Still learning, pics from 7/9/08

I thought I had learned how to change the color of my font, but I can't tell if this was the color I had picked. I went looking for some photos to put up so I could write something to see if the changes I made were working.  I picked these because I thought it interesting to see the size of one of my strawflowers when it started blooming.  I don't remember what other flowers grow so much after they have blooms.

Here's my new bed that had been started the first week of June:

I think the delphinium was Butterfly Blue.  It bloomed for quite awhile, then died.  My others did that, too.  I keep forgetting to check whether that's common.  My annual larkspurs do.  The phlox is Orange Perfection, but it never did look orange to me.  I deadheaded it, and it rebloomed.  I placed pots around on bare spots until they filled in.

Here's my Vancouver Delphinium when it was more dignified, and not sprawling all over the place.  Oh, here's another plant that grew a lot even while blooming.

I always take pics from this view when I photograph the new bed, as well as the one above, from the front.  I wonder what I'll call it next year, as it won't be new anymore!  The sunflowers are not tall yet in this photo.

These last two are from the first week of October.  A couple of the sunflowers had already been taken down by the squirrels, and the others by me, after they took all the seed heads.  I haven't decided whether I'm growing sunflowers next year.

Sidetracked by Strawflowers

It did get down to 32 degrees two nights ago, but the only plants that were noticeably damaged were the coleuses.  It was nice out today after work, so I went out to see what needed to be done.  I decided I don't like Sweet Annie, so I cut it way back so it won't reseed.  I noticed I need to "harvest" my strawflowers, but thought I should take some photos first.  

This is how I operate.  In the house, I will start cleaning in one room, then if I need to move something to another room, something will catch my attention, and I'll attend to that.  Maybe I'll get the original thing done, but there's just as good a chance I won't.

So, I took my camera out, but the memory card was not in it.  I came in, and DH asked if I wanted to try his camera.  He knows I want a new camera, and if, by chance, I like his, then he could get a new one instead.  LOL

So, I took lots of pics of my strawflowers, and then of the ones I have already harvested over the summer.  I grow other flowers for drying, too.  I grow  Helichrysums, and have also grown Bracteantha.  They are annuals here in zone 5b.  The information given for them says to let them dry between waterings, but I've found that they wilt if they get dry.  When in pots, they do not always recover after wilting, either.  This is the second year that I have grown them in the ground.  The ones I grew last year, I grew from seed, and they were a taller variety.  They took longer to reach blooming size, so I didn't get a huge harvest.  These are from the only local nursery that sells them as seedlings in 6 packs.

I've started with close ups, then shown the plants they are growing on.  (Yes, they are still on them, because I did not get them picked.)  There are also some plants that I don't have larger flowers pictured from.  Oh, and by the way, once they open all the way, they won't dry well.  Also, I have to watch for ants, because they either eat the flowers, or have something to do with what is eating them.  I do manage to get a good harvest, though. 

There are two plants here, with an annual Helianthis (Sneezeweed) blooming.  They are yellow flowers on the left, and the red/pink to the left of the blanket flower.




The white ones didn't photograph well.  They are on the left of this clump of three plants, which I thought when planting were two plants.

Tonight could be our first frost/freeze

First, I forgot to mention in my Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day post, that Carol, from May Dreams Gardens, started this, and last I checked, there were 63 replies to her October GBBD post today, most of whom said they had pics as well.  I need to get to bed, and finish looking at them tomorrow.  What fun!  Thanks Carol!

DH was nice enough to help me pick peppers this afternoon in anticipation of our first frost or freeze tonight.  One forecast said it could get down to 31, another 35.  When he asked if he should pick them all, I told him to leave the small ones.  He doesn't always hear me, as he has some hearing loss.  It was too late, by the time I realized he hadn't heard me.  I explained that if it doesn't freeze, then the small ones could continue to grow.  I noticed he missed a large one, so maybe he missed some small ones, too.  

Someone on the Cottage Garden Forum mentioned getting a job done she'd been putting off, in about an hour.  I replied that I had several things I need to do that won't take long, once I get to them.  Picking and freezing the peppers was one of them.  Of course, I didn't get them cut up to freeze tonight, because I was too busy on the computer.  Tomorrow, I hope to get that done!

I pulled out the two sweet potatoes that were sticking up out of the dirt.  The others I'll dig out after the leaves get zapped from the frost.