Posted on by tonytomeo · 12 Comments

Six on Saturday: White

White is my favorite color; so I found six white flowers for this week. None are new here, though. Each was featured at one time or another.

1. Lobularia maritima, alyssum performed well this year. A tree that formerly shaded it has been removed. Since someone asked earlier, I realized that it does smell like honey.

2. Begonia X semperflorens–cultorum, wax begonia stands higher behind the cascading alyssum. Actually, it is not notably tall; and the alyssum does not cascade all that much.

3. Pelargonium X hortorum, zonal geranium does not shed its deteriorating blooms like the other varieties which bloom pink or red. It consequently needs occasional grooming.

4. Brugmansia X candida, angel’s trumpet is not quite as bright white as the other white flowers here. Externally, its flowers are slightly greenish. It is the most fragrant, though.

5. Rosa spp., rose is a climbing cultivar. Of course, it does not actually climb on its own. It merely extends long canes that can be tied to the fence behind it. It is still quite small.

6. Agapanthus orientalis, lily of the Nile finished blooming quite some time ago and was already deadheaded along with the blue sorts before this single late floral stalk bloomed.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 15 Comments

Six on Saturday: Just Some Random Flowers

Some of these might be redundant to earlier posts. I am still somewhat disheveled from last week. I should recover next week.

1. Pelargonium X hortorum, zonal geranium makes another appearance, but in another color. At least I think that this is a new color here. I can not be certain. We have several.

2. Salvia guaranitica ‘Amistad’ friendship sage is a bit new and trendy for my taste, but it sure is pretty, and popular with hummingbirds. Incidentally, someone else selected it.

3. Lagerstroemia indica ‘Twilight’ crape myrtle is another species that I would not be so keen on if it were not so pretty. It has many attributes, which is why it is overly popular.

4. Osteospermum ecklonis, African daisy blooms in several colors here. All of the others have single flowers. This is the only one that blooms with these odd semidouble flowers.

5. Lathyrus latifolius, perennial pea is a naturalized roadside weed. It certainly is pretty, though. I think that it usually dies back by now, but is doing so a bit slowly this summer.

6. Hydrangea macrophylla, bigleaf hydrangea is blooming with exceptionally big floral trusses. I should have put something else in the picture with it to demonstrate its scale.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Flowers For Late Summer Bloom

There are plenty of late flowers.

Most flowers bloom within their particular seasons. Many bloom for spring. Fewer bloom for winter. Only a few bloom randomly throughout the year, generally while the weather is warm. Several bloom specifically for late summer or into autumn. All have their particular reasons for blooming when they do. It is all about pollination and dispersal of their seed.

Most flowers bloom in spring to maximize the time for their seed to develop before winter. Some of these may begin to bloom even before early spring, in late winter. Many rely on wind for pollination, so are unconcerned about pollinators. Those that attract pollinators are bigger, more colorful, or perhaps fragrant. They wait for pollinators to become active.

Many flowers that bloom randomly throughout the year are actually from milder climates. Some are from tropical climates. Within their native ecosystems, they can disperse seed at any time. Also, their pollinators are as perpetually active as they are. Angel’s trumpet, for example, only stops blooming for cool winter weather. it is presently blooming nicely.

Canna similarly begins to bloom for late spring, and continues to bloom until autumn. It is from a tropical climate, so is more responsive to weather than to seasons. It could bloom as long as the weather is warm enough for it to do so. Like angel’s trumpet, it is presently blooming nicely. Several popular sages are likewise naturally native to tropical climates.

Several late summer flowers happen to be of the ‘Compositae’ Family. Their flowers are actually composite blooms of many tiny flowers. These include confelower, zinnia, aster, cosmos, blanket flower and black eyed Susan. Coreopsis, sneezeweed, cosmos, dahlia and sunflower are more examples. Chrysanthemum will become more seasonable later.

To be enjoying these flowers now, it would have been better to plant them earlier. Some are still available in bloom from nurseries. Potted dahlias are particularly nice. However, most perform best if they can grow into their situations prior to blooming. Sunflower grow best from seed sown immediately after winter. Those with big flowers need time to grow.