Late-season color

Since we’re expecting first frost any day now…

And because I wanted to try out the new digital camera I got as an early birthday present…

And because I was already at Mom’s anyway…

A tour of Mom and Stepdad’s gardens (both flower and veggie) before the frost wipes it out for the season.

This is a little quarter-round bed that has looked really good all year. There’s Mexican heather, red petunia, rose moss, and a garden mum of unknown variety. Mexican heather is supposed to be an annual here (zone 7 – southern Oklahoma), but this one wintered over last year and was just as beautiful this year. Personally, I think she should move either the mum or the Mexican heather because the mum should have been bigger but spent the season this year crowded by other plants. At the back left is, I believe, a volunteer pepper plant of some sort.

I’ve posted photos before of Mom’s Monster Dipper Gourd that came up as a volunteer next to the back porch. Since the last batch of photos, the plant has abandoned the arbor, zoomed across the patio, and invaded the back yard. It’s still putting on several new blooms, but this late in the season they won’t have time to do much. There’s about five fully-grown gourds hiding among the leaves, though.

In addition to invading the yard, the plant also staged a coup of the enclosed back porch.
The part of the plant that’s still on the arbor has pretty much played out. The gourds are looking good, though!
My stepdad planted far too many pepper plants this year. This is only four of the nearly dozen tobasco plants he put out. As you can see, they’re still covered in peppers.

A closer shot at one of the tobasco plants.

Stepdad planted a different variety of white squash this year, completely by accident. He’ll probably plant them again next year because we’ve all really enjoyed the flavor of them. I’m not certain of the varitey, sorry. One thing is for certain, though, they just don’t know when to call it a season as they’re still blooming.
One of the few remaining white squash. I’ll probably pick it tomorrow.
On to the flowers now. You really need to click this picture to enlarge it to appreciate what’s there. From left to right are: the edge of the elephant ears (not as big this year as previous years), far too many marigolds (but Mom loves them so I can’t say much), cypress vine, Carolina jasmine, unknown variety of Amsonia, Pampass grass that gets HUGE every year, cannas, and zinnias. There’s probably a rose or two in there but the marigolds just took over everything in that section of the garden. In the background on the right is the remains of Stepdad’s veggie garden.
Yet more marigolds (Mom loves them way too much in my opinion) and various shrubs tucked into a corner by the back porch.

Finally, we have one last hollyhock adding a bit of pink to what is a predominately yellow/orange garden this late in the year.