Sunlight leaves the small city garden fast this time of year. In a few weeks, there will be no sunlight in half the garden until mid-March.
The few tomato plants I have left are already out of sunlight. As you know, the fruit still ripens, but not as flavorfully. Blogger says that's not a word. I just made it up.
I'm not going to grow tomatoes in San Francisco anymore. Famous last words? I can't dedicate the real estate to such a poorly growing, warm-season vegetable in mild-weathered San Francisco. (Tomatoes are fruits.) We've had one good year in the last 5 for tomatoes. Time to let go. Time to move on. This container will become black raspberries--I've already ordered them (from Raintree), along with some musk strawberries, and maybe something else I don't remember. It's fun to order stuff and forget about it. In fact, I will be disappointed if there isn't something in the order that I forgot.
Nerines are blooming.
I bought a pack of three bulbs a couple years ago. I got one flower last year, this year there are two.
It's funny that Nerines will do well but I struggle with Amaryllis belladonna, a rather invasive plant here.
Does any plant capture sunlight like a manzanita? It seems lit from within.
The grapevine is beginning to show some fall color--nothing remarkable yet, but it can take a while to develop.
The vine grew more vigorously this year than it ever has before. I planted it in 2005. First it sleeps, then it creeps, then it leaps. Maybe I can convince it to fruit next year. That would be cool. I cut it back pretty hard every year but this time I'll leave some spurs for fruit growth.
We don't have quite as many Red Admirals visiting now (because of all the spiders?), but the other day I spotted a Monarch!
He was sipping on Tithonia diversifolia,
which has a pretty good bloom on it right now.
Cosmos are still going strong
So is Verbena bonariensis.
I did cut one of them down last week. I was a little sorry afterwards because I found a couple caterpillars on it, but I moved them on to this plant. And I shook the flower heads for seed and got tons. No surprise--Verbena is a common stowaway in plants I buy at the nursery.
Anagallis monellii from Annie's Annuals came back with flowers recently. I cut it back in June or something. I totally endorse this plant if you're looking for something to add to your next Annie's order.
Finally, I want to add one more picture of Aster lateriflorus 'Lady in Black' because it's beginning to fade and I've enjoyed her so much. I'm not sure if it will perennialize without a cold winter to make it go dormant, or if the seed will grow true. But I shall try to find out.
2 comments:
I'm so jealous of your butterflies. I've been seeing more butterflies than usual in my garden lately, but every single one I've seen, I've looked up online and successfully identified, only to see it described as "weedy" and breeding on Bermuda grass or other such undesirable plants.
Yea I kept saying no more wasted space for cantaloupes. It is too cool up here for them. Just maybe I can manage to plant pumpkins next year.
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