Hi Alison! Not quite as much flowering for me... my autumn clematis is blooming right now, and somehow my marigolds are still going strong. Usually by this time of the year, the marigold foliage gets brown and straggly, but it's looking good so far. The snapdragons are blooming for the umpteenth time, too.

I've harvested lavender twice already this year, and one of them (can't remember if it's the Munstead or the Hidcote) is blooming yet again. Not too bad since they started out as pint-sized pots this spring! My lavender "Goodwin Creek Grey" has some short stalks of blooms on it again, too. I was going to bring that inside this week, along with all of my other plants, but I think I'll let the buds open up outside first.

The glads that I planted late are blooming, and I'm about to rip them out. They were labeled as "white" but they bloomed a very unfortunate pink.

I do have some other good color in my garden... "Graham Thomas" is starting to give me some good reddish hips. "Rotstrahlbusch" panicum is turning burgundy at the ends. The Japanese bloodgrass glows in the front yard as the sun sets in the West. Oh, and my bergenia are starting to turn red around the edges!

Hi Alison.. my big Sweet Autumn Clematis is just finishing up. ACtually, the last rain finished it really. My clematis Mormaria Estonia has been blooming since spring with a few flowers at a time. I am amazed...but, she's still blooming.

The regular fall things are blooming for me: various sedums, mums, asters along with some gaillardias, lavenders (like Kymies..mine are reblooming - munstead - after a sheering), mini roses, goldenrod, a second flush of Jupiters Beard, tricyrtis, tail end of the rose of sharon, daylilies (Pennysworth, May May, Many Happy Returns), stragles of phlox, butterfly bushes, rebloom of spiderwort Sweet Kate, Cranesbill Rozanne, scabiosa, chocolate eupatorium, Jap. Anemomes, coreopsis, honeysuckle vine and some annuals.

Actually...more than I thought.

Good question, Alison.

...Beverly
PS...missed you at the swap this fall!!

oops... I forgot. My tricyrtis are blooming, too.

For some strange reason, my sedums are not--maybe because they don't get enough sun. Since I'm not in love with the flower color, but love the foliage, I may just leave them there and hope they never bloom.

Temps in the 30's tonight, and possible frost in the morning! I'm going to try lugging all the citrus in the house this evening, and will take them back to work (their winter home) when I go in this weekend.

(I missed being at the swap, Bev! So much so that have having a little swap, 10-15 people, this weekend! I can't keep all those roses.... can I?)

Go Alison..swap those Roses!! Let us know what you get. Glad you're gonna get to swap!

It's nice you have a good winter home for your citrus trees.

I've been collecting seeds for WS. Bakemom is going "for the record" with her free newbie seed packs. So, I am giving her all the ripe seeds I won't be using.

Hey Alison..what did you get at your mini swap!!??

Actually, I did fairly well, picking up things for the big slope at work that we will be "colonizing" over the summer.

-- 1 baggie full of grape hyacinths
-- 2 "Baby Sun" coreopsis
-- 4 Balloon flowers
-- 2 unknown daisies
-- 2 primroses

I brought home one of the roses, but did give away 4, plus several pots of chammomile, oregano, thyme, and vinca vine. UNfortunately I forgot to take the rest of my yellow iris -- and that big Othello rose wouldn't budge. I may never trade off that bad boy...

Odd, late season addition; my cypress vine started blooming this weekend. Funny thing is I don't remember planting it this year. Don't think I'll get a whole lot of seed.

Lets see been awhile since I posted anything to this forum. I still have lavender, miniature roses, cannas, hollyhocks, strawberry flowers and fruit, pansy, seedum, rose of sharon, butterfly bush, hostas, coreopsis, marigolds and amaranths. Its seed gathering time.

I just love the pic of your autumn clematis. I had tried to grow another clematis a couple years ago and had no luck..Probably not enough sun where I put it. Maybe, I'll have to try again next year and that one looks beautiful.
Karen:-)

ooo...Alison, you got some good stuff. I love balloon flowers!

Yes, your SA clematis is so, so pretty. Has yours been resulting in volunteers. This year was the first year for me. I must have had some 6-7 SAC volunteers. I'll have more for the swap next spring!

Beverly

Actually, the one in the picture is a volunteer!

I don't think I got any volunteers for the first few years. And unfortunately, I don't seem to be able to transplant the volunteers very well. Either they are growing in cracks, or I don't seem to get all the root when I dig them up.

As a side note, when I potted up the rose cuttings I took last December, I tossed in a few clematis volunteers I was able to dig up, and two of them lived. I had to make a point of telling the people who picked up my roses at the swap what that "weed" in the pot was!

Well, it's mid-October now, but I didn't want to start a new thread.

I did want to share a picture of my Nodding Ladies Tresses, Spiranthes cernua. (If I can figure out how to link the camera phone picture!) They're a hardy native orchid I bought this spring, and I've been looking forward to them all summer. I'm hoping they won't always bloom so late, altho' they look really nice with the blue flowers of the leadwort. (The leaves directly behind the orchids are actually from a stray pale pink touch-me-not; I should probably try to make the combination permanent!)

Now here's hoping they survive the winter!

My monkshood just started to bloom...I am so glad. It's such a beautiful blue. I love it.

Also...I have a very late blooming pink mum that just started to bloom.

Lots of others...I mentioned above. These are the newest ones.

Alison..I hope your plant overwinters too. It has a good chance with its location so close to a structure. Hopefully you've created a micro-climate a bit warmer than in a bed near the road..good luck. It's a beauty!

Beverly