Garden Blogger's Bloom Day, October 15, 2013

Welcome to What's Blooming Now, to see other people's flowers, click on the link to hostess Carol's May Dreams Gardens.

Not a lot is blooming now, but one garden star that doesn't know how to quit is Rozanne hardy geranium-

Other reliable fall bloomers are Anemone japonica and tomentosa, here-

And new Anemone 'Pamina'-

Still looking good is new Eryngium planum 'Jade Frost'-

A surprise is Camellia sasanqua 'Apple Blossom', which has taken years to start blooming, and this is earlier than last year, still waiting on Yuletide to start blooming at all-

Abelia grandiflora is still blooming-

My personal Rose Queen of the garden, Zephirine Drouhin, does not fail to please-

Last of the Goldenrods to still be blooming well, 'Solar Cascade-

A Chrysanthemum that I have been growing for 3 years in a container, and which also roots easily in water-

Also blooming are Rosemary, and a few other roses. and a Dahlia that was left in the ground over winter and recently started blooming.

What's still blooming for you?   -Hannah

Harvest Macro Monday, October 14, 2013

Welcome to my Monday post.  Today I am linking with-

Harvest Monday hosted by Daphne

Macro Monday hosted by Gemma Wiseman

I Heart Macro hosted by Laura

Blue Monday hosted by Smiling Sally

Mandarin Orange Monday hosted by Lorik

Monday Mellow Yellows hosted by Gemma Wiseman

First, flowers from the 102nd Birthday celebration of my Mother-in-law last week, who came over from Sweden at the age of 2, at the time named Gunhilda Marta Magrita. Her family was originally coming on the Titanic, but came on another boat fortunately!   Her older brother was sick and couldn't get on the boat, so her grandparents said they would send him later, but didn't!    
Alstroemerias, Swedish colors-

And on to this week's harvests.   My summer vegetable crops have mostly fizzled out from cold, except the runner beans, Phaseolus coccineus, a different species from the usual pole and bush beans, which likes cooler weather so is still blossoming and setting pods.   This year I was trying some white-seeded and white-flowered ones- Blanca di Spagna, and Sweet White Runner.

They turned out to not set seeds as well as the super Scarlet runner variety Insuk's Wang Kong, that I received in a trade through the Gardenweb Legume forum, a great place to discuss bean varieties, especially heirlooms.   But they have been improving with cooler weather, yesterday I picked 3 lbs., roughly 1.5 K.   If the seeds have not developed much the pods can be tender, but at least this variety is fibrous once the seeds develop, but the seeds are very tasty as shellies (shelled beans).

There were a few stragglers in the regular pole and half-runner beans- from left to right Uncle Steve's pole, Super Marconi, Red Peanut, and Grandma Robert's Purple pole.

I also finished picking the last of the Winesap apples, they are a very hard apple but make a great flavorful applesauce.  

The "semi-dwarf" tree is over 20' tall and hard to pick the apples off the top, I had to cut a new bamboo pole and stand on the top of the ladder and try to knock them down.  The birds are pecking them and would clean them out soon if I left them.   One of the birds that likes them is the Pileated Woodpecker, model for Woody Woodpecker.  They have fantastic jungle calls- you tube video, one of many-

The cool season vegetables are just starting to shine, here Kale, Collards, and a couple of tiny Crookneck Squash-

Turnip greens-

Turnip, 2 lb., sliced, white flesh cooks up tender-

I hope you are enjoying the cool weather, Hannah

or cameras are macro

Skywatch Friday, October 11, 2013

This is my first Skywatch post, linked here.  

The sun flees away, a golden mist obscures the field-

The trees become lacy shapes against the sky, flaunting their silhouettes against the gold,

Layered dimensions of resinous greenery, obscured in the fading golden glow.

Solitary, I lay my tools down and seek the warmth of home, deserted by the light.

