Garden Bloggers Bloom Day - October 2008

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Carol at May Dreams Gardens hosts a monthly Bloom Day. On the 15th of each month, garden bloggers post comments. The comments link to pictures of gardens posted on their blogs. It's a great way to see what's blooming in gardens around the world.

This is my first ever post for Bloom Day.

Since we have not had a killing frost here, annuals as well as fall perennials are blooming. The past weeks have been cool and sunny. Perfect fall weather.

As I worked on fall garden cleanup, I was surprised at the number of blooms I found. But, I know it won’t be long until we’re raking leaves. First frost in zone 6 is usually between the 15th and the end of October.

I've posted some pictures of my blooms.
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Marigold ‘Safari Yellow’ & Petunia ‘Rose Madness’

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Aster Aster novae-angliae 'Purple Dome’ - A dark, spectacular aster prone to a little mildew. This plant was "pinched back" effectively by some critters this year.

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Coleus - may be ‘Solar Sunrise’ or ‘Atlas’


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Coleus 'Pele' - I know it's not really a bloom but the colors are great!

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Pink impatiens ‘Super Elfin Lipstick’ and Bloodleaf. A re-seeded impatiens 'Bright Orange' pokes out of the right side in the picture.

This is the same area last year with an orange theme.

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Zinnia 'Painted Daisy' - in need of dead heading.

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Volunteer mum

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Cleome - sometimes called Spider plant. My grandmother called them 'Lectric Light Plants because they reminded her of a chandelier.

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Another yellow mum volunteer

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Also blooming:

Garden Phlox ‘David’
Snapdragon
Zinnia 'State Fair'
Rose ‘Blaze’
Sweet Alyssum
Cana
Campanula
Nicotiana ‘Fragrant Cloud’
Hardy Geranium ‘Splish Splash’
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’
Japanese Anemone pink and white
Celosia

Wow! That's quite a lot.
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Watering the Garden

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This year I’m trying to get through the summer without watering my garden. I’m trying to conserve water and save money.

Of course, the potted plants need to be watered. I watered some of the annuals when they drooped. New perennials need water until they are established. But, I’m talking about hours of soaker hose watering of the entire perennial garden.

I’m talking about what will live in my climate without extra water.

Fortunately, we’ve had a year with adequate rain, until now. After a few weeks of no rain, heat, and humidity the soil has turned concreteous. Mulch, free from Bethlehem’s Compost Center, is indispensable. I am amazed at what is surviving (make that looking pretty good) without any extra water.

Some of the perennials have slowed blooming but are still very alive. The purple cone flowers look a little tired.

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Roses are struggling but blooming. The Japanese anemone, asters and mums have set buds.

The ground cover lemon thyme and creeping jenny do not seem to have a problem.

The mum ‘Clara Curtis’ doesn’t seem to mind being dry at all. In fact, ‘Clara Curtis’ continues to bloom and bloom.

As I said, this has been a year with adequate rain. And I woke up this morning to a little less than half an inch of rain in the rain gauge. I’m not saying I will never turn the soakers on but I’ve learned that I can do with a lot less watering than I thought. We’ll see how brave I am during a drought.

I’m thinking about a rain barrel. Raising vegetables is another story.

What’s your strategy for watering?

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Mums and Asters

The colors of fall.

Mums and asters are in bloom everywhere. The colors in my garden are mostly yellow to orange, a few pinks and a purple. The size varies from a diminutive button mum to the 3 foot high and wide yellow mum that was an Easter gift. (Yes, I did pinch it back.)

Chrysanthemum rubellum 'Clara Curtis' has been a real winner. This pink daisy mum, purchased in 2004 from Wayside Gardens, grows and grows and bloomed all summer. I’ve given away a few pieces of this plant.

Another winner in the hardiness category is Chrysanthemum koreanum ‘Single Apricot’. This daisy-shaped mum spreads and needs to be propped up. I use 4 sections of 24” or 32” Gard’n Border green round folding fence to make a cage. The fall color is a sweet peachy-pink. I purchased it in 2004 from Hickory Grove Greenhouses in North Catasauqua.

A spectacular show this year is the orange mum transplanted from my Mom’s garden several years ago. I don’t know the name but it produces a great bloom every year. This one also gets pinched and propped and grows 2 to 3 feet tall.

Aster novae-angliae ‘Purple Dome’, planted in 2004, has a deep, rich purple color. I originally planted 2 but only one remains. I pinch the plant back lightly until the middle of June. I didn’t have much trouble with mildew this year – because it was so dry? It doesn’t spread (unfortunately) and is pretty care free if you can put up with the mildew. I would like to add a few more asters next year.

I try to plant mums in a wind-sheltered, sunny spot. They make good foundation plantings. In winter, I cover them with branches cut off when the plant dies back and some leaves or mulch. I try to shelter them from the winter freeze/thaw cycles. Sometimes I lose a mum but mostly they make it through the winter.

The hardiest of my mums: ‘Clara Curtis’ is planted in a sunny open spot and seems to do fine. I haven’t done anything to it – no fertilizer, no pinching, no cutting off dead branches. The ‘Single Apricot’ is under a dogwood tree but gets some sun. This one is pinched, propped, cut and covered. It spreads a lot so I end up with plants to share or plants for the compost. I just pull or cut them out when it gets too wide.

What a colorful way to end the summer.