Saturday, October 15, 2011

13 FLOWERS IN BLOOM: HAPPY GBBD FOR OCTOBER

On the 15th of each month, Carol at May Dreams hosts a flower gardener's dream come true; a visit to gardens all 'round the world. You can find her on my side bar favorites. Thanks, Carol!
Now on with October's show! We got 4 inches of rain last week, so the garden is blooming like crazy!
Oxypetalum  'Heaven Born' is in the milkweed family and has bloomed for 3 months with no problems. I'm growing this one again next summer.

Here's a surprise. Our Golden Rain Tree had its first blooms this week. They 'rain' down onto the ground all month. It's a beautiful little tree called Koelreuteria paniculata.

Beautiful Turk's Cap again in bloom. Wow! Another one from my friend Cindy.

Lantana has my respect after this horrible, dry summer.

Yellow purslane volunteer. What a happy flower.

Ruellia has bloomed for months now.

All three shades of Four O'Clocks are in bloom right now.


This unusual Four O'Clock was growing wild along a river near Utopia, Texas.

Butterflyweed from my friend Cindy at My Corner of Katy.

Lantana 'Fruity Pebbles', an upright Lantana with leaves in sets of three.

Here are the fruity pebbles before eaten by Mockingbirds.

Big surprise. I've watched this volunteer grow all during the drought and now I know what it is: our native Goldenrod. That's nothing to sneeze at. All flowers are a welcome sight after this horrific drought.

Prickly Pear in a sea of lavender Lantana.

Aloe 'Silver Fox' in bloom.

Can you count the chickens? I found this display at our Hobby Lobby in Katy, Texas. I love chicken art since we have 5 live chickens of our own.
We got our first BROWN egg this week.
Well, that's it for this month.
May all your garden dreams come true.
Thanks for stopping by our garden here along the Texas Gulf Coast.

David/ :-)

13 comments:

  1. How beautiful!! I have to say, "heaven born" is my favorite in you photo line up, but they are all soooo pretty! Is the "turk's cap" a hibiscus? I have yet to see a lavender lantana in Grenada. Will have to keep my eyes peeled for one. I'm just so glad you all had rain. What a nightmare that must have been. Congrats! on your hen giving you your first brown egg.

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  2. David, I'm so glad to see the oxypetalum/tweedia doing well in your very challenging garden in Texas. I'm waiting on some young tweedia to bloom like yours. Looks like you found lots of tough, beautiful plants. Happy bloom day.

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  3. Glad to see your garden has survived your hot dry Summer with so many blooms. I especially love your photo of the fallen raintree flowers and, of course, the chickens.

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  4. Beautiful blooms on your bloom day. Some are new to me. I always mean to have four o'clocks but never do and I would love if my purslane volunteered. I wonder if it is the cold that kills the seeds. Of course it never kills the seeds of the wild purslane weed which are now germinating all over the place. That's the downfall of the rain. Brown eggs-love to have a brown chucky egg in my egg cup for breakfast.

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  5. I've never seen a blue milkweed before -- how cool is that?! I also love that four o'clock. So delicate and almost translucent looking!

    Now I must look for some photos of your chickens!

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  6. Lavender Lantana cannot be beaten for toughness and is a butterfly magnet here. You have lots of pretty tropicals blooming. The chickens are a nice bonus.

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  7. It's sensational to hear you're still getting decent rain and your flowers are just loving it. Your volunteer, Goldenrod, is so sweet and your unusual Four O'Clock is a beautiful colour.

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  8. aloha,

    what a great collection, i love the true blue of that oxypetalum...wow!

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  9. I like the Heaven Born- it looks like denim. I have not seen that. Everything seems happy and blooming away. Congrats on the brown egg!

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  10. Oxypetalum is new to me. Since it is in the milkweed family, do you know if it is also a monarch host plant? I have a couple of patches of goldenrod that appeared in my yard too. So far, it does not seem to be overly invasive. Love the aloe.

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  11. Pretty blooms! I have a newfound respect for lantana, too, and have started adding more to my garden. Love the yellow flowered "rain"! Four o'clocks are also something I should plant more of. Yours are very pretty. Happy GBBD.

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  12. The pink Turk's Cap is one I'm considering for my shady garden. Happy GBBD!

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  13. I just "found" a four o'clock today at a nearby abandoned home, but had to enlist some help in identifying it. Beautiful pink and yellow blooms . . . had no idea what it was, but I’m glad I brought a bit back home with me.
    I was wondering if Turk’s Cap came in other colors. I have the red, but on my drive to work I pass a home that has red and what appears to be a white one. Your pink is beautiful! As are your photos ~ as always.

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I always appreciate your comments & questions! Happy Gardening from David/ Tropical Texana

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