Blooms September 2020

 

Above, Anemone hybrid 'Pretty Lady Emily'

Below:  Austin rose 'Munstead Wood'

Cryptanthus 'Absolute Zero' 
The flowers are tiny
The Aloe rubroviolacea flowers continue to open slowly
 Aloe reitzii:

 For unknown reasons, last weekend's 108F+ (42c+) temperatures scorched the Dahlias badly, but had no effect on the Hydrangeas.  It was a surprise to see the big flowers look so fresh through such blistering heat--even with considerable sun exposure!  This is 'Miss Mini Penny' which has extra large "mops" of extra small florets

  Good thing I picked some Dahlias for the vase the Friday prior.  I also picked some figs so I would not have to go out in the extreme heat:  
Dahlia 'Avignon' with roses 'Belindas Dream' and 'Peter Mayle'
I used the same greenery for a shot of Dahlia 'Holland Festival' and rose 'Firefighter'.  The tomatoes were from a volunteer seedling, and were delicious.  Both the figs and tomatoes were less decimated by rodents this year due to the removal of the Italian Cypress.     
With a thin crop of non-usual flowers, how about the koi?  Little Les:

Rita Hayworth, Les again, and Princess Yuki.  Hana and Moore missed being in the picture, but they are well. 
Another creature I never noticed, it's peering out from behind on the rose on the right:
Yet more flower stems from Yucca 'Bright Star'.  They've all flowered on their own schedule this year, rather than all at once. 

Our long stretch of intense heat did the garden no good.  I am amazed the garden looks as good as it does. 

Comments

  1. Yes the garden still looks wonderful. Funny the hydrangeas survived unscathed. I have the Firefighter rose and absolutely love it's intoxicating scent.

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    1. 'Firefighter' is my very favorite for fragrance. The scent lasts and lasts.

      Hydrangeas--they are now all long established and the roots are in deep shade. Maybe that helped. I was expecting toast.

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  2. Beautiful, I especially love your vase creation.

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    1. Thanks!

      I keep seeing reports your area's smoke pollution is absolutely horrific--stay safe! Hope it clears up soon.

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  3. Absolute Zero is quite a cutey! That rose is wonderful.

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  4. Two of my Yuccas bloomed on very different schedules too. Thrilled as I was to see your pink Japanese anemones already in bloom, I was especially taken with that Cryptanthus. It's fabulous!
    Nice to see the koi too - I guess the smoke is of no concern to them. I assume Boris and Natasha are largely house-bound with you while we all wait for something to clear the lousy air out of here.

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    1. It is a fabulous cryptanthus. I'm thrilled I haven't accidentally killed it yet, lol.

      B&N are definitely house dogs in hot weather. Daily walk and quick dashes outside for bathroom breaks is it. Koi are fine so far. Whew!

      Now clearer weather is predicted by Thursday...hoping, hoping!

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  5. Dahlias hate high heat! Can't grow them at all where I live in Phoenix. You are so lucky you can ... normally! The Austin rose is amazing!

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    1. They seemed fine with 90F. 110F: nope! Yes I do feel very lucky to grow Dahlias. They are summer fun.

      I was amazed some of the roses held up fine to that extreme heat. Plants can surprise us.

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  6. Oh, that rose, Munstead Wood. Perfection.

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    1. It also has an A++++ quality "old rose" fragrance, though it is not strong, at least not in this dry climate.

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  7. Looking at these photos, I would never have guessed that you had 108 degrees not long ago!

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    1. I didn't take pictures of the scorched parts. Too depressing!

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  8. What you have shown us here is gorgeous. I like seeing your fish too.

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    1. Thanks, Lisa. The fish are a lot of fun. They are all teenagers now, too. Well behaved teenagers! Ha! Ha!

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