Tag Archives: Flowers

October 24’s Friday Fleurday

Although the flowers are of course dwindling now I am still discovering a few here and there.

The matador roses are really hardy and in some protected corners I see them blooming even into December.

The crane’s bill flowers are almost all gone now, though.

Asters are quite tolerant and I may also find some of them well into November or December.

Chrysanthemums are the stars of course and will tolerate a light frost; I’ve even seen them survive a freezing rain. The fact is, however, that time is running out for our garden lovelies. It’s time to enjoy the last of them!

Happy Friday.

Colours

There are so many beautiful colours at this time of year, and not just the gorgeous leaves.

I’ve been watching these bigleaf hydrangeas since May and have seen their glorious transformations throughout late spring, summer and autumn. They’re fading now, but what a beautiful gift they have been!

And then there are the vanilla fraise (strawberry vanilla) hydrangeas. Not nearly as dramatic as the bigleaf hydrangeas, but their beautiful metamorphosis from white to pink is equally glorious. The picture below from early September shows how they have changed.

Happy Saturday.

October 10’s Friday Fleurday

Although we’re really into October now – and in Canada, Monday is Thanksgiving Day – there are still lots of autumn flowers about. Here are a few of these lovelies.

A bevy of asters …

… some vibrant chrysanthemums …

… beautiful red dahlias …

… and last but not least, vanille fraise hydrangeas that are entering their autumn pink phase.

Happy long-weekend Friday.

October Third’s Friday Fleurday

Over the course of the last four months, I’ve been watching an hydrangea shrub growing in one of the city’s parks that’s morphing from a variegated dark pink and white to blue and purplish-blue and lastly, to red. I first posted about it here.

June 23

As I indicated in my previous post about this hydrangea, one that shifts from red to purple, blue or purplish-blue and back to pink or red again is a “Bigleaf” hydrangea (hydrangea macrophylla) that is reacting to soil ph levels. This one has been putting on a particularly magnificent colour show all summer long that is now extending into autumn.

July 3
July 18
July 22
August 22
August 28

By the middle of September this shrub was well on its way to turning a dark, autumnal red as you can see below.

September 15
September 15

And as of October 2, those dark red hues were very predominant.

October 2
October 2
October 2

It’s amazing how beautifully this hydrangea shrub has changed and transformed and provided colourful blooms for months.

Happy Friday.

September 19’s Friday Fleurday

Today’s fleurday has a visitor.

I saw this lovely dragonfly – technically, a blue-eyed darner – resting on one of the impatiens flowers hanging above our deck. I was very happy to see it because we have had a huge crop of spiders this year and dragonflies love to invite them for lunch!

This one seemed to be drowsing in the warmth of the sun; it rested there for about an hour before flying away on those transparently beautiful, gossamer wings; they’re so delicate looking but extremely strong.

I love the impatiens flowers but I love even more the fact that the dragonfly stopped for a little rest in my deck garden.

Happy Friday.