Thursday, October 18, 2012

After the Frost


A post with more pictures than words.
Frost hit the Big Creek Valley last week after some false alarms--evenings when we hurried out in the last light to throw old furniture quilts, tablecloths and towels over green beans in the garden and house plants on the porch. Mornings of heavy dew, but no frost, saw us tweeking wet covers off to dry in the sunshine.
I carried most of the begonias and geraniums down to the basement where they will spend the winter months on an old table beneath a flourescent light fixture.
The frost did come on a night of full moon light and morning brought the unwelcome scene of blackened and drooping sunflowers, zinnias and cosmos--the flowers which revived in the balmy September days to bless us with their brilliant colors.

Brocolli plants, from seed sown directly in the garden, are thriving in the cooler weather.

Double-Red Knock-Out roses continue to produce bloom until really harsh temperatures prevail.

A few blooms of spicey 'pinks.'

Stalks of rampaging mint have produced fuzzy flower heads.

Coneflower looking a bit shriveled by the cold night.


All that remains of the exuberant row of zinnias.

J. has hauled old bedding from Pebbles' yard to spread on a veg bed--the kittens are intrigued.

A last sighting of the garden spider.

Her egg sack blends with the frost-blasted stalks of zinnias.

Frosted zinnias.

I've collected enough zinnia seed to sow a whole garden come another spring: zinnias, anyone?



The Michaelmas daisies are still lovely.

Sunflower heads bend toward the ground, heavy with seed.

Here and there a frazzled bloom.

Each day the wind brings down more leaves.


Beauty still in these sere, stripped-down shapes.

A feast for the lingering goldfinches.

There are several varieties of maples in the dooryard.  Some have lost most of their brilliant leaves, others are still in the process of turning.

Teasel contemplates the leaves which swirl around her in the cat yard.


8 comments:

  1. Your photos show the frosted leaves and petals have a beauty all their own, in shape and colour and all thast wonderful geometry in the remains of the sunflowers.

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  2. The Michaelmas Daisies are so beautiful, and you have so many cats around -- they aren't even kittens any more! Teasel's blue eyes are beautiful too.

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  3. There is a sadness and yet a strange beauty to the plants after the frost ...hope you saved some of your vegetables. Great shot of Teasel ...as beautiful as ever.xx

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  4. How do you manage to get beautiful pictures of frost-bitten plants? Teasel look like she knows winter is on the way.
    Lillian
    lillianscupboard.wordpress.com

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  5. No frosts here yet, but we've had a few dew-heavy and chilly mornings. I don't "do" cold and am not looking forward to winter . . .

    Your garden has been lovely this latter part of the summer and it must be sad to see garden "friends" being frost-nipped, but then you have plenty of seed for next year and the process will start all over again.

    I have bought just one of my Pelargoniums indoors - must get cracking and pot the others up before jack Frost comes calling here.

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  6. I wish I could grow zinnias. I tried for two summers, but they got powdery mildew so bad, so I quit with them. But I love them. I wonder if you have the mildew problem. Of course, you have larger, more wide open spaces than my in-town yard (Lexington, KY).

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  7. Lovely pictures. I particularly like that one of the pinks. We had one frost last week but that's been it. It's looking clear tonight so you never know....

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  8. Our zinnias are still waiting for the frost. You have reminded me to collect seed when the time comes.

    Teasel is a beauty with those blue eyes. I am less enamoured of your garden spider......!

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