Tuesday, May 15, 2012

A Late Autumn Garden Blogger's Bloom Day ... May 2012

May is the last month of our Autumn here, and the evenings and early mornings are starting to get slightly cooler!  The mercury has been dropping all the way down to between 14 and 17 deg C (57 - 62 F) overnight lately ... chilly!!   Well, that's chilly for us!

One day of showers since the beginning of April means our dry season is now will under-way.  Growth slows down considerably during this time of year and there are relatively few blooms on the trees.  There is still a little colour in the surrounding bushland though, as the Acacias have been on show for a couple of weeks now.


Some of the blooms are a pale lemony yellow, while others are a brilliant gold.  These Acacias will continue taking turns to bloom into early Winter.


Blooms at my place can be found in the front tiered garden beds, the shadehouse and the courtyard gardens.  There are some first time bloomers ...


Starting top left and going clockwise:
Dracaena godseffiana, Salvia farinacea 'Strata', Salvia farinacea 'Victoria Blue', unknown Salvia, Cordyline 'Purple King' and double white Impatiens walleriana.

... and there are oldies that just keep on keeping on.


Starting top left and going clockwise:
Duranta repens 'Geisha Girl', Pentas lancelolata, Callistemon 'Pink Champagne', Ixora 'Golden Ball', Impatiens hawkeri 'Celebrette', Crossandra infundibuliformis Glamour Puss' and Saliva farinacea 'Victoria White'.


Starting top left and going clockwise: 
Neomarica longifolia, Salvia madrensis, Allamanda cathartica 'Sunee', Mussaenda philippica 'Bangkok Rose', Dragon Wing Begonia, Hibiscus schizopetalus and Turnera ulmifolia.



Starting top left and going clockwise:
Anthurium, Torenia 'Violet Magic', Torenia 'Clown Mix', Gomphrena globosa 'Buddy Purple' and Angelonia angustifolia 'Serena White', Dendrobium, Portulaca, Justicia carnea, Angelonia angustifolia 'Serena Purple'.

At the moment, there are few of my potted annuals beginning their show, and some late Autumn/early Winter bloomers are putting on their display.


Starting at top left and going clockwise:
Petunia 'Stars Mixed', Petunia 'Hot Lips', the variegated Ixora chinensis 'Splash', Schlumbergera, and Petunia 'Giant Victorious'.


Starting top left and going clockwise:
Zinnia 'Summer Brilliance', Petunia 'Stars Mixed', Pansy 'Faces Mix', and Snapdragons.



I'm joining Carol's Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day


and Gesine's Blogger Bloom Day


23 comments:

  1. Oh Bernie! Just lovely! I can see you enjoy color! I like the way you organized the flowers in picture mosaics. They look like bouquets. Happy GBBD!

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    1. That's a great way to look at the mosaics, Lucy ... like bouquets! I'm glad you enjoyed our visit. I most certainly do enjoy colour in the garden, although there's an awful lot of green in the trees and shrubs here.

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  2. There is so much color in your garden, a feast for the eyes. I really like that Cordyline. The blooms are beautiful. Happy GBBD!

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    1. The Cordyline blooms were a lovely surprise. Thanks Sage Butterfly for your kind comment. I'm looking forward to more colour over the next couple of months.

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  3. aloha,

    wow, thats a riot of colors, beautiful, love the flower mosaic pictures.

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    1. Thanks Noel. I hope all is going well with your new garden areas.

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  4. Hi Bernie....I was noticing in both your blogs you are showing pictures of a Ruellia. I have something similiar that grows in my yard. I think mine is hairy Ruellia. I paid no attention for years but when mowing on day at the bottom of the hill...the entire hill was covered in tiny lavender blue blooms. I still mow them and they still bloom. Is this a wildflower in your yard?

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    1. G'day Jean. Yes the Ruellia tweediana is definitely a wildflower here. It's regarded as a weed by many as it does spread rather quickly in a lot of areas in my home state. Here on my property it will never become a pest as the conditions are just too dry most of the year. I am looking to spread the Ruellia around more now though and I'm actually transplanting some of it down the driveway garden beds.

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  5. Bernie, you have an amazing array of blooms particularly for this time of year. We have been down to 1C the last couple of mornings. Makes me want to move north.

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    1. Ooo, that's chilly Missy! We very very rarely get down below 8 or 10 deg C here, and that's usually overnight anyway. I suppose a lot of your plants would be dying down now, getting ready for their winter nap.

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  6. Oh my...Bernie you have so many lovely flowers, every time I visit your garden I think to myself "I want one of those, and one of those, and..." Sadly my postage stamp size garden has not room for much more, and certainly not your lovely big plants. I adore Callistemon, they do survive here in London, but I have nowhere to put one....Incidentally, speaking of chilly weather...we had EIGHT degrees C today, and a hailstorm with a spectacular thunder and lightning! Where is the spring??

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    1. Helene, I think your postage stamp sized garden looks fabulous as it is. 8 deg C is a bit out of my comfort zone I have to admit. Your Spring really didn't turn up this year at all, did it?

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  7. Bernie,

    You have some lovely blooms in your garden. One is prettier than the next and so many different colors. I can hardly believe you are going into your winter season.

    Yael

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    1. Hi Yael, winter here is very very mild. Some would say it doesn't deserve the title of 'winter' at all! I'm so glad you enjoyed your first visit here. Thanks for dropping by.

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  8. Bernie, your Dracaena godseffiana gave me a surprise. I don't recall I have seen their blooms before. And the rest of your plants have wonderful flowers as well. Enjoy and have a great week!

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    1. Good spotting, Stephanie. I've never seen flowers on the Dracaena godseffiana before either, and I grow four of them! They are quite lovely blooms, but it's a bit of a shame they don't stand out in amongst that brilliant foliage.

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  9. The array of beautiful flowers in your garden is astounding.

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    1. Thanks Stiletto. Yes I have to admit I'm a bit of a plant nut! I love trying to grow lots and lots of different things.

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  10. As always, your post is fantastic. I like the muted tones of late season gardens. Our late summer garden is in August and September. Frost hits some time in October.

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    1. Thanks Mary. I'm really looking forward to all the colour of the annuals in the coming weeks.

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  11. Very beautiful! Your flowers seem to appreciate your cooler temperatures now. I fell in love with duranta a couple years ago when I had one spilling from a pot out front. It isn't hardy here, and I don't see them very often. But I am on the lookout for another one!

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    1. G'day Deb. Duranta repens is a very common plant here and hardy as anything. I mostly have the old variety with those horrible thorns which makes them hard to keep in shape. I bought the 'Giesha Girl' for the courtyard only because it isn't supposed to develop nasty thorns.

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  12. Bernie, loved all that color and the way you presented them in mosaic pattern.

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