It's hard for me to believe that the first frost is only a few weeks away. I'm still wearing sandals every day, that means summer, right?
 |
| Monarch on bicolor buddliea |
 |
| Green Envy zinnia |
Oh, but the mornings are so cool. That's the sure sign that I'm in denial. Summer is fading before my eyes.
 |
| Soraya sunflower |
 |
| Funny Face rose |
 |
| Dwarf pennisetum with cherry profusion zinnias |
It's a little sad, isn't it? I'll miss walking out the door and grabbing dinner ingredients as I need them. But mostly I'll miss the flowers.
 |
| Verbena bonariensis |
 |
| Pearl Crescent butterfly |
 |
| Karly Rose grass |
The hardest part for me is that most of my favorite flowers are late bloomers. I feel like I just never have enough time to enjoy the dahlias,
 |
| Dahlia |
 |
| Dahlias with Sedum Autumn Joy |
or the hydrangeas,
 |
| Front-Endless Summer hydrangea Back-Quickfire hydrangea |
or the Queen Red Lime zinnias especially. When frost does threaten, these flowers are always still peaking. So I end up gathering bouquets for inside, so that I can enjoy them to the bitter end.
 |
| Queen Red Lime zinnia |
 |
| Queen Red Lime zinnia |
 |
| Queen Red Lime zinnia |
I guess I'd better spend every moment I can outside enjoying the last of the blooms. There is still a lot of gardening left to do.
 |
| Ruby throated hummingbird on Candy Corn cuphea |
 |
| Painted lady butterfly on Black Knight buddliea |
My husband is always puzzled that I still spend so much time watering the garden. I've reminded him many times that perennials, shrubs, roses, and trees all need to go into winter strong. They'll do much better if they are well watered before the bitter cold arrives.
 |
| Hot air balloons! |
|
 |
| Hot air balloons! |
But let's not think about that yet. Let's just enjoy the last of summer, and the last of the flowers. They'll be gone all too soon!
 |
| Penny ball |
 |
| Tall Ribbon Mix snapdragons |
