Golden pomegranate is pretty wonderful for fall color
I know many of you have mentally moved on to Christmas. But Austin’s fall color comes late, and the golden leaves of my ‘Wonderful’ pomegranate keep catching my eye through the window while I try to work. So naturally, instead of closing the blind so as to get work done, I got my camera and went outside for a photo op to share with you.
I am really loving the various greens and yellows in this view. The small, yellow-and-green yuccas at left are Yucca filamentosa ‘Color Guard’. The tall, blue-green yucca beside the pomegranate is Yucca rostrata ‘Sapphire Skies’, one of my favorite plants. The dark-green shrub to the right of the pomegranate is a young Texas mountain laurel (Sophora secundiflora), and the clipped shrubs are ‘Winter Gem’ boxwoods.
Here’s the same view from last June. The Yucca rostrata has grown a lot more than I realized this year! (Scroll up for comparison.) And as you can see, I let the purple coneflowers go to seed to feed the birds. They don’t detract from the garden’s beauty, instead adding their own melancholy tone to a fall scene.
Like most Southern gardeners, I like having a lot of evergreen plants to keep the garden lively during the brief winter. But markers of seasonal change are just as essential, otherwise the garden may as well be a stage set. Don’t you agree?
All material © 2006-2014 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Lovely color. And why work when you could escape to the garden?!
The downside to having windows overlooking the garden — endless temptation. —Pam
I agree! Colorful fall foliage is hard to come by here. I have 2 persimmon trees that usually color up but they dropped most of their leaves during our extended warm period this fall and never developed the pretty orange and yellow shades I’ve enjoyed in prior years. Fortunately, my neighbor’s maples have recently turned a delightful shade of red so at least I get a little bit of a fall show.
That sounds lovely, Kris. We’re having a surprisingly good fall show here in Austin this year, probably thanks to decent rainfall and an early cold snap. —Pam
Oh yes I fully agree. I like the change of the seasons and what marks those changes.
I often joke that we central Texans, who are used to mild, evergreen winters, can’t stand for plants to die back. But half the pleasure of gardening is enjoying seasonal changes, some of which include fall color and die-back. Happily our die-back phase is pretty short. 🙂 —Pam
Very pretty.
I love the way your garden looks good, in any season. You’ve done a good job on that.
Thanks, Linda! As you know, it’s always a work in progress. —Pam
Fall is my very season! The cedar elms, the crepe myrtles, and the maples are just beautiful and the cooler weather makes me want to stay outside. I have a hard time changing out my Fall decorations to Christmas ones! The masses of yellow Copper Canyon Daisys don’t seem as appropriate to winter as fall but they look so happy with any decor!
I love fall too, Melody. And hasn’t this fall been grand? Keep enjoying all those yellows and reds until we finally switch to reds and greens. —Pam
That’s an interesting observation about the need for some sort of seasonal markers in our gardens to give a sense of time. In my mind that parallels the need for native plants to provide a sense of place.
Oh windows! They are the perfect invitation to procrastinate. My desk faces away from the window and for very good reason.
You are much smarter than I am! —Pam
Another lovely thing I notice about — that lovely yucca draws your eye inward, and the pome allows your eyes to fall back and rest easy. It’s a really fun, dynamic visual experience of pull and push.
I love, love, love the slow and extended Fall here in Houston. As brilliant as the North Eastern fall season is (where my home is), it’s literally over in a New York Minute. Our falls here linger a while and I think really do allow the feeling of Fall to sink in to the soul a little bit more.
We are lucky to have inherited a 40 foot tall Bald Cypress tree, and look everyday to see how many needles she has shed overnight. Last December, they all came down in one fell swoop on a windy day. This year, they’re taking their time. And the backyard’s ground is slowly turning redder and redder and redder – mixed in with the green, it’s really, very, very pretty. I should take a picture of it and share it with you, shouldn’t I, Pam?
It sounds beautiful! Do send a picture, and I’ll post it here. Thanks too for your comment about the yucca-pomegranate dynamic. I enjoyed your observation about that. —Pam
I love the changing colors of the seasons, and although I have mostly lived in New England I know that no landscape is static. I love your colors – and wish I had a pomegranate tree.
I often wonder what a white-blanket winter would be like, although probably the snow comes and goes, yes? You’re right — nothing is static in a garden. —Pam
I enjoy seeing your garden throughout the changing seasons. I envy all of your sunshine in your yard. I have very little in mine. I struggle as a shade gardener to bring different colors into the property. I like the idea of bringing plants into the garden that will be seasonal markers. I will have to work on that.
Marilyn, there’s really not much sunshine to envy in my garden. This is one of the few small patches in a garden largely shaded by live oaks. I do try to make the most of it! —Pam
Poor pomegranate, what an underrated landscape plant. People usually only think about it as something to eat, but with spectacular flowers, colorful fruit, and as you mentioned, good fall foliage, it should be planted more often.