Bloom Day - September 2024 (Late, late edition)

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, the long-standing meme created by Carol of May Dreams Gardens, didn't fall neatly into my schedule this month so this post is three days late.  My garden is usually at its lowest point in late summer and this year is no exception.  A recent heatwave didn't help matters either, although with extra infusions of water my cutting garden still shines.  The Dahlias, Rudbeckias, and Zinnias planted there are the clear stars of my garden again this month.

This is Dahlia 'Brown Sugar', which is new to my garden this year.  The 2 tubers I planted bloomed later in the season than the majority of my others.

In contrast, Dahlia 'Creme de Cognac', also new to my garden this year, was one of the first to bloom and continues to be one of the 3 most prolific, especially as I planted 2 tubers of this one too.  My only beef with this plant is that the flowers generally have short stems.

I planted 2 tubers of Dahlia 'Catching Fire' saved from last years crop.  Both have flowered very well, especially given that my husband accidentally broke a large step off one of the plants.  They both responded to our 6-day heatwave with significant flushes of fresh flowers.  It gets my silver award for prolific blooms.

Dahlia 'Excentric' is another new addition this year.  It's pretty but I haven't decided whether it's worth saving the tuber for planting next year.  I only have so much room...

Dahlia 'Fairway Spur' is a late bloomer that produces very large "dinnerplate" flowers.  It's another tuber I saved last year and will definitely store away for use next year too.

Dahlia 'Labyrinth' didn't impress me last year but then I didn't provide it enough breathing space to thrive.  This year I put the tuber in a half-barrel with some smaller plants (not dahlias) and it's done well.  It's a keeper.

This is Dahlia 'Lady Darlene' and I'd swear she's changed her appearance this year.  The yellow in the bloom was far more pronounced last year and the flowers were smaller.  This year, I'd describe it as red with cream accents rather than red and yellow and the blooms are huge!

Dahlia 'La Luna' grew from a tuber I planted in 2022, which didn't appear or bloom until 2023.  I saved 2 divisions of the original tuber and planted both out in 2024.  The color of the blooms varies from pale yellow, to white, to white with yellow streaks.  Some flowers are multi-petaled like those shown here and some are single-petaled.

I planted a single clump of Dahlia 'Summer's End' I'd saved from the prior year.  The plant is over 5 feet tall and barely contained by my largest tomato cage.  This one wins my gold prize as the most prolific dahlia of all.

'Vancouver' is the only dahlia I purchased as a potted plant this year.  I cut its first flush of blooms shortly after purchase.  After a brief hiatus, it's just produced its third flush of blooms.  The blooms get more spidery as they mature.

My other dahlias include: Dahlia 'Break Out' (hit hard by the recent heatwave), D. 'Iceberg' (which the resident grasshopper seems to love), and D. 'Mikayla Miranda' (one of my favorites).  Two other dahlias have yet to bloom, D. 'Hometown Hero' (which has buds at last) and D. 'Belle of Barmera' (which is still bud-less).

I purchased 6 plugs of Rudbeckia hirta 'Sahara' by mail order as the plants aren't commonly offered by my local garden centers.  Every one of the plants is at least slightly different from the others.

Clockwise from the upper left, the Zinnia elegans varieties currently in bloom include: 'Benary's Giant Coral', 'Benary's Giant Wine', 'Golden Hour', a noID orange variety (picked up as part of a 6-pack to fill in some empty spots), 'Raspberry Limeade', and 'Zinderella Lilac'.  All but the noID orange variety were planted from seed and have proven to be much more vigorous than those planted later as plugs.

There are a few plants elsewhere in the garden that are putting on a good show, at least by our hot, dry summer standards.

Clematis terniflora is the only member of the genus that's ever survived in my garden.  This year more of the vines are weaving through the plants surrounding the arbor than are climbing it because I left it to its own devices.

Two of my 3 Cupheas are blooming: Cuphea 'Honeybells' and C. 'Starfire Pink', although the latter was hit harder by the heatwave.  I cut back all the C. 'Vermillionaire' a month ago and they haven't yet rebounded.  Cupheas are short-lived perennials in my Southern California climate.

I don't call Grevillea 'Superb' my standby flowering shrub for nothing.  The flowers look lighter to me after the heatwave but they keep on coming.

Polygala myrtifolia (aka sweet pea shrub) flowers more lightly during hot weather but it persists.  One plant was badly burned and others were scorched in spots but, as it self-seeds like crazy, their are plenty more to serve as replacements.

As is true most months, there are also a few surprises.

This Digitalis purpurea (foxglove) doesn't look great but the fact that it's still producing endless bloom stalks in September is extraordinary

I missed most of the blooms of Pelargonium schizopetalum earlier this year but was thrilled to see a few more of the unusual flowers this month.  They seem to appreciate a little shade in my climate so I'm looking for an ideal spot to suit all those I currently have in pots.

This is the first time this Yucca gloriosa 'Variegata' has bloomed

Other flowering plants waved their petals goodbye as they exited for the season.

Clockwise from the upper left: Agapanthus 'Elaine', Amaryllis belladonna (white form), Eustoma grandiflorum (one of few that survived the heatwave), and Hemerocallis 'Persian Market'

That's it for the main show.  As usual, I'll end with the best of the rest, swept up into color-coded collages.

Clockwise from the upper left: Ageratum houstonianum, Liriope muscari, noID Scaevola, and Tulbaghia violacea

Clockwise: Alstroemeria 'Claire', Fuchsia 'Windchimes White', Pandorea jasminoides, and Tanacetum parthenium

Echinacea purpurea, Pelargonium hortorum, and Pentas lanceolata

Echeveria 'New Black' and Leucadendron salignum 'Blush'

Clockwise: Alstroemeria 'Inca Sundance', Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream' (not as robust as its cousin 'Superb'), Lantana 'Lucky Yellow', and Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum'

Enjoy those late season blooms, whenever and wherever you find them!  If you're posting late like I am, check in with Carol at May Dreams Gardens to see what blooms she and other GBBD contributors are celebrating this month.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party