Autumn anticipation on Labor Day
Hope falls eternal, rather than springs, in an Austin gardener’s heart. Fall as in autumn, that is. Labor Day signals a wistful end to summer for some, but for those of us in the hot zone it’s a welcome holiday indeed. Temperatures may still cook in the mid- to upper 90s—or higher—for another month, but the end is near! To celebrate, I offer a mix of flowers old and new.
Pictured above is one that helped get me through our scorching summer: Proven Winners’ ‘Senorita Rosalita’ cleome. It has bloomed nonstop all summer long, and though it has suffered some breaks and splits, it still delights me.
Salvia greggii, or Autumn sage, is one of my old favorites. Its butterfly-attracting flowers blaze away in spring and fall, adding color to the reviving garden. And if you brush against the leaves, you also get to enjoy its fresh, minty scent. Just give it a good haircut (by half) to revitalize it after summer and enjoy blooms through the fall.
The first oxblood lilies (Rhodophiala bifida) are emerging from hibernation, brought back to life by last week’s rains and the changing of the seasons. Along with the purple berries of American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana), which I am sadly without, the sprouting of the oxblood lilies makes my spirit shout, Fall is on the way!
And of course the approach of fall means planting time. Here are a few to fill in the gaps in my new garden: gazania, Mexican feathergrass, santolina, golden barrel cactus, foxtail fern, variegated artemesia, and (yes, I succumbed to the on-sale lure) yellow bells (Tecoma stans). Not pictured, a ‘Sharkskin’ agave, which I’ve been coveting for some time. Tough, xeric plants all, sure to get me through next summer in fine form.
Happy Labor Day, everyone!
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Happy Labor Day to you too Pam. Lovely blooms to get you through the last of the hot spell.
Long, warm fall here too in 7b–and I was glad to see my pal Salvia greggii featured today! I have it planted around the edges of a white and pink petaled Lespedeza thunbergii and they are all going strong.
I need to get some barrel cactus for my hell strip one of these days. I love mexican feather grass! I bought a small clump once and it re-seeds everywhere, so I just dig up the starts and put them wherever I want. And my oxbloods are coming up too – they will be blooming today, I think!
Your oxbloods are ahead of mine, Michelle. Most of mine are still just pushing up through the soil. This is the only one forming a bud so far. —Pam
Ooh,now I’m ready to go shopping! I may also have a bee person for you if you haven’t found one; just need to find the info.
Thanks for any beekeeper connections, Linda. —Pam
That salvia is a real beauty!
The end of summer is nigh! I am ready for cooler weather, too. gail
23 days till October 1st … we can make it! I’ve started buying plants again, too. It’s a little soon but it feels good to have plant lust once again!
Yes, it does! —Pam
Happy Labor Day. Nice to see your plants – I just put in many of those myself last week. Filling gaps and eager to get back into the dirt after this heat/hiatus.
Those were all good choices Pam, but that cleome is really something. Looks that good and in this heat, wow.
I have four beauty berries about 8″ tall that I have been waiting for cooler weather to dig up. Katina wants one and I’ll let you know if they live through the potting.
I keep hearing about volunteer beautyberries this week. I had a big one in my old garden, and I never saw any volunteers. Strange. If you’re looking for a good home for one of yours, I’d love to adopt it, Bob. —Pam
Hi Pam, do you think it’s too late to whack back my Autumn Sage up here in Tulsa? Becky
I think Tulsa is about a month closer to a freeze than we are in Austin, don’t you? If I were you, I’d do a light trim, maybe one-third rather than one-half. Check with Dee at Red Dirt Ramblings too. She’s a fellow north Oklahoma gardener. —Pam
Now that our days are out of the 100’s, I’m beginning to think I could plant again. Isn’t hope wonderful? Where did you get the cleome?
Thanks for the pruning info on Salvia greggii. I’ve been wondering when and how much–for those that survived…
Odd that you didn’t get beautyberry volunteers at your prior place. It’s usually prolific. I’ve got a couple of nice looking young ones that I have to dig out from under a flowering senna, if you’re interested. I usually make it to Austin about once a week and could meet you someplace.
The cleome was sent to me as a trial plant by Proven Winners, Kathleen. Click here for my posts about the PW trial plants. As for the baby beautyberry, I’d love to have one. Thanks for the offer. I’ll send you an email. —Pam
Oh, you are SO right! For us in LA, July, August, and most of Sept are impossible! Labor Day is always such a great marker for the shorter, cooler days to come when the grasses and the salvias start blooming – Fall is definitely my favorite season!
Beautiful blooms! And I must admit to you a weakness for foxtail ferns! I think they are so whimsical, tough, and cool! I’m glad to see you are also a fan – but not surprised! We are such palette twins…
One of my clients once told me that foxtail fern reminded her of the hairdo of Sideshow Bob from The Simpsons. I definitely see the resemblance. —Pam
Love that color of Cleome. How does one get a start of it?
After yrs without any I had 1 small volunteer come up & bloom. I hope I can get another start of the one I have from this little volunteer sprout. Mine is the lt lavender.
This is one of the Proven Winner trial plants I was sent, Lola. They say that it does not produce seed, so I won’t be looking for volunteers. However, it is supposed to be a perennial in my zone 8b. —Pam