A Scant Autumn

Mizzy BunnyButt among the cosmos.

Weather, eh?  First the ravaging Beast of the East, followed by relief at a great spring, then the despair of a long drought.

The hot summer did give us a good veg haul, (thanks to my relentless watering).  On the other hand, our summer bulbs staged a go-slow, & in some instances, died.  If not for annuals, our summer flowerbeds would've been a bust.

However, the good news is, there are real gardens out there more wisely planted than my own, with actual flowering flowers in their beds.

You can find these beautifully burgeoning gardens by visiting Mr P for his Six on Saturday & links in his comment section to said wonderlands.





Now, because it's you doing the asking, I've found Six things in my own garden to share.




1.  Begonia

These came free with an order from some nursery or the other.  They started with great promise, poking little hairy leaves through the soil . . . and then stopped.

This week, we've finally got our first bloom.  The plant itself is no bigger'n my outstretched hand.

Small but mighty.

2.  Actaea

The garden was pretty flowerless when we moved in this past spring, although had evidence of long ago beds in the usual places.  One shady bed ran the length of our boundary fence, giving me plenty excuse to buy rakes of shade tolerant plants.

Among others things, I got three actaea.  The only one to bud is the Black Negligee.

Just beginning.

Rather than growing straight up, this one looks like a goose chasing a too-nosy dog.  That dark stem, those burgundy buds, then the white flowers - spectacular combo.


3.  Cyclamen.

There was a single cyclamen in that shady bed when we arrived.  I thought I'd given it enough room when I planted the brunnera.  Apparently not.

Outa my way, brute.

4.  Woody

During my shopping frenzy, it was the fern's description which sold me on woodwardia.  The new growth was meant to come out scarlet, then go through colour changes until the mature fronds turned green.

Mine never started scarlet, but did give a nice burgundy red in the beginning . . .

New unfurled frond on left, 08/09/18.

. . . which mellows to a coppery bronze that's stunning.  Don't look real, do they?

A week later.

The mature green isn't bad, either.  I like my woody.  May have to get a second one in hopes of that scarlet new growth.  Purely for investigative purposes, of course.  Sacrifice is the byword in gardening, you know.


5.  Tomato cuttings.

Yes, I'm really scraping the barrel to get Six here, guys.  I've never taken tomato cuttings before, so perhaps you'll forgive me.  Since my rosella cherry tomatoes did so well this year - both in numbers & taste - time to forswear my foolish non-tomato cutting ways.

Grow roots, my little darlins.

6.  What is this thang?

I posted this a few weeks ago, hoping for an identification.  Most folk suggested rosemary, but if it is, it's not the usual kind.  The foliage is much more delicate & flexible to touch, plus smells a bit citrusy in the lemon/lime spectrum.  There is an underlying herb scent as well.

In bud.

Maybe now that it's in bud, that'll helps with identification.  And if not, you'll be seeing it again when it blooms.

Shattered from harvest duties.

Even though the flowerbeds've been slacking, the veg've kept me busy harvesting, slicing, seeding, saucing, jamming, freezing, collapsing.

Autumn.  My favourite time of year.

Thanks for stopping by.  Hope to see y'all again, real soon.