Welcome to Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day for October 2010!
Here in my USDA Hardiness Zone 5b garden October has so far brought us bright sunny skies, at least two days with record setting high temperatures, and very little rain.
Yet it is keeping its usual promise of ever shorter days, cooler nights, and changing leaf color.
When I look back at the bloom day post for 2009, I see two plants that haven't done as well this year, and have no blooms today - Endless Summer® Hydrangeas and Kalimeris pinnatifida ‘Hortensis’, also known as the Oxford Orphanage Plant or Double Japanese Aster.
Ironically, the asters shown above, Symphyotrichum novae-angliae, were the ones that I dug out in early July and transplanted to another garden bed. These are passalong plants from my aunt, so I am happy to see they survived.
Another aster doing quite well, blooming by the front walkway, is Symphyotrichum oblongifolium 'October Skies'.
Both types of asters were cut back by about half around Memorial Day, which encourages them to branch out, not up, making them less likely to flop over and increasing the amount of bloom on them.
In a nursery bed in the back yard, waiting for a permanent spot elsewhere in the garden is Dendranthema 'Cool Igloo', a trial plant from Blooms of Bressingham.
I did nothing to it and it managed to bloom quite nicely all on its own.
Elsewhere in the garden, the marigolds, Tagetes sp. have survived with no extra water.
I don't know why people think of marigolds as a summer flowers. In my garden, where I direct sow the seeds for the marigolds in May, they never really start blooming well until mid to late August.
Finally, the Knockout® Rose, Rosa ‘Radsunny’ is still putting on a great show.
It's been blooming since spring and is still going strong. It's a keeper, even if you are like me and don't grow a lot of roses.
How is your garden blooming this month? Are you ready for a killing frost, the end of the show, or is fall the beginning of your second gardening season?
Whatever your circumstances and however your garden looks during these October days, I hope you’ll join us for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day this month. All are welcome!
It's easy to participate. Just post on your blog about what is blooming in your garden on the 15th of the month and then leave a link in the ‘Mr. Linky’ widget below, plus a comment to give us a hint as to what we might in your garden in mid-October.
By the way, for those who have been participating in bloom day since its beginning, I believe this is our 45th month to do this!
“We can have flowers nearly every month of the year.” – Elizabeth Lawrence
Here in my USDA Hardiness Zone 5b garden October has so far brought us bright sunny skies, at least two days with record setting high temperatures, and very little rain.
Yet it is keeping its usual promise of ever shorter days, cooler nights, and changing leaf color.
When I look back at the bloom day post for 2009, I see two plants that haven't done as well this year, and have no blooms today - Endless Summer® Hydrangeas and Kalimeris pinnatifida ‘Hortensis’, also known as the Oxford Orphanage Plant or Double Japanese Aster.
Ironically, the asters shown above, Symphyotrichum novae-angliae, were the ones that I dug out in early July and transplanted to another garden bed. These are passalong plants from my aunt, so I am happy to see they survived.
Another aster doing quite well, blooming by the front walkway, is Symphyotrichum oblongifolium 'October Skies'.
Both types of asters were cut back by about half around Memorial Day, which encourages them to branch out, not up, making them less likely to flop over and increasing the amount of bloom on them.
In a nursery bed in the back yard, waiting for a permanent spot elsewhere in the garden is Dendranthema 'Cool Igloo', a trial plant from Blooms of Bressingham.
I did nothing to it and it managed to bloom quite nicely all on its own.
Elsewhere in the garden, the marigolds, Tagetes sp. have survived with no extra water.
I don't know why people think of marigolds as a summer flowers. In my garden, where I direct sow the seeds for the marigolds in May, they never really start blooming well until mid to late August.
Finally, the Knockout® Rose, Rosa ‘Radsunny’ is still putting on a great show.
It's been blooming since spring and is still going strong. It's a keeper, even if you are like me and don't grow a lot of roses.
How is your garden blooming this month? Are you ready for a killing frost, the end of the show, or is fall the beginning of your second gardening season?
Whatever your circumstances and however your garden looks during these October days, I hope you’ll join us for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day this month. All are welcome!
It's easy to participate. Just post on your blog about what is blooming in your garden on the 15th of the month and then leave a link in the ‘Mr. Linky’ widget below, plus a comment to give us a hint as to what we might in your garden in mid-October.
By the way, for those who have been participating in bloom day since its beginning, I believe this is our 45th month to do this!
“We can have flowers nearly every month of the year.” – Elizabeth Lawrence
Comments
Thanks, as always, for hosting this fun monthly tradition. I don't have a ton blooming but it's still fun to participate. Happy Bloom Day!
Your knockouts are lovely and so are the asters.The marigolds up here are performing like yours, bright and plentiful. I agree, they are flushing right beside the mums.
Day, so they flew in just in time for a photo op! I hope you enjoy the tour of my October garden.
I am from a tropical country so my blooms are a little different.
http://www.lahoregardening.com/2010/10/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-october.html
It's good to see your Tagetes. The smell of these reminds me of Guy Fawke's Night here in the UK (5th November), as it was then that we used to pull them up, as children, some of them still flowering. As you say, they flower much longer than just the summer.
My post is up. Thanks for hosting GBBD!
Frances
Eileen
http://healingmagichands.wordpress.com/2010/10/15/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-october-15-2010/
I'm celebrating dahlias today with a sidelong look at water issues for Blog Action Day too
David/ Tropical Texana
P.S. Don't passalong plants seem to do the best? I noticed you have one in bloom. My very best summer blooms are from passalongs.
David/ Tropical Texana/ Houston
Your asters are beautiful, and I've been very impressed with your Radsunny. It's beautiful, and clearly a fantastic bloomer.
Thank you for hosting Bloom Day!
I like that 'October Skies' aster. My marigolds haven't been blooming as early as my memory thinks they used to, either.
This is the beginning of the third year of my blogging and participating in bloom day. I posted lots of photos again.
My marigolds have been stunning this year. I started them from seed indoors and they bloomed all summer. I envy your asters!
Pam x
I love your Dendranthema 'Cool Igloo' I may have to add it to my garden next year. I appreciate knowing what the pretty plants are. Many of the mums in my garden were planted before I kept records so I don't know the names. Some of the mums just appeared from nowhere.
Marigolds + October = :)
Here the fall season color is just starting to change and leaves barely beginning to fall, our first frost is usually about another month from now.
Love your 'October Skies'--it really is quite a bloomer and so shapely. I agree about the 'Radsunny' roses; I've been really pleased with the two I planted this spring.
The leaves are turning, but blowing off almost as quickly. A good rainstorm might take many of the leaves away...but I think I'd take the rain right now:)
One of the great things about garden blogging in general and GBBD specifically is how we've been introduced to plants and climates in gardens all over the world. I'll venture a guess that five years ago you didn't weren't aware that so many people looked forward to fall as the beginning of their second growing season.
I'm sure you would have been happy just acquiring a theoretical knowledge...no reason to punish you with Texas-like hot, dry days. I think you are having it worse this year than we are.
And yet, as usual, all your plants seem dripping with flowers. The asters are especially gorgeous.
I always have late blooming marigolds too. They're a bright spot in the fall garden.
Love those 'Radsunny' roses.
Happy Bloom Day!
Looking forward to visiting other gardens through this great meme.
Cheers
Terry
You garden is all blue and gold - my Austin October is mostly red. The GBBD October post went up yesterday but I forgot to come and talk to the Mr Linky. Happy late GBBD to you, dear friend.
Hope we both get rain!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
http://getbusygardening.blogspot.com/2010/10/whats-bloomin-in-october.html
-Amy (Get Busy Gardening)