I'm two days early for Bloom Day but hopefully you don't mind. Weather conditions here have been so variable, I've no idea what to expect from my garden the rest of this month but there are still a lot of flowers at the moment. The biggest show is in the cutting garden, where the dahlias continue to reign supreme. This may be my most prolific dahlia season yet, even if they took their time getting started.
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| Clockwise from the upper left, this group includes: Dahlias 'Breakout', 'Calin', 'La Luna', the noID variety that was sold as 'French Can Can' but isn't that, 'Romantique', and 'Summer's End' |
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| Top row: Dahlias 'Belle of Barmera' and 'Lady Darlene' Bottom row: Mutant and normal forms of Dahlia 'Fairway Spur' and D. 'Labyrinth' |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlias 'Enchantress', 'Iceberg', 'Lavender Ruffles', and 'Mikayla Miranda' |
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| Helianthus 'Sunbelievable Brown-Eyed Girl' deserves its name. My seed-grown sunflowers are already gone. |
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| Rudbeckia hirta 'Cherokee Sunset' has bountiful blooms too |
Cosmos and zinnias share space in the raised planters of the cutting garden with the dahlias but they're fading fast. Like the dahlias, their foliage is afflicted with powdery mildew, which is common this time of year when our morning marine layer often combines with wind and higher afternoon temperatures.
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| Cosmos bipinnatus in a range of colors |
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| Top row: Zinnia elegans 'Benary's Giant Purple' and pink and yellow varieties from 'Candy Mix' Middle: noID varieties in gold, orange, and pink Bottom: Zinnias 'Queen Orange Lime' and 'Mazurkia' |
Outside the cutting garden there were some welcome surprises.
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| This Malayasian orchid (Medinilla myriantha) started blooming well over a month ago. It was a pale pink that gradually turned this delicious purple color with hot pink stems. |
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| Top row: I had to scour my records to identify Amarine belladiva 'Emanuelle' (left) and Lycoris springeri (right) Bottom: Hebe 'Grace Kelly' and Hippeastrum 'Luna' blooming off-schedule |
A few other plants are beginning their seasonal appearances.
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| Eriocapitella hupehensis (aka Japanese anemone) |
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| noID Liriope muscari |
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| The Osteospermums are gradually reawakening, although I've recently cut much of their scruffy summer foliage back. The plant on the left is a self-seeded variety that reminds me a little of O. 'Berry White' except that the undersides of the petals aren't pink. I think the plant on the right is O. '4D Violet Ice'. |
I can always rely on certain regulars.
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Gazanias 'Gold Flame', noID orange variety, 'Otomi', and 'White Flame' |
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| The unsinkable Grevillea 'Superb', which blooms all year long |
I've sorted the best of the rest into color-themed collages.
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| Top row: noID Angelonia, Pelargonium peltatum 'Blizzard Blue', and Polygala myrtifolia Middle: Calibrachoa 'Superbells Double Blue', Duranta repens 'Sapphire Showers', and Nemesia 'Sun Glow Bi-color' Bottom: Leucophyllum laevigatum, Salvia 'Mystic Spires', and Symphyotrichum chilense |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Abelia 'Kaleidoscope', Achillea ptarmica, Angelonia 'Archangel White'. noID Dipladenia, Eustoma grandiflorum, noID Pentas, and Phyla nodiflora |
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| Top row: 2 pink-toned Catharanthus roseus and Cuphea 'Honeybells' Middle: Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', noID coral Dipladenia, and Fuchsia 'Windchimes White' Bottom: Gaillardia 'Spintop Copper Sun', Leucadendron 'Summer Red', and Pelargonium peltatum 'Burgundy' |
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| Top row: noID orange and yellow Calibrachoa and Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam' Middle: Cuphea 'Vermillionaire', Faucaria tigrina, and Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream' Bottom: Lantana camara 'Irene', Melinus nerviglumis, and Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum' |
That's my flower show for this month! For more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day posts visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens on October 15th, its traditional day of observation. In the meantime, best wishes for a pleasant weekend.
All material © 2012-2023 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
You certainly have some beautiful Dahlias, Cosmos, Zinnias, and everything else. Wow. I'm going to go back and view them all. Happy early GBBD!
ReplyDeleteIt's unusual for me to have so many dahlias this late in the season but then they did take their time arriving this year, Beth. It'll be hard to let the flowers go but the foliage is looking awful.
DeleteHappy early Bloomday Kris! So many lovely flowers...
ReplyDeleteWithout the cutting garden, most of what's left in the larger garden seems in short supply to me but then I have unrealistic expectations when it comes to my flower supply, Loree ;)
DeleteOf all your Dahlias, I think I favor the less showy 'La Luna' the most. That said, 'Lady Darlene' is spectacular.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering about Rudbeckia hirta 'Cherokee Sunset': the left and right hand photos are so different from each other... I love the burnt-brick on the right!
