It's been a wet November so far and for the last few days, the rain hasn't stopped at all. It alternates between heavy rain and pounding rain that bounces off the pavement. Did I mention the wind? Add to that the cold temperatures and the fact that the skies are so gray that it shaves off a couple of hours of daylight and it feels as if nature herself is mourning the tragic loss of life in Paris. My thoughts and prayers are with the people affected by this horrible act and for the twisted minds that devise and perpetrate such heinous crimes.
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Vinca minor. I inherited a slope covered in this which has spread as it is wont to do. It's removal is a winter project.
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If we have cooperative weather, the tetrapanax blooms might beat the frost this year. Fingers crossed.
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Viburnum × bodnantense ‘Dawn’ actually started blooming last month but is now covered with blooms emitting a sweet perfume. This one will also bloom through spring.
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Surprise! Helleborus argutifolius 'Pacific Frost' looks like it will be blooming a bit early this year.
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That crazy hot-colored pelargonium is now in the greenhouse for the winter where it will most likely continue blooming again this year. Do these things ever take a break?
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A recent addition, this Hydrangea macrophylla 'Rie 09' AKA 'You and Me Romance' is a dwarf variety that appears at first like a lacecap until all flowers are open and it has a mophead appearance. It'll stay inside since it's blooming out of season but will go to a permanent outdoor location in the spring.
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The last of the Cyclamen blooms for this season. In case you were wondering, that's not leaf litter left by a lazy gardener, it's organic mulch. :)
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'Fragrant Cloud' rose must be as strong of constitution as it is of fragrance to continue to live with my neglect.
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Last but certainly not least, the Thanksgiving Schlumbergeras are starting to bloom reminding me of my mother's November visits when she was still living. It was during one of these visits 20 or so years ago that she gave me a couple of these. If you missed the full story a couple of years ago and are interested, look here.
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This one, brought in from the greenhouse to it's traditional home in the unused upstairs bathroom is blooming it's head off.
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I've since added to the collection some of these that bloom around Christmas, some at Easter, and was given one that blooms around Pentecost.
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I'm reminded of the poem "A Farewell" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson which reminds us, among other things, that nature continues even as we depart this plane of existence.
Flow down, cold rivulet, to the sea,
Thy tribute wave deliver;
No more by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
Flow, softly flow, by lawn and lea,
A rivulet then a river;
No where by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
But here will sigh thine alder tree,
And here thine aspen shiver;
And here by thee will hum the bee,
For ever and for ever.
A thousand suns will stream on thee,
A thousand moons will quiver;
But not by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is hosted on the fifteenth of each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Be sure to click on over there to see what's blooming around the world today.
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiescant in pace.
The video below is of the Faure requiem if you're in the mood.
But today is bloom day and amidst the dark and wet, we can still find beauty.
Grevillea victoriae is covered with buds and is just beginning to bloom which it will do all winter.
Vinca minor. I inherited a slope covered in this which has spread as it is wont to do. It's removal is a winter project.
If we have cooperative weather, the tetrapanax blooms might beat the frost this year. Fingers crossed.
The spots that appear bright are actually raindrops falling on the camera lens.
Viburnum × bodnantense ‘Dawn’ actually started blooming last month but is now covered with blooms emitting a sweet perfume. This one will also bloom through spring.
Surprise! Helleborus argutifolius 'Pacific Frost' looks like it will be blooming a bit early this year.
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope'
Mahonia 'Charity'
Of course Abutilon megapotamicum is nearly always blooming in my garden.
'Marjie' rose has delighted me with fragrant blooms all summer and now fall.
That crazy hot-colored pelargonium is now in the greenhouse for the winter where it will most likely continue blooming again this year. Do these things ever take a break?
Brugmansias in the greenhouse.
Abutilon 'Hot Pink' recently in for the winter.
A recent addition, this Hydrangea macrophylla 'Rie 09' AKA 'You and Me Romance' is a dwarf variety that appears at first like a lacecap until all flowers are open and it has a mophead appearance. It'll stay inside since it's blooming out of season but will go to a permanent outdoor location in the spring.
A perennial Impatiens.
The last of the Cyclamen blooms for this season. In case you were wondering, that's not leaf litter left by a lazy gardener, it's organic mulch. :)
'Fragrant Cloud' rose must be as strong of constitution as it is of fragrance to continue to live with my neglect.
Fatsia japonica
Hardy Fuchsias will continue blooming until we get a heavy frost.
Just realized that I forgot to photograph the tuberous begonias still blooming. Oops.
Last but certainly not least, the Thanksgiving Schlumbergeras are starting to bloom reminding me of my mother's November visits when she was still living. It was during one of these visits 20 or so years ago that she gave me a couple of these. If you missed the full story a couple of years ago and are interested, look here.
This one, living in the greenhouse, is a little slower to start this season.
This one, brought in from the greenhouse to it's traditional home in the unused upstairs bathroom is blooming it's head off.
I've since added to the collection some of these that bloom around Christmas, some at Easter, and was given one that blooms around Pentecost.
I'm reminded of the poem "A Farewell" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson which reminds us, among other things, that nature continues even as we depart this plane of existence.
Flow down, cold rivulet, to the sea,
Thy tribute wave deliver;
No more by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
Flow, softly flow, by lawn and lea,
A rivulet then a river;
No where by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
But here will sigh thine alder tree,
And here thine aspen shiver;
And here by thee will hum the bee,
For ever and for ever.
A thousand suns will stream on thee,
A thousand moons will quiver;
But not by thee my steps shall be,
For ever and for ever.
Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is hosted on the fifteenth of each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Be sure to click on over there to see what's blooming around the world today.