-Hannah

Favorite plant of the week, Blue Mist Flower, October 8, 2013

My favorite plant of the week is Blue Mist Flower, formerly Eupatorium coelestinum.  I ordered a plant in February along with some other plants and the others grew but the Eupatorium remained a black stump.   However, up around it grew 5 micro seedlings.   They continued to grow and were transplanted into individual pots, then in August when 6" tall, I set them out in the garden.   I was very surprised a week ago to find one had developed flowers already.  This is a great native flower that attracts pollinators and multiplies by rhizomes, so I'm hoping it will occupy some ground and therefore shut out some weeds.  It likes water so I can plant it in the very soggy ground near my leaky hose bib and hope it will flourish there.

The flowers are not what I would call blue, typical nursery plant hype, but magenta.  They open to make fuzzy flowers, mist-like, here not quite open.  

I'm enthusiastic about a plant that can perform that fast, so many perennials take 2 years or more to bloom, so it is my favorite plant this week.

To see other bloggers' favorite plant of the week, click on Loree of Danger Garden's link, and look for more links in the comments section.

Hannah

Blue Macro Mandarine Orange Mellow Yellow Monday, October 7, 2013

Welcome to my Monday post, click on the links below to see other posts-

Blue Monday hosted by Smiling Sally

Macro Monday 2 hosted by Gemma Wiseman

I Heart Macro hosted by Laura

Mandarin Orange Monday hosted by Lorik

Monday Mellow Yellows hosted by Gemma Wiseman

Wonderful faux prickly new plant Eryngium planum 'Jade Frost'-

New York Ex-aster-

Remarkable Dahlia that was in the ground over winter, its first bloom of the year-

Thanks for visiting!   -Hannah

or cameras are macro

Experimenting with Grasses

I've tried a number of grasses in the past, some did not last.   The one that has been my biggest success is Miscanthus sinensis zebrinus.  I have 5 clumps of it that have been around for 12 years.  The only maintenance is to cut it down to 3-5" each February.  I have been using a saw to make it easier.

So I decided to give some more grasses a chance this fall.   I'm hoping they will be good fillers between other perennials.  One I felt would work was Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light', which has a white stripe running lengthwise on the blades so that the effect is a silvery look.   Success with Zebra grass makes me think it will be a tough plant too.

I'm trying 2 Panicum virgatums, 'Ruby Ribbons'

and Rubrum, they both have burgundy leaves at least by fall, and delicate seed heads in a fine spray.

A grass I've tried before that didn't last, but which I keep seeing in other blogs looking wonderful, so I'm trying it again, is Imperata cylindra, Japanese Blood grass.  It seems to stay low and upright.

Another grass that is short but cascades into a fine ball looking like a long-haired Guinea pig, is Mexican Feather Grass, Stipa tenuissima.

I've been admiring these grasses on other people's blogs, several are shown in this post of Nancy J. Ondra's Hayefield, Japanese blood grass, some Panicum virgatums, Mexican feather grass, and many more.   Scott Weber also uses many grasses to good effect in his Rhone Street Gardens blog, this post on grasses.

They have inspired me to try some grasses from seed as well, Mexican feather grass (Stipa tenuissima), and Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) are planned for next year, so far.  I will try direct-sowing some seed this fall and also growing some in pots under lights, they will need to be chilled in the refrigerator for a couple of months.

Bamboos are also in the grass family, and I have a number of them but covered them in another post earlier.

Hannah

Eryngium planum 'Jade Frost', Favorite Plant of the Week, October 4, 2013

My favorite plant of the week is Eryngium planum 'Jade Frost', which I just bought.   It was not for lack of trying to start an Eryngium from seed, my Eryngium alpinum 'Blue Lace' with which I was enthralled failed to germinate for me, and E. leavenworthii, an annual, was started apparently too late, as it has been a very slow grower, and has been lengthening out to bloom, but the increasingly cold weather may prevent it from actually blooming, I will see what happens.  Next year I will start it much earlier, but it was a late choice.

Anyway, here is the lovely variegated 'Jade Frost'-

I hope it will do well planted out now, I find the metallic sheen and mysterious jagged bracts and leaves entrancing.

For other favorite plant picks of the week, join Loree of Danger Garden and see other posts linked in the comments section.