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Friday 17 October 2008

Quick, before it goes...

Where we have had autumn colour there are now very few leaves left, but for a couple of weeks the view has been brightened by splashes of russet, yellow and orange. This combination of planting isn't necessarily permanent, not least because the eupatorium (the thing with mauve flower heads, known in the US as Joe Pye Weed) is a bit of a thug. It was planted there for the butterflies, but it comes out so late this far north that they have all gone by the time it's in full bloom. In Devon it's a joy in late summer, a living mosaic of red admirals, peacocks and silver-Y moths. For Nan's benefit, that straggly bit of grass in a pot bottom right is a day lily - pathetic, huh?


I'm annoyed with myself for forgetting what kind of spiraea this is below, and I haven't been able to find it online. Back to the old-fashioned book for a bit of research, if I can lay my hands on it. This is its second appearance here: in June I photographed it covered in frothy white blossom. You'll note from the picture, incidentally, that my gardening style is "riotous". The potentillas are still flowering determinedly - I do approve of their fervour.

5 comments:

Bovey Belle said...

My garden's riotious too, sort of, erm, riotious with weeds right now . . .

Jodie Robson said...

Don't look too closely, but the lush green at the back of the bottom picture is a clump of nettles! They aren't very accessible, so I'm leaving them until things die back a bit.

Susie Vereker said...

Couldn't see the spirea, just potentilla. Your garden looks a wonderful mix of shrubs all planted close together, like mine, only maybe yours is less jungly.

Elizabeth Musgrave said...

Now this is very annoying as i am sure I commented on this when you wrote it and no sign. Love your photos. I have always been very much a spring gardener and am only slowly coming to feel that I should embrace autumn just as keenly but these photos make me feel it would be worth doing.

Jodie Robson said...

Susie, the spiraea is the reddish plant above the little lion (a gift to my elder son when he was tiny, so it's been with us for years). And no, this isn't a very jungly garden, it's too windy.

Elizabeth, I think I like autumn best, but it's so transient - especially given aforementioned wind!