Vanessence: Monday In Bloom

Monday, October 17, 2016

Monday In Bloom

I forgot to grab a screenshot of the weather off my phone, but I did find one from the daily weather record that I keep. Man oh man was it muggy! Blech! I was just dripping after deadheading only a few plants Sunday. Thankfully, the sun wasn’t beating down on me, too.

The pansies are all gone now, as are the marigolds. I went ahead and pulled them all because they were more dead than alive. We did have a frost warning the other night, and while I don’t think it got down to freezing, it did get too cold for some of the plants.

I don’t think this bodes well for the evergreen nearest our unit.

The polka dot plants got a severe cutting back. They survived the near-frost but were so gangly and unattractive with their dead branches, so I cut those off. I think they’ll do well before freezing temps set in.

The side patch is still holding strong. It got some good rain this past week, and it’s close enough to the building that it gets a bit of “insulation” from the freezing temperatures. Plus, I think the bricks gather heat from the sun during the day so it stays a bit warmer here.

I think this pot must be in the perfect spot. It’s sheltered, not a lot of direct sun, close enough to the edge of the patio to get some rain. The plants in this one are just thriving, still.

My adored Dusty Miller and purple Sweet Alyssum combination. I think I’m trying to drink in as much as I can, because Winter’s coming. I’m hoping the pictures will give me something to cling to.

I was going to get rid of the mums, because they were so dead. But when I looked closer, I could see lots of tiny buds underneath the dead blooms on both plants. So I gave them each a good haircut. We’ll see what happens – maybe they’ll have another bloom before frost!

The potato vine sure is getting colorful.

The overly friendly Artemisia, still making friends. It just might make it out of the garden before frost sets in, lol.

The Twins, lavender and sage.

I don’t know how long I stood there, trying to get a shot of the bees. I swear, every time I walk outside, there are at least half a dozen bees that I can see flying all around the sage plant, busily buzzing away. Lots of bumbles and some honey, which is a big YAY! because it means there’s a hive of honey bees around here not too far away. They are all hustling now, trying to reap the last bits of pollen. They all seem to really love the sage plant. I did manage to finally catch one of the bumbles in this picture, he’s near the middle.

Another bumble!

This pot – it looks awkward the way the Sweet Alyssum is overflowing down the side, but I love the combination of colors and textures. You can see Autumn’s fingerprints here.