Monday, October 08, 2007

THE OCTOBER "GARDEN"

OCTOBER.... sigh..........
If they gave an award for weeds, I am sure I would be in the top 5. My modesty won't allow me to claim first place, but it would not surprise me! It is a good thing I live on the very edge of town with a tenth of a mile of woods separating me from the folks with perfectly manicured lawns. That way, maybe the rest of the town won't notice. On the other hand, I have more flowers blooming at any time of the year than any of the rest of them. People come up to me in the grocery store or Post Office, strangers have even pulled in my driveway when they see me working out front to compliment me on my yard or to ask what this or that flower is. Not many people are used to the fall blooming azaleas, and actually, I haven't seen any others in town. It is a small town... just under 500 population. If we have a moderate winter, I can have something in bloom every week out of the year, generally camellias and pansies. The earliest camellias have started to bloom, the rest are budding up nicely. I have had to remember to water them; it has been so very dry. It is easy to remember to water things that are blooming or veggies, but we ofter forget about the trees, shrubs, and bushes we tend to take for granted. My neighbor has purchased a chipper and while he is learning how to use it, I get his practice piles! I have had 3 truck loads dumped out front at the end of my turn around. The top of that pile is over 4 feet high! I bought a wagon to go on the back of my new John Deere and that has been a huge help compared to walking one wheel barrow load at a time around the property. Truth is, walking down to the furthest end (1/10th mile) and back, let alone push a load of mulch down and back, is very difficult for me. Not whining here, honest, as long as my wheelchair stays in the barn, I am reasonably happy, I am just being honest with my limitations even tho my brain still thinks I can do what I did 20-30 years ago. Anyway, I planted a new fall azalea yesterday. Can you believe I have some digitalis in bloom? Are they confused or what? See the dead leaves on the ground? If you look real hard you can see that same old pansy in bloom right behind the digitalis. See that bit of purple? See that spot of white?The English Daisy plant has finally opened. This was just one plant in a 4 inch pot about 4 years ago. It is real tall, too. Punkin had a flea emergency. One of the fall azaleas next to the daisies. These are volunteer tomatoes, cherry and plum, growing out of the compost pile! The window boxes are looking a bit sorry, but the camellia is coming along. This one is over 8 feet tall now. Gee, thinking of all the work I have left to do is making me tired. Maybe Punk has the right idea, but I will find a softer place.






3 comments:

Janice said...

Wowzers! You have some gorgeous blooming going on there! I need to look into the fall blooming azaleas and other things, so I can extend my flowering time. Everything looks lovely. Don't worry about your weeds...I call that a free spirit garden...I have a lot of that around here...lol. Yes, your kitty has the right idea, but you may have to wait until winter for your nap...you still have things blooming now! I had no clue English Daisy would get that big..what a surprise! Great photos.

ancient one said...

Love,love, your October Garden !! Everything still looks so pretty. I have this stuff growing in my flower bed right now that is blue. To me it is pretty. I asked my SIL if she knew what it is. She said I always thought that was a weed...LOL I got a beautiful bunch of blue blooming weeds!!

possum said...

Remember, a weed is a flower growing in the wrong place. If your blue "flowers" are where you want them, they are just blue flowers. Or, another way to look at it is, they are wild flowers... well, they are. Supposedly any flower that comes up on its own is wild, right? But many people now actually have wild-flower gardens, transplanting the little things and "weeding" around them. SOme of them look quite nice. Hey, just because it did not come from a nursery... Another friend who cherishes her wild flowers calls them her frugal garden, she did not have to pay for any of them. As long as you can enjoy them, you are way ahead of the game. They are God's little gifts to you. AFter all, what are weeds but God's little gifts to the earth so we have little patches of color where WE did not plant them.