Mid September with Hints of Autumn

In one week the season has stepped from summer onto the edge of fall, and there is no going back. Autumn's touch is evident. There are golden and orange tints in the trees, especially in dogwood leaves, which are always among the first to turn, and the breeze brings a few leaves fluttering to the ground.Cornus florida, our native flowering dogwood, is beginning to turn colors in mid-september.

I walk in the garden and feel sunshine on my face, but it is a gentle breath and no longer the hot, sticky lick of summer. I call autumn our second spring. Many summer flowers, like these in the front planter, are rejuvenated in the cooler, yet still warm air.

I walk slowly and enjoy my tour around the mid-September garden, with its pleasant atmosphere and hints of autumn:

Oakleaf Hydrangea leaf

Southern magnolia seed pods

Evergreen Dryopteris erythrosora, Autumn fern, does not turn colors in fall. Rather, new growth in spring has autumn tints.

Clockwise from top left: Licoris radiate, the spider lily; Ilex verticillata, the winterberry; Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight'; Houttuynia cordata 'Chameleon'.

This old rusty woodpecker is in the woodland garden.

I hope you enjoyed the tour. Have a great week!   Deb

Spring!

The definition of "spring" is "to leap forward," and while this is not the definition of the season, it could be! In the past two weeks, my garden has vaulted firmly out of the slipping clutches of winter and firmly into the lively, new season. Almost all trees and shrubs are awakening, and colors are becoming vibrant. 

Redbuds, dogwoods and Japanese maples create a tapestry of pink, red, white and purple.

The white flowering shrub on the lower right above is Pieris japonica 'Cavatine.' Below is a close-up of its blooms:

I have about twenty Japanese maples in my garden, and I love them all! Here is emerging foliage of four of them:Clockwise from top left: Butterfly; Vitifolium; Orangeola; Sango-Kaku

Hellebores are wonderful late-winter bloomers, but their blooms persist for months, gradually fading to shades of green. That double one on the left, by the way, is a chance seedling!

Looking toward summer, this scabiosa, or pincushion, bud will soon be ready to open:

The color of Deodar cedar 'Feelin' Blue' is especially vibrant this time of year:

A scene inside the woodland garden:

I am grateful for these flowers that grow wild in the woodland garden:

Cultivated flowers in the woodland garden include these sweet pinks:Top: Korean spice viburnum, in bud and bloom. 2nd row: Magnolia 'Jane.' 3rd row: Camellia 'Taylor's Perfection.'

Most of my daffodils finished blooming weeks ago; these in the woodland garden are among the last to flower:

Finally, I am newly smitten each year when I see the emerging fronds of autumn fern, Dryopteris erythrosora:

Happy spring!