Another Dry Bloom Day

Considering how dry it is, the garden is doing very well. The drought monitor came up in a Facebook post so I went to look. Haywood County is in a moderate drought. The feral Sheffie Mums look about the same as always.

The Blue Wood Asters are doing their thing though there has been some loss in their numbers due to extreme desiccation.

The time of vegetation is coming to an end. A season's worth of flowers are converting to seeds. October's Bloom Day is actually our average annual first frost date. Things should be getting frozen dead about now. I'm not expecting it anytime soon though. Next week is showing highs close to eighty.

Drought, shorter days and a nice cool spell have set autumn in motion on its regular schedule.

The color is coming on fast. This was this sumac's last chance. It was either have excellent fall color or face eviction. It stays. I will have to manage its spread. It suckers madly in search of world domination.

I have mentioned the abundant Blue Wood Asters.

The lower angle of the sun is making for some interesting lighting while the vegetation lasts.

Now imagine twice as many Blue Wood Asters.

I spent the morning in the gardens cutting all the tall flower stems that had flopped over the paths. The Sisters will be here next weekend. No need for them to have to push their way through. There should be some blue asters left. There will be plenty of fall color. I can't promise cool.

The first bloom of the Tatarian Aster has lasted a good long while. I like that feature in a plant.

The Tall Flower Meadow is fading. Peak color has past. Now it will prepare seed for dispersal. This is a vital part of the editing process. The seed bank in the ground is being pushed towards the more desirable.

I am liking the new Aromatic Aster, Symphyotrichum oblongifolium. I sure hope it can compete.

The mums and the asters are the last to bloom. Once they are gone it is pretty much over, but at Bloom Day Central you can learn how to have blooms every day of the year. December is my toughest month.

Autumn is here and I see a chance of rain in the extended diagnosis for late in the week. Better late than never and the ground certainly needs to be refilled. The creeks are running dry.

Considering how dry it is, fall is looking about the same as always. There are some early bare patches, but we have megatons of leaves yet to drop.