Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Autumn Beauties for Flower Wednesday


Hello, Dear Friends, thank you for joining me
as we wind down the beautiful month of September together. 

The gardens have been gradually preparing for 
their long winter's nap, but there are still some 
lovely faces to greet me as I take my daily stroll. 

Here dahlia peeks over the lily-pad leaves of 
trailing nasturtium, while canary bird vine flutters overhead. 


Canary bird vine (Tropaeolum peregrinum)
 is easily grown from seed in areas with cooler summers. 


This nasturtium relative grows 8 to 12 feet, winding around a trellis or 
a taller plant, like here, where it is twining up a climbing rose. 

It gets its name from the flowers that look like canaries in flight. 

You can find the seeds in spring here: humeseeds.com  


I still have roses, too! This beauty loves the cooler 
temperatures. I have lost the name of this rose, 
but even without a name, it is lovely as can be 
with its purple leaves and apricot blush. 


The blooms are very large and fragrant. 


Autumn Joy sedum is also another star of the 
autumn garden. These beautiful plants 
are very old.....maybe 20 years old! 


I have three large clumps that are aptly named,
as they do bring such joy! 


As the season progresses, the color 
changes, becoming deeper and deeper. 


Here they are in August as the flowers start to open. 


Bees love them! 
They do require full sun and a well-drained site. 
Even in rainy Washington State, they thrive
because they are planted on a south-facing hillside. 


I rarely have to water or fertilize them and only 
cut them back in early spring. Cutting them back 
earlier in our rainy climate leads to rot as water 
can get into their hollow stems, so I leave them
 be all winter and cut them once I see new growth in spring. 


Rosy begonia are still blooming, too! 


I added some pretty chrysanthemums
to the rail above. 

I bought this flat of begonias in May and 
 just placed the whole flat into my galvanized tray planter
and they have been blooming ever since! 
I simply added weak fertilizer with every watering. 


Calibrachoa still blooms sporadically, too. 


These look like mini petunias, but have no scent. 

The hummingbirds love them, though. 


Believe it or not, we have year-round hummingbirds
here. Annas Hummingbirds are year-round, while
Rufous migrate south. 

I actually have a heated hummingbird feeder! 


Double begonia bloom with boxwood in a planter box. 

Begonia can take some sun, but prefer filtered sunlight
or bright shade. 


These have also bloomed all summer and look like miniature roses. 



Impatiens love the cooler weather and are at their peak
right now. I had these inside on my step-ladder for a while, 
but they were unhappy, so I put them on the window ledge
where it is nice and shady and they are very happy now. 


Soon Ramblin' Man will take the canopy down
for the winter, but for now, Maggie enjoys 
taking naps in the late afternoon sunbeams. 


A pot of white impatiens brightens her sleep. 

She is my elderly pet - 18 years now. 

We left the canopy up for the winter the first year
only to have it carried off by the wind, 
slamming into the glass doors and flipping
over the rail onto the ground. 

The door wasn't broken, but the frame has a permanent dent
and the framework of the canopy suffered some injury
that Ramblin' man was able to repair. 

We wisely put it away for winter now! 
We sometimes have powerful storms in winter. 


All of my petunias are gone now, 
but alyssum, bacopa and the fairy garden remain. 

The large, leafy plant is pineapple sage, 
which will soon have lipstick colored blooms. 
The leaves taste and smell just like pineapple! 
So good on a fruit salad! 



I planted these from 2 tiny pots in May. 


The fairies have been busy all summer 
collecting their orbs and tending to their garden :)  




Soon they will go into 'hibernation' :) 


Tiny alpine geraniums and star creeper 
have been well tended to all summer. 


But once the last of these blooms fade, so will the fairies.....


Of course, fall means pansies, too. 

These little charmers self-seeded among the wildflowers. 
(Herb Robert)


More self-seeders - 'whisker face' pansies. 

I will be planting winter pansies and bulbs 
next, and I will share those with you soon. 

I hope that you enjoyed visiting my flowers
and I hope that you are enjoying some 
lovely fall blooms where you are, too! 

xoxo

Today I am linking with: 

Click!

