Tuesday, September 16, 2008

A September bouquet

Suddenly it's blanket chilly at night with pleasant, ever so slightly cool days. The sort of weather that garden plants reward with flowers, now that the sun is no longer frying them. Though my basic, stock-model sunflowers have already bloomed and set seed, the Maximillian daisies are just opening their topmost flowers; soon, there will be daisies up and down the tall stems. Nasturtiums, which have leaves aplenty, are finally opening brilliant flowers; I never know just what to expect from this plant, but obviously it is not happy in the heat of summer.

On my walk Sunday, neighborhood gardens offered all manner of color. Roses are blossoming once again; here are samples (above, below). This should be a very good time to visit the rose garden at the Sharlot Hall Museum grounds.

A bee visits one of my showy sedum flower clusters, a real winner for the late summer.

Most hollyhocks have gone to seed and are dying back, but I found these late bloomers hidden beneath a shrub.

An opportunistic plant that puts out flowers whenever there's sufficient water, the scarlet sage is blooming again, although it has already scattered at least one crop of seeds.

Of course, Russian sage is currently the most popular shrubby perennial hereabouts; you'll see those lovely lavenders almost everywhere around town. Hadn't realized how velvety the individual florets were til I moved in close with the camera. I always make a point of touching a few of the leaves to give my fingers a lovely scent!

The late afternoon light on this batch of gallardias was a reminder that fall is on its way. Nonetheless, new blossoms are popping out thanks to the better-than-average monsoon rainfall we have enjoyed.

3 comments:

  1. Beautiful flower photos as ever GJ!

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  2. Thank you, tombo & QD -- I really, really can't resist photographing flowers. I hope that all my readers enjoy them as much as I do!

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