Fall color

With these cooler temps that we have been having, a lot of plants have decided to fit one more flush of blooms in and a nice range of colors as well.

The pink Turks Cap hadn't bloomed all summer but the conditions must have gotten right.


All three of my Ruellias have decided to bloom again.




This Ruellia normally gets over five feet tall and blooms in profusion, but this year the heat kept the blooms to a minimum. With this cooler weather it knew it was its time to bloom. But it only got to about four feet tall.


The pink and yellow Lantana decided the butterflies needed a boost before the first frost so it had a medium flush of blooms, albeit mostly all yellow.


The Salvia Greggii did well all summer but had been without blooms for a while. But here they come again.



You can see the two Flame Acanthus behind this pink and white Salvia Greggii that are about to burst into flame again.


I don't know what kind of Salvia this little one is as it was a gift from a Native Plant Society friend and was unmarked. It couldn't cope with the heat and my stinginess with the water and didn't bloom all summer. It finally bloomed and I am so happy with it. Red is my favorite garden color. I probably have too much red in the garden but hey, it's my garden.


The Euriops and the Esperanza add a little yellow to the garden. The Esperanza blooms are a washed out kind of yellow and not as bright as they were earlier.



I found these two little Esperanzas growing out of cracks in a big rock. They're really entrenched in there and I can't get them out. So I guess I'll just leave them and see what happens.


There are more reds scattered through the garden like the Hummingbird plant in the little rock-lined bed by the back steps. This bed was a real problem as it seemed nothing I planted there did well. But this plant has just flourished.

I think in years to come the Hummingbird plant will completely fill this bed up and will really be a dazzling display of red color.


This next red is a "gimme" plant. I don't really like geraniums and I like miniaturized plants even less. But if someone gives me a plant, I will find a place and take care of it. This one surprised me. It didn't bloom all summer and I thought it might just be a non-bloomer but in reality I think the temperature wasn't to its liking until now. It's a real beauty and I really like it.


A little pink jewel peeking out of the Lariope caught my eye and I had to take a picture. I don't really remember planting this little Oxalis but it was a pleasant surprise.

This Ocatillo was one of those gardener anxieties I've talked about. I dug it up on a ranch in west Texas last October and it has been unchanged ever since. I thought it had taken hold but was unsure as Ocatillo looks for all the world dead until it leafs out. And it finally did. Could a big blooming be in the near future? I sure hope so as they are a beautiful blood red. Did I mention, I like red.

There are more blooms still but this post is getting long so they will have to wait until later.