Won't you join the fun? 

xoxo

39 comments:

  1. Your garden is lovely...and I love your birthday party setup too! Slow cooker chili is the best! Today is my first visit and I will follow along here. Please stop by for a visit when you have a chance. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, you got a pic of the hummingbird! It isn't that easy to get a picture of them unless they're sitting still on a flower or tree. The begonia planter box is so pretty, and even more so with a few drops of water on the flowers like this. Love that little fairy, she's sweet. The white impatiens are lovely also. Autumn has surely arrived around your home, Karen.

    ~Sheri

    ReplyDelete
  3. You still have a lot of color left in your neck of the woods! Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Karen, Your flowers and gardens are incredible. I love seeing the transition nature makes from summer to fall and still give such great beauty. WOW you captured the hummingbird beautifully. Thank you for sharing your beautiful fall surroundings. Loved the garden tour. Have a great week and blessings to you dear friend. xo

    ReplyDelete
  5. your gardens are still providing such a beautiful view, mine are quite sad and need tending to. my hummingbirds have left for the season and i miss seeing them!!! i need to get outside and plant my petunias!!!

    ps...thank you for the compliment on my blouse. i love that one so much i went back and purchased 2 more, they only had white but it fits great and is so comfortable!!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. It is a bit sad when the summer is over... Lovely Maggie ❤︎ Your fairy garden is a good idea ... Enjoy the beautiful autumn days!

    ReplyDelete
  7. A flower wonderland for sure, my friend. You always share such beautiful images.

    Sweet hugs to you!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I always love to see what's going on in other people's gardens. I guess I'm snoopy! But it is fun to see what's still blooming for you. I love that tiny geranium in your fairy garden. So cute! Thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear Karen, thank you for all those wodnerful autumn-flower-pictures! Isn't it amazing, how many colours we still can see? And.. I love your hummingbirds, you lucky one, to have them arround your house all year!
    Happy week to you, my dear friend, sending Love and hugs and blssings,
    Claudia xo
    P.S. I have shown my september-flowers too in my newest post ;O)

    ReplyDelete
  10. You really have an abundance of healthy plants right now as mine are dwindling down. Must be our locations. My impatiens don't like cooler weather as much as shade. I love begonias but their stems always seem to break off in our wind. You are so fortunate!

    I love the capture of the hummingbird. I had no idea they stayed in the U.S. at all in the winter. How cool to have a heated feeder. Where do they nest?

    Such an interesting post, Karen!

    Jane

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jane, love when you stop by! The hummingbirds have little cup-shaped nests in the brambles - we have plenty of those....! Blackberries everywhere - taking over! I didn't know the hummingbirds wintered over here until one January day, a few years ago I saw one trying to get nectar out of my long abandoned feeder. I did some research and found out that the Anna's stay year round. We generally have fairly mild winters here - not much snow, although we can have stretches of freezing weather for a couple of weeks or so, but still it is amazing that they survive. I feel so sorry for them sometimes! xx Karen

      Delete
  11. That's a lot of photos! I think the peach colored rose is my favorite. I bet the hummingbirds really enjoy the heated feeder!

    ReplyDelete
  12. There is so much to love and enjoy in your garden. Its beautiful Karen. We too still have roses in flower . I envy your beautiful canary vine. I must get some more seeds as I I haven't grown it for years. Make the most of your garden before winter hits :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Smashing! Those little yellow flowers really do look like canaries, how fantastic. I have some calibrachoa which are still doing well. It's the first year we've had them and I was hoping they might manage to last over the winter to next year. We'll have to wait and see. x

    ReplyDelete
  14. Such a joy to gaze on these stunning images of your gorgeous garden. You still have so many beautiful blooms. I love your patio, it looks so peaceful and how lovely to have humming birds all year round, magical. Have a wonderful flower filled week :)x

    ReplyDelete
  15. There is so much to look at and enjoy in your beautiful garden. Sadly mine has come to an end, we really do need to add some Autumn colour and a few evergreens to give it some interest. Love your fairy garden, such a delight.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Your garden is gorgeous. Living in Florida it's harder to achieve that lush look and very hard to grow roses. Have a wonderful week!

