The Harvest Moon rose orange over the treetops last Friday. What a beautiful October moon! (Photo by June Tarr)
To continue our full-moon appreciation, on Sunday evening we attended Zilker Garden’s Japanese Moon Festival. As dusk fell, we strolled through the Japanese garden, down to the moon bridge, and back up to the tea house.

Paper lanterns at Zilker Garden. (Photo by June Tarr)
Paper lanterns hung from the trees, glowing pale orange like so many full moons. The effect was magical. We kept looking for the real moon, but it hadn’t risen before we had to go; I’d wanted to see it juxtaposed with the paper lanterns. We did catch a glimpse of a moon tower through the trees, though. And yes, we came home and watched the movie Moonstruck.
Yesterday the sun hid behind the clouds, and we received some much-needed rain. Even better, cooler weather is forecast for tomorrow. The fall showboats are already doing their thing. Here are a couple of photos from Monday, before the rain.

Fall aster (Aster oblongifolius)

Lindheimer muhly, one of four I planted amid zexmenia and trailing purple lantana along the driveway. This one has performed best, its blue-green, strappy leaves mounding like a full skirt under its rosy tan inflorescences. Two others are blooming well too, but I had to remove a puny one that just wouldn’t grow. I replaced it last week with a Texas sotol, a spiny grass-like/yucca-like plant with a symmetrical mounding shape at maturity.

Texas sotol (Dasylirion texanum)
I’ve been recommending this plant to several other gardeners lately, and I finally found room for one in my own garden. This one-gallon plant should grow quickly in its full-sun location, and I think it will look great surrounded by yellow-blooming zexmenia.