles are in bloom. These peas already have full sized pods as well as little flowers that remind me of bonnets.

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The blooms on the garlic chives have gotten so heavy, they've flopped to the ground.

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In the front yard, the pigeon berry flowers have turned to fruit. If you're familiar with how nandina goes from flowers to berries, this plant does something similar.

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Before the pigeon berries make their fruit, the flowers look like white cousins of the liripoe flowers - tiny blooms held close on thin stalks.

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On my computer, the yellow centers of these purple shamrock flowers stand out. I hope that comes across on your screen too.

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We do have fall leaf color in San Antonio, but don't look up; look at the groundcover. By the way, I saw at least 50 of these dwarf plumbagos in one-gallon pots at Wal-mart for $3 (half off). I resisted buying any, but maybe I'll go back for just three.

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This prostrate rosemary makes me think of Christmas wreaths. I like the gray-blue-purple color of the flower. I need to paint a room. Maybe I'll match the paint to this flower.

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Speaking of Christmas, the turk's cap has a holiday flavor too, like ornaments on a Texas Christmas tree.

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I'm calling this a Lazarus mum. It was a table decoration at my 2009 National Night Out party. I put it in the compost, and it sprouted up in this bed. I guess it came up from seed.

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The esperanza is another late bloomer. Everyone else's flowered all summer. These are its first blooms.

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Finally, salvia greggii, a sure sign it's fall.

Happy bloom day. Head over to May Dreams to see what's blooming in other gardens.

13 comments:

  1. Wow! I guess San Antonio is the place to be for late autumn color. Your pictures are beautiful. That salvia greggi, in particular, is quite stunning. Happy Bloom Day. :)

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  2. Love your Lazarus mum. It really had a will to live, that or arise from the dead.You have many flowers blooming.

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  3. Happy Bloom Day~Beautiful blooms~I had plans to visit the Austin area this month but can't~Looks like I am missing out on a lot. gail

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  4. Kate thanks for commenting. I checked out your blog and I love it. Your writing is breezy and fun and your pictures are great (the secret ingredient for gardening blog). Count me as a new subscriber.

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  5. Donna and Gail I'm adding your to my reading list too. I love finding new people through bloom day.

    Gail you are missing a good show in Texas right now. I hope you reschedule your trip soon.

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  6. aloha,

    what a very nice tour of your garden this morning, i enjoyed the beautiful flowers, i love the purple shamrocks :)

    thanks for sharing that with us

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  7. Thanks for sharing your blooms with us today.

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  8. Ahh...I just love the Autumn Joy sedum. Great bloom on it. It is always exciting the first time a plant flowers. Matti

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  9. Ah yes, gotta love Texas this time of year! Your garden is lovely and I especially love the sweet little flowers of your peas. This is my first GBBD post and I'm glad I participated as it led me to your blog! Enjoyed my visit! ~ Cat

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  10. Lovely post! I love those shamrocks...so charming! Black & Blue Salvia...those are a winner.

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  11. Your black and blue salvia certainly is happy. And I really like the color on your salvia greggii.

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  12. Beautiful! I notice my little yard is blooming too! I also have the black and blue salvia plant in my front flower bed.

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  13. Thanks for all of the comments guys. You've introduced me to your great blogs. My reading list is getting very long.

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