Garden Bloggers Bloom Day October 2014

This might well be the last Garden Bloggers Bloom Day of 2014 that features outside plants. I better start fertilizing the Anthuriums so I'll have some winter blooms to post!

A lot of my blooms this month are from annuals.

My fall pansies (that I will leave all winter and get to enjoy again in the spring). These particular ones look almost psychedelic.

And, of course, I have a couple of mums, in bright, cheerful colors.

And this annual. I'm not sure what it is, but I LIKE it. It's had a nice lloonngg bloom period, too. If I see it next year I'll be sure to buy it again.

On to the perennials.

This Coreopsis redshift has done really well this year.

I added this Helenium Mardi Gras just recently. I have one in another spot where it's kind of hidden and I wanted one up front. Does it count if I bought it in bloom just a few weeks ago?

I hope so. Cause if not I can't count this Solidago spacelata Golden Fleece. I'm hoping it's one of the less aggressive ones. I hear such good things about Solidago as a plant for native organisms (like the tiny wasp in this image) but bad things about them taking over. This one is planted in the back yard where Piper, our dog, can potentially do damage. She does sometime like to run and dig (hence the support structure -  not because the plant needs it but for protection against the fuzzy menace.).

The fuzzy menace, herself. Unlike me, she likes the change in the weather and looks forward to spending more time outside, especially when it snows!

My Vernonia angustifolia Plum Peachy is almost done but the last of the butterflies are still finding a few blooms. Like the American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis) above and the out-of-focus Monarch (Danaus plexippus) below.

And I have a very few blooms left on Buddleia. Also a nice stopover plant for migrating Monarchs (Ok, I admit it, the photo is from a week ago but I've just been eagerly waiting a chance to post it and now's a good time, right?).

My Aster (Symphotricium) October Skies is still in it's full glory.

As are most of my Gaura (which really don't photograph well except on very, very still days, which we don't often have here at The Edge).

I'm even getting some reblooming on this tiny thrift (Armeria Amada Rose) that I have tucked between the bricks edging the bed and a small bird bath.

That's it for my garden this month. Thanks to Carol at May Dreams for this meme!

Don't let me near a garden center until next spring!

The Husband and I were running errands on Saturday and we were near one of the more distance garden centers I like so we stopped in. I wasn't expecting to buy anything. OK that's a lie, I did want to look in their greenhouses since they carry quite a few houseplants. Not that I have space for more houseplants...

It's kind of late to be planting stuff up here in New England AND we're in a bit of a drought. Not a good idea to buy stuff for the yard. So I didn't buy MUCH.

But I've been wanting to add a Goldenrod (Solidago sphacelata Golden fleece, native to the SE US) but I haven't found any all summer long so when I found some I snatched one up.

I've also been wanting to add a Helenium Mardi Gras. Ditto. I looked for one and just now found it.

And while I was browsing I notice one other plant that was COVERED with bees. Of course I looked it up. AFTER I planted it. Oh, a bit aggressive? I should have put that in the back yard instead of where I planted it. Welcome Physostegia virginiana. Please don't take over.

So, three new plants to water and cross my fingers and hope they survive the winter. Now if I can just avoid garden center until Spring.

Except for Messelaar bulbs. I do still need to add bulbs to the garden. I'm sure there's space somewhere.

I'll just pop into the garden center since I'm out this way...

I have several Local Garden Centers that I visit regularly.  I haven't been going regularly lately since the theory is that fall is not a good planting time in New England.  I understand the logic, winters can be harsh.  But the weather is nice and I WANT to get my hands dirty!  So today when I found myself out near one of the garden centers that is further away I decided to pop in and see if they had any Solidago (goldenrod).  It was only 15 minutes further away...

Solidago is one of those plants that look great en mass for a short period of time.  I'm kind of wishy-washy about them.  But they are fantastic for pollinators and I'm kind of in between plants right now.  My Agastache is fading and my Aromatic Aster hasn't really started to bloom yet.  So I need something for the pollinators.  {side note:  the pink Agastache in this week's GBBD posting is called Heat Wave and I got it from Bluestone Perennials}

Sure enough they had about six plants, all of the same strain, set out on display.  I snagged two of them (large pots, I hope to divide them into more plants) and, oh, look at those peppers.  And those.  I bet I could make a nice fall container planting if I mixed the purple ones with the colorful ones...

Into the cart they went.

And how can I visit the LGC without going into the greenhouses.  This is one of the few local places that carries a wide selection of indoor plants.  I saw several sources of temptation and then... is that what I think it is?  Tucked back out of the way?  It is!  It's...

A variegated ficus!  I've been lusting after these since I saw one in an office last winter.  I had found a small one at the grocery store but it didn't do well (you can bring some plants back from the edge of death but others are just too far gone).  This one is large, healthy looking and reasonably priced.  Mine!  Now I just need a nice pot for it.  And a place for it to live.  Honey, we're rearranging the furniture again!

So that errand I was originally on?  Yeah, I never got to it.  I got distracted by plants.

Hi, my name is Diana and I'm an addict. 

But I'm a happy addict!