fall blooms

We've had two very windy days now, and I'm happy to report the oil/gas film on the lake from our neighbors' boat sinking has disappeared.

Our boat was pulled yesterday, so this weekend we'll be getting that winterized and ready to cover for the winter. If the weather cooperates, we'll also try and get a start on taking the dock out. It's way more fun getting all of these things out in the spring than putting them away this time of year! Here are a few more of the blooms I've been enjoying the last week or so.

Carefree Beauty rose

hibiscus

turtlehead

snakeroot (I think "Brunette")

anemone

veronica

John Davis rose

more September blooms

Kind of a quiet, boring day here - we spent most of the day leveling a space for my new garden/storage shed. Hopefully, I'll have photos to share of the new shed within the next week. Tonight we went out for pizza with friends - a very fun evening of catching up.

Here are more photos of this weekend's blooms.


This is by far the best photo I have ever taken of spiderwort. Usually they come out looking very flat. This one is perfect (if I do say so myself!). About a month ago, I cut most of the spiderwort back, and now they are blooming again.

This is the wild coneflower that's been blooming all summer. This is a workhorse!!

The mountain bluet is blooming again also. I love these spidery blue blooms.

I have a snakeroot plant that has been moved many, many times. For the last few years, it hasn't been very happy and hasn't bloomed. So last fall, I moved it to yet another home. When I dug up the plant, it split into 3 plants. They all look healthy, but they are just now sending up these little flower stalks. I think they're the same variety as the ones I showed blooming a couple months ago - big, beautiful flower spikes. I'll give these another year here - hopefully, they'll bloom earlier and better next year. (If not, I do have a couple more places to try :) !)

Here's one of my dark snakeroot - I believe this one is "Brunette." It's just starting to bloom. Again, not terribly impressive. This one may not be getting as much moisture as it wants - it's right next to the river birch clump. Gosh, I hate to move these things all the time.

The physostegia - or obedient plant. This is a fun little plant that should keep increasing in number every year.

Turtlehead. Not a great photo - but look at all those blooms! I love these plants.

I think this is the last veronica in the garden still blooming.

Brown-eyed Susans are still going strong.

A tuberous begonia. These finally started blooming last week - way too long to wait for container plants!! I had some red and some yellow that did quite well this year, but the rest were only so-so. I may decide to not do these next year...

The white "David" phlox is still looking very pretty. Some of the other phlox have blooms, but they're coming to the end.

The Japanese anemone are still looking good.

Another shot - I just love these airy little blooms.

I just took some under-performing begonias out of a hanging planter by the streetside door, and put in these pansies. (And then the temps jumped into the 80's for a couple days - of course!!) I absolutely love this color.

summer gardens

This is such a great time of year for Minnesota gardens! The roses are starting their second show. The asiatic lilies are pretty much done, but the orientals and daylilies are in full glory. All of the prairie-type blooms are jumping on the bandwagon. I just love it! Here are a few of the things in my garden right now.


Ligularia "Othello" - I just put in this plant this year. I have "The Rocket" which is starting to show some color too, but my first try with this one. I thought I was buying one "Othello" and one "Desdemona" - but when I got home, found I had two "Othello." Not a problem - they're looking good!

I love veronica - I have it in several gardens. The bees love it too - there's at least one in this photo. This is in the west porch garden - with pink roses - beautiful.

Not a great background - but the bloom is perfect! This is J.F. Quadra - a new climbing rose. I planted it last year - and this is the second show of blooms this year - lots of new growth. Meresy_g at Edge Effect commented that my red daylily would look nice planted in front of Russian sage. I agreed and started looking to see if I had any red and purple combos like that - I just happen to have a Russian sage planted beside this climber. In another year or two, I think it could be looking pretty good. (This is on the fence - wonder if I could talk my neighbor into planting something tall and purple and airy on his side??)

My wild brown-eyed susans have been blooming for awhile - but the hybrids are just starting. I love them with purple coneflower and phlox.

More balloon flowers - I love the color - and the bud is too cute.

This is snakeroot or bugbane. The latin name was cimcifuga but they have reclassified it, and I can never remember what it is now. I like snakeroot, and that's what I always call it. This is another one that the bees love. This is a plant that will grow in sun, but prefers partial shade. The plant is fairly large and then gets these wonderful tall blooms. It adds great height to the shade border.

Here's a photo of the snakeroot plant - the buds are all curly and maybe snakey?? and then as the flowers open the bloom stalk straightens. I think it's very fun. And it has a cool fragrance.

Last but not least, phlox. I have this purple, plus a darker pinkish purple, a dark pink, and white. They all smell just like phlox should.