What a festive explosion of colors the Malayasian orchid is displaying. Reminds me of Callicarpa berries.
Chavli
I've come to love 'La Luna' too, Chavli. The noID dahlia (that was sold to me as 'French Can Can') looks like it may be related to 'La Luna'. While some of the blooms are pure yellow, others more closely resemble 'La Luna' with stronger yellow stripes.
DeleteI'm guessing that Rudbeckia 'Cherokee Sunset' is a mix. I was expecting they'd all look the same but I got 3 different variants; however, the yellow/gold one (not shown in this post) seems to die back before the flowers open completely.
Look at all those beautiful dahlias. And so much more, you have quite a floral display.
ReplyDeleteOur Santa Ana winds are back today and more dahlias were taking nose dives. Hopefully, there will still be enough in good shape to cut tomorrow for IAVOM.
DeleteOh, so many wonderful colours! And those dahlias... My favourites!
ReplyDeleteThe dahlias were late to bloom this year, Nikki, but every tuber flowered (eventually). I think they're heading toward the exit now, though.
DeleteSo many dahlias, and so beautiful. In my zone 5b clime, they must be dug up in the fall so we've never had more than a handful of these plants. I enjoy seeing blooms I can't (or no longer) grow and you had quite a number of these. Although I grow zinnias at our community garden (I usually forget to show them in my GBBD posts) I have never heard of Mazurkia and I'm making a note to look for the seed next spring.
ReplyDeleteI also pull up my dahlia tubers each year, Alana, although that's not dictated by my zone 10b/11a climate. Because dahlias like more water than I give anything in my borders, I grow them in the raised planters of my cutting garden where I can manage their water needs without overdoing it throughout my garden. I dig the tubers up to free the space for plugs, bulbs and seeds of flowers I grow for cool season enjoyment.
DeleteWhat a great variety of blooms!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!
Amazing!
Thanks Lea! Happy GBBD!
DeleteBeautiful dahlias, zinnias, and rudbeckias! I love Gazanias, usually so reliable and bright here, but all eight of mine this year have been eaten by slugs (I think? so much rain) and haven't bloomed in more than a month, though they keep trying. Nice to see yours looking so healthy and happy.
ReplyDeleteA lot of rain is seldom an issue here, although we did receive much heavier rainfall between October 1st 2022 and September 30th 2023. We usually get no rain from mid-April until November but we even picked up 2 inches in September from a tropical storm that reached into Southern California. Low rain means few slugs or snails. Our resident raccoons do a good job of taking care of those that do show up. Unfortunately, mildew encouraged by the morning marine layer and very warm afternoons is currently putting an end to dahlia season.
DeleteSo many beauties! I'll stick with admiring the 'Cherokee Sunset' since I can grow that here. In fact, I'll be searching out some seeds for that one.
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I've had good luck with Rudbeckias, Lisa. I think putting the plugs with the dahlias into the raised planters of my cutting garden, which get more water than any other area of my garden, made the difference.
DeleteWhat a moment in your garden! Fabulous. I love Dahlia 'Breakout' - stunning. I haven't seen a Gazania since my nursery working days, so those were a cheerful surprise too :) Happy GBBD, ah I mean week! - Julie Witmer, formerly WMG
ReplyDeleteThanks Julie. I expect Gazanias are much more common in my climate than yours ;)
DeleteSo many beautiful flowers still happening. Everything looks very happy and lush. My little Faucaria bloomed it's heart out this summer. They remind me of snapping jaws. And of course the dahlias are stunning. Just finishing packing mine away for the winter so a real treat to see yours still blooming.
ReplyDeleteI believe the Faucaria's common name is tiger jaws, Elaine. My plant is tiny but it's produced one flower after another. As to the dahlias, mine aren't long for this world either - the mildew worsens by the day and the thick marine layer, back this morning, is once again to be followed by hot, dry conditions which will make things even worse.
DeleteEvery visit to you garden is a treat and feast for the eyes. Your collection of blooms is amazing and I especially love the Dahlias and Rudbeckia 'Cherokee Sunset'. Thank you for the wonderful views!
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting, Lee. It's pretty clear that the dahlias will be long gone by the next Bloom Day.
DeleteAlways a pleasure to see what is in bloom in your garden, Kris. Such variety – beauty abounds! Eliza
ReplyDeleteThanks Eliza. I'm already struggling to accept the pending sharp reduction in choices for IAVOM.
DeleteWow! What an overload of goodness. Your October garden is packed with beauty.
ReplyDeleteThanks Yvonne. Alas, the season is changing, even here in coastal Southern California ;)
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