Autumn Light & Color - Part 1

The past few weeks have gotten away from me even more quickly than usual. Between launching a new website at work and trying to plan at least the basics of our wedding, the days have completely flown by. (And yes, we finally have a date! August 4th!)

I haven't spent much time outside this fall, which is a shame. I love the slanting rays of light that pick up all of the beautiful reds, like the brightening maple leaves and the flower stalks of the nearby miscanthus:

Light colors at their feet, like the 'Frosty Curls' and 'Beetlemania' carexes, and 'Purple Dragon' lamium, really highlight the reds:

As I bent to find another view of the low-angled light playing in the maple leaves, I discovered a bonus:

'Party Dress' Japanese anemones are still blooming! I just love this messy yet delicate mix of anemone, miscanthus, and a veil of red Japanese maple leaves, all anchored by the yellowing foliage of 'Northern Halo' hosta:

A few more posts of fall color are yet to come... before it all disappears under a blanket of snow! Any of my other northern neighbors have things that are still blooming in your garden?

October: Big News, Little Blooms (GBBD)

Hard to believe that I took these photos more than a week ago already... and yet the garden looks so different now, just 7 days later. Cold weather and chilly evenings have started to take their toll, but all of what you see in these next few photos is still in bloom:

Blue caryopteris and 'Black & Blue' salvia provide a nice habitat for George the Giraffe

When backlit, the flower spikes of 'Hameln' pennisetum positively glow

Acapulco agastache is a reliable late-season bloomer for me... if only it still looked this vibrant!

A larger (re)bloom on my African daisy (Gazania) 

Cool-toned Russian sage flowers separate the self-sown 'Lady in Red' salvia, front, and 'Hopi Red Dye' amaranth

VERY late this year: First blooms on the pineapple sage

Cool+Wet=Reblooming 'Sweet Kate' spiderwort

A surprise rebloom on my (unnamed, but probably Jackmanii) clematis

Last but not least, the big news: Steve and I are engaged!  We had gone ring shopping together more than a month ago, but I was still very surprised.  I wasn't sure which ring he had ultimately chosen out of the 2 or 3 antique rings I liked best... and I definitely had clue that he had already spoken to my parents to ask for their blessing.  I didn't quite comprehend when he dropped down on one knee on the beach and reached into his pocket during an afternoon walk at a beachfront park... but, luckily, I recovered in sufficient time to stammer out a "Yes!" and a huge smile.  Needless to say, we are both very excited!!!

Not nearly as excited is this old girl... can't you tell? Sister knows that once we get married and Steve moves in, she's going to have to endure his torture... but secretly, I think that they both enjoy running each other around the backyard, chasing the little yellow tennis ball and tugging at sticks. And, although he doth protest with a, "Really, dog?" here and there, Steve scratches Coco's belly readily enough when she rolls over at his feet and presents it. 

So I'm thinking that they will be just fine.  :)

A Few September Highlights

Okay, so it's not all bad in my garden... there are a few areas that I am enjoying, now that they've been a little cleaned up. (4 GIANT bags' worth of cleanup, and counting!)  

First and foremost are the two chimney tile planters--these chimney tiles were my best garden trashpick ever, by the way, and I think that my back still twinges with the memory every time I look at them.  Both were planted with 'Vodka' wax begonias and other complementary colored and silver plants.  The sunnier one features a combination of lantana and 'Silver Falls' dichondra:

'Hopi Red Dye' amaranth and Japanese bloodgrass make nice surrounding companions, along with various small-textured herbs.

The shadier planter is much tougher to photograph, due to the unnamed brugmansia, 'Black Lace' elderberry, and peach tree that tower above it.  (Okay, and due to my lack of camera skills.) But it features 'Gartenmeister' fuchsia and this silver lotus vine:

That silvery leaf encroaching on the lower right side of this picture is collard greens, by the way. I didn't realize that collards would be so pretty, or I would  have placed them a little more prominently among the veggies!

Speaking of veggies, I kind of wish that someone had warned me that tomatillo plants have genetically ingrained plans for garden domination.  My SINGLE plant is scrambling over 2 different tomatoes, a blueberry bush, an elderberry, a rhododendron, eggplant, and much more. You can see it above--and hovering over the sunny tile planter in some of those shots, too.

Last but not least is my native honeysuckle, lonicera sempervirens.  I can't talk enough about how awesome this plant is, how long it flowers, and how carefree it is.  And every time I stop to admire it, I think about how I first admired it in the garden of the lovely Annie in Austin... which makes me smile.

I'm trying to be more positive about the garden, so if I can successfully dodge raindrops I promise to find a few more photos and post them later this week. (Thanks again to everyone who left kind words of encouragement for this cranky gardener!)