Ornamental Grass

Colors of fall

Strawflower Buds

The strawflowers are pretty but I believe the buds make better pictures.

Milkweed bug, oncopeltus fasciatus

Did some research and found the following websites and info on this bug at http://insected.arizona.edu/milkinfo.htm and http://www.whatsthatbug.com/ It is a milkweed bug, oncopeltus fasciatus. Here's some info copied from one of the sites above. "Habitat... Milkweed bugs are usually found in small groups on milkweed plants, often on the underside of the leaves. Milkweed plants sometimes fill entire fields in good years, but usually are found along roadways. The plant produces a milky white sap when a leaf is removed. These plants are large (3-4 feet high) with sprays of small white flowers in the summer. In the fall, seed pods develop which are 4 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. When the seeds ripen the seed pods open up releasing the seeds which float on fluffy white parasols. Milkweed bugs can be found on seed pods piercing the wall of the pod to feed on seeds. Predators ... Milkweed bugs have few predators because they concentrate in their bodies bad tasting compounds found in the sap of milkweed plants. The bugs use the bright coloration to advertise their bad taste. Inexperienced birds that taste their first milkweed bug are unlikely to try to eat another orange and black insect! Some insects that do not taste bad use similar color patterns to fool birds. These are known as mimics." HELP - Can anyone tell me what these insects are. They are only on the butterfly weed seedpods. I am assuming they are no problem since they aren't on anything else. I am planning to leave the plant until all the pods have opened and the seeds have floated away on their fluffy parachutes.

Flying Flowers

I worked in the yard all day cutting back perennials and pulling up overgrown annuals ... one of those exhausing days. A photo session with the monarchs eased the pain. The sky was a beautiful blue and the orange of the monarch against the blue was amazing. Click on the image to get a better view.

Cosmos

These cosmos grew very tall so I had to shoot the photo looking up at the sky. This is an experiment with my photo software. I have these little brown double winged moths everywhere. All the insects seem to like the cosmos. This bumblebee is one of the many that like them. Another "sky shot" of a very tall cosmos. I wish the sky had been blue when this photo was taken.

Moonflower Seed Pods

I've been trying to keep the moonflower deadheaded but there have been so many blooms and when I miss a couple of days, you can see how many seed pods there. I need to start letting some of the pods develop so I will have seeds for next year.

Burning Bush, Dwarf Winged Euonymus

The burning bush is beginning to turn red, with a mixture of orange and gold. Soon it will be a beautiful solid red. I remember seeing one of these bushes at a distance years ago before I started gardening and thought it had red blooms.

American Painted Lady

What a beautiful butterfly! The orange zinnia really

brings oout the orange in the American Painted Lady.

They truly are "flying flowers".

Fall is in the air

I love the feel of fall in the air, especially the cool weather and less humidity. It will soon be time to starting cutting back all the flowers that have given me so much pleasure. I saved seeds from the Mexican Zinnias in 2008 and planted them in pots in early spring. They have been blooming all summer and will continue until frost.

The roses love the cooler weather and show it with a new flush of blooms, as you can see from this peach color rose. I just noticed today that the hydrangea is producing new buds. I don't know why that is happening this time of the year. I hope they develop into blooms but I'm not expecting to see them do as well as in the spring. I don't have any luck with mums returning when I plant them in the fall. The asters are doing well so I think I will plant more of them instead of mums.

Strawflower-Photo and Painting

Now that it is cold and rainy, I have started painting again for the first time in 5 yrs. I am trying the water mixable oils for the first time and I'm having a hard time learning how to use the paint. I am progressing very slow and I know the center of the flower will take even more time. Oh well, I'm in no hurry.

I see where these flowers got their name. The new blooms feel like dried flowers. I was so pleased with how this photo turned out. It is going to be my next oil painting.

Sunflowers "Maximillian"

This is a beautiful sunflower (Maximillian). The blooms are small and look like daisies, but as you can see, there are lots of them. The only problem is the height. Mine is at least 8-9' tall and I don't know how to stake them, so they are leaning on other flowers.

Canna Lilies and Crepe Myrtle

I am excited that the canna lilies and the crepe myrtle are blooming again. The crepe myrtle had lost all of its color and now is almost as pretty as it was when it first bloomed. I deadheaded the canna lilies and they have more blooms than the first blooming.

Worm on marigold

Could this be what is eating holes in the leaves of my flowers. I don't like the worm but it made an interesting photo. By the way, I didn't think critters liked marigolds!

Cosmos

These cosmos have grown so tall I have to look up to take photos. They were so pretty against the clear blue sky.

Morning Glory

What a surprise to see these morning glories blooming on the arbor. I wonder who planted these?

Flowers blooming Sept. 15, 2009

I didn't realize I still had so many flowers blooming until I walked through the yard and wrote down each thing. I hope they last a while longer. I'm not ready to see the garden turn brown :( and not looking forward to cutting everything back.

1. Ageratum
2. Allium, purple
3. Angel's trumpet
4. Asters (annual and perennial)
5. Butterfly bush (buddleia)
6. Canna lilies
7. Cardinal Climber
8. Celosia (cockscomb
9. Chrysanthemums
10. Clematis "Sweet Autumn"
11. Cosmos
12. Diamond Frost Euphorbia
13. Fall Crocus
14. Four o'clocks
15. Geraniums
16. Germander
17. Johnny jump-ups
18. Marigolds
19. Moonflower
20. Morning Glory
21. Oxalis
22. Petunias
23. Pink salvia
24. Portulaca
25. Purple Fountain Grass
26. Purple salvia
27. Roses
28. Salidago
29. Salvia "Lady in Red" (Scarlet Sage)
30. Salvia "Maraschino" (Texas sage, bush sage)
31. Salvia "Victoria Blue"
32. Sedum "Autumn Joy"
33. Sunflower "Maximillian"
34. Verbena "Homestead"
35. Vinca (annual)
36. Yarrow (achillea millefolium)
37. Zinnias

Moonflower

I love the moonflowers. The blooms open at dusk an close mid-morning. They only last one day but there are lots of blooms. The fragrance is so nice. If you're lucky you might see a moth on it at night. In the second photo, you can see the moonflower bud, an open flower and a spent flower from the previous night.

Butterfly weed seed pods

The butterfly weed (Asclepias Tuberosa) seed pods are very interesting. After they have turned brown and dried, the pods crack open and the seeds are dispursed as the wind blows them. This is a great plant for the garden to attract butterflies, moths, bees, etc.

Honeybees

A few days ago I noticed a few honeybees flying around the hummingbird feeder. Within a couple of days there were so many I had to remove the feeder. As you can see in the photo, the bee guard does work. All the bees chose the spot without the bee guard. I wasupset that I had to remove it since this is the time the hummingbirds are feeding heavily to prepare for their long journey south. My consolation is there are lots of flowers in the yard for them to feast on. I am glad to see that the honeybees seem to be making a comeback. I wish I could find the honey.

Johnny Jumpups

These johnny jumpups must have come up from seed from the spring crop. I love these plants because they bloom very early spring when nothing else is blooming and they drop seeds and come up again the next year, or as you can see from this photo, in the fall with beautiful blooms.