October Color

Here are some quick pics I took around the garden and greenhouse today.

Streptocarpus are blooming generously in the greenhouse after finally getting a little attention from a delinquent gardener.  They are very forgiving.

This is such a vigorous cultivar that I’ve ended up with several of them–they root very easily and bloom magnificently over a long season.

Dozens of flowers on these plants!

Another view.

Angelina Jolie is not my favorite actress, but she’s trying hard to be my favorite Streptocarpus!

Not sure which cultivar this is, but it is striking.

Brother Tim gave me a small plant of this Chrysanthemum several years ago, and it was neglected in the greenhouse for several years.  I finally took cuttings from that original plant and put one in the garden in front of the greenhouse.  It has turned out to be an excellent addition and bloomed at just the right time when everything else was packing it in for the year.

Different view…

This plant has quite a few flowers–not covered the way some of the florist mums are, but definitely showy.

The rose Europeana has one last flower.

Asters are still making some waves in the driveway bed.

Another view.

The witch hazel is bright yellow right now.  The leaves will be gone in a few days–this is a short-lived show.

A full view of the witch hazel shrub–you can see that the leaves at the ends of branches are already gone.

Ceratostigma blooming quietly in the orchard bed.

Osteospermum “Akila” have responded well to cutting back and feeding, but they won’t get flowers again before frost.  I’ll move them into the greenhouse and hope they make it through the winter.

I bought the Nemesia in this window box early in the spring.  It has been much more resilient that I would have believed–this box is tough to water and keep moist.   I pruned everything back last month and it is growing back beautifully.

Pelargonium “Petals” really shines in the autumn after getting all those amazing leaves through the summer.

Not in my garden, but worthy of note–these are Boston ivy-clad walls at North Seattle College.

My absolute favorite new greenhouse plant is this Thunbergia from brother Tim.  It has grown really well and bloomed endlessly.   I will try to get cuttings of it, and figure out a way to grow it and show it off for next year.

Another newer Streptocarpus–lots of netting and frills on this one.

This is the first time this Streptocarpus has bloomed.  It is pretty fun–no two flowers are alike!

Another view–this is a true blue, too, which I can never get enough of.