    ReplyDelete
  17. You have a gorgeous garden! And the bees have great taste, too! :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Oh my Karen, your garden is truly lovely!! The sedum are especially spectacular! Have a beautiful fall day.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Karen, thanks for sharing these wonderful pics.
    Happy Fall

    ReplyDelete
  20. The flowers are beautiful! Your photos are always so beautiful ♥

    summerdaisycottage.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hello, you have a lovely garden and beautiful fall flowers. The colorful trees are pretty too. I love the Canary Bird vine and the hummer shot is adorable. Our hummers have headed south, I miss them already. Beautiful post and photos. Happy Wednesday, enjoy your day!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi Karen.... Well it is a beautiful Fall in our neighborhood :-) I want to tell you thanks so so much for all the kind comments you leave... I have been trying to figure out how to e-mail you, to thank you personally. If you ever want to chat my email is on the top right of my blog sidebar..
    Giant Hugs!
    Bella

    ReplyDelete
  23. Such a beautiful garden. It's always special to be treated to a tour.

    I keep looking at the hummingbird picture. You captured such a beautiful moment! I have 4 feeders that are visited regularly and it's always such a treat to watch their antics. I traditionally take down the feeders after the first frost (which could be as late as December) but I think I'm going to leave them up this year to see if I have any customers this winter.

    Marilyn (in Dallas)

    ReplyDelete
  24. You have lots of beautiful things in your garden! Wonderful! xx

    ReplyDelete
  25. Goodness that hummingbird photo is marvelous ...
    You have such a lovely garden and I have enjoyed my visit seeing all the blooms.
    I particularly like the fairy garden and to see the Autumn Joy sedum ... is indeed a joy.

    Enjoy these last remaining days of September.

    All the best Jan

    ReplyDelete
  26. Your garden is just the sweetest, Karen. I love your Autumn Joys. Wonder how they would grow in South Carolina.....hot, humid summers.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Hi Karen, your flowers are wonderful. It definitely looks like some are still hanging on strong. I love your fairy. It's nice that you have some year round hummingbirds. Our last one was spotted 6 days ago and it was just a single one so I guess they're all gone for the year. I miss them already as they're always such a joy to watch.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Fabulous Fall flowers, Karen! I have yet ever to plant Sedum, but your beautiful plants remind me I want to plant some. I have not successfully set up hummingbird feeders at this house, but I am thrilled when hummers come to enjoy our Camellias in early Spring and other flowers throughout the summer and Fall. Thanks for posting. xx

    ReplyDelete
  29. What a lovely post, it looks so beautiful in your garden...and the hummingbird and the apricot rose, love!
    Have a nice day!
    Titti

    ReplyDelete
  30. Beautiful! I love those drawers!!!

    Marina from very far away

    ReplyDelete
  31. Karen, I've not heard of whisker faced pansies before but the name is perfect for them! Too cute! I'd love to take a nap in the sun like Maggie. ♥

    ReplyDelete
  32. Dear Karen,

    You must be really enjoying your Autumn garden and all the beautiful flowers and plants still blooming. The hummingbird photo is amazing and really love the pretty rose, such a gorgeous shade.
    Hope you are enjoying the week and wishing you a happy weekend ahead
    Hugs
    Carolyn

    ReplyDelete
  33. The cat seems very happy blessed with hospitality by you and your garden.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Dearest Karen,
    Your garden looks still so very healthy and happy for this time of the year.
    As for the hot climate in Georgia, only now those plants that survived the hot summer can breath and do well. We lost however six of our beautiful Jardins de Bagatelle roses.... That is six out of nine! Rough to grow anything here.
    So visiting your blog is such a JOY.
    Hope you get to enjoy it a while longer as well.
    Sending you hugs for the weekend.
    Mariette

    ReplyDelete
  35. Beautiful display of your flowers, the ones that look like birds are so cool.
    Love the start of the color in the trees and Maggie sure looks like she is enjoying her afternoon nap :) My favorite roses have a touch of apricot on them. I am sad as I haven't seen our hummingbirds in a couple of days so I think they may be gone, how fun to have them around all year long!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Hi Karen, I wanted to email you but I cannot find your email. Is it possible that you can write me at patshakerathotmaildotcom
    Your flowers photos are amazing! My best to you, Pat

    ReplyDelete
  37. So pretty! How nice to still have all those lovely flowers blooming. I just love the Autumn Joy sedum. I am enjoying my Sweet Autumn which is a vine that blooms in September.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for stopping by! Your comments are important to me and are very much appreciated. xx Karen

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...