There’s Still Some Color
There’s still a little color left in the garden. We’re having unseasonably warm weather this November, after an very cold September ruined most of my fall crops. I still have a few things blooming in the gardens, providing some much needed color.
I have a few black-eyed susan’s blooming in one area of the garden (actually they’re growing out of the driveway).
My hanging baskets are hanging on, still providing some bloom and some food for bees. I keep watching them, if I see bees and small pollinators I leave them.
The bacopa is also blooming well and the bees are still enjoying it as well.
I have a few nicotianas that are still blooming as well.
Do you still have anything blooming if you live in a cold area? If you live in a more temperate climate, what blooms for you this time of year?
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Cleaning up the Garden
Yesterday I spent some time in the afternoon cleaning up around the garden. I don’t do a ton of cleaning in the fall, I like to leave the seed heads for the birds. I have some zinnias up front that were very big and in spot that I wanted to plant some perennials.
Since I did not deadhead them this summer they were mostly spent with only a few fresh blossoms on a few of the plants. I cut those blossoms and pulled the rest of the plants. The flowers will be lovely on my kitchen windowsill for the next couple days.
This time of year I’m always clinging to the remainder of summer not wanting winter to arrive. I do love winter when it finally comes, but I find myself reluctant to let go the lushness of the summer with it’s colorful flowers and the warmth of the sun.
What will you miss most about summer?
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Green with Envy
I’ve declared my love for all flowers green here before. There’s just something about them that attracts me, perhaps it’s because they’re different. Someday I dream of having an all green garden filled with all flowers green and maybe a few white ones thrown in for good measure.
This year I bought some seeds for ‘Green Envy’ zinnias. I planted a few at my mom’s at the edge of my 3 sisters garden and I planted some out on our front hillside. I love how they glow in the shadows! The zinnias growing on my front hillside are mostly colorful ones: pink, orange, and yellow. I have a few green ones but they’re not as pretty as the ones growing at my mom’s. Must be the soil.
I do love zinnias, they’re wonderful flowers. Mine start to get pretty tall and a little tired looking this time of year. I always think about cutting them back, but I leave them for the bees & butterflies.
Have you ever thought about having a garden in all one color?
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Castor Bean Plant
This year I planted a few castor beans seeds. 3 of them germinated and one or two of them were eaten by chipmunks, which I presume died shortly after eating them since they’re very poisonous. Castor bean plants and beans/seeds are poisonous, so you may wonder why I’m growing them. I’ve read that they’re a great way to deter moles and gophers from invading your gardens, and since I had a mole problem in the back garden I decided I’d try a castor plant to see how it worked.
It seemed to do a decent job, I noticed moles in the spring and early summer, but when the castor bean got large I haven’t noticed as many. I’d say it a great way to combat moles, not only do you not have little moles tunneling through your garden, you get a very large striking plant in the garden.
My castor plant is probably 8-9 feet tall and the leaves are huge, I decided this was the bean stalk that Jack must have climbed in the nursery rhyme. It’s starting to bloom, I’m not sure if it will produce any beans since it’s getting pretty close to the end of the season.
I’ll definitely be planting castor plants again next year. I’ve seen a few purple castor beans in some other local gardens and they bloomed much earlier than mine and are much shorter, I may try to find those next year since they must have a shorter growing season.
Do you have any poisonous plants in your gardens? Or any plants that are supposed to help with rodent control?
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Volunteer Marigolds
I have these volunteer marigolds that grew up in the same spot I had some planted last year. They’re just starting to bloom prolifically and they’re so nice. I’m not a huge fan of marigolds, but they’re so pretty this time of year, they really look nice with all the fall colors that are starting to appear.
As you can see these are growing in a raised bed that I have a makeshift fence around since I have my late beans planted in this bed. I know the deer and the groundhogs would love nothing more than tender bean plants, so I have some chicken wire panels leaned up around it to protect my bean harvest.
When it comes to colors of flowers, I’m much more of a pink/white/purple lover. I’m really happy that my ‘Endless Summer’ Hydrangea is blooming now, despite being mauled by deer this past winter. I was thinking I wouldn’t see any color from it at all.
What colors of flowers are your favorite?
