With my cutting garden effectively decommissioned, I had to search harder for materials to fill two vases this week. Luckily, fall's cooler weather prompts blooms from a few flowers.
Senna bicapsularis (aka winter cassia and moneybush) blooms reliably in late October. As much as I appreciate its cheerful blooms, its chief importance in my garden is that it serves as a host plant for cloudless sulphur butterflies.
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| I spiced up the Senna flowers by adding a few stems of Tagetes lemmonii (aka Copper Canyon daisy and Mexican marigold) and berries of Auranticapa rhombifolium |
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| Top view |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Auranticarpa rhombifolium, Corokia x virgata 'Sunsplash', Senna bicapsularis, Tagetes lemmonii, and my fall prop featuring 2 mice treating gourds as amusement park rides |
Barleria obtusa (aka bush violet) is also a fall bloomer. In contrast to the Senna which has stems that soar way above my head, the Barleria is more of a groundcover in my garden. It also flowers (and self-seeds) prolifically.
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| With the return of cooler temperatures, the Osteospermums are slowly coming back into bloom, joined here and there by Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Barleria obtusa, Correa 'Ivory Bells', Eustoma grandiflorum, and Osteospermum 'Violet Ice' |
Rain is in the forecast this week. It's possible it could start as early as mid-day today and continue into Wednesday morning but Tuesday offers the strongest prospects. Southern California isn't expected to get anything close to a deluge but this round of showers may mitigate fire risk in the southern part of the state, as well as ending the fire season in the northern and central areas of the state. It's also possible that it'll deliver substantial snowfall to the Sierra Nevada mountains, an important source of water for the state.
For more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.
All material © 2012-2022by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party