Many gardens in the Chester area are now morphing from their mid-summer pinks and blues to the transitional shades of yellow and tangerine as summer prepares to give way to fall. And providing just the right accent to those predominantly bronze-coloured blooms, we are pleased to welcome the white blossoms of plants that appear at this season.
The buddleja shrub above is loaded with flower stalks that attract butterflies seeking a wee drink from the tiny individual blooms that form the flower mass. Commonly known as the butterfly bush, this plant is named for Adam Budd, a 17th century cleric who was also a keen botanist.
The tall stalk of a gladiolus lightens up the green and gold palette; its fresh blossoms act like a crisp white collar on a dark ensemble.
Although the Chester Garden Club has not yet announced details of its fall program, the regular meetings are scheduled to start again in September. Meanwhile, anyone interested in attending another flower show is invited to drop in to the Floral Arts Show with the theme “Honouring Autumn“, which will be presented by our neighbouring club – Basin Gardeners – on September 3rd and 4th. The show will be held at the Aenon Baptist Church Fellowship Hall in Chester Basin, with visitors welcome from 1 to 6 in the afternoon on both days.
A lovely white begonia adds another delicate accent to the edge of a path lined with shrubbery. For a gardener longing to extend summer, every plant is precious. Chester gardeners felt themselves extremely lucky that hurricane Irene, which had been forecast to be heading our way, changed course and spared our local territory. It was truly [a] Good night, Irene! This morning’s gardens appear to have survived intact.
In celebration of Bloom Day North – Chester version – we are posting a number of photos of various plants in bloom on this day, the 15th of August. In no particular order, we present a double-petalled sun-splashed Rudebeckia, mixing it up with a few annual poppies…
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and a crimson, no-name dahlia (bought from a fellow gardener at a plant sale two years ago)…
and a clump of bi-coloured nasturtiums …
followed by the creamy-white day lily named “Spring Thaw”, tubers of which were given out by the NSAGC two years ago to all member clubs.
The llilac-coloured day lily below is actually a deeper maroon colour in the garden but, despite the day being overcast and therefore theoretically good for photos, this shot is a little washed out.
The same effect (a noted decrease in intensity of colour) is seen on the yellow water lilies and the apricot day lilies growing at the edge of the pond, in the photo below.
A small clump, one of the many masses of blooms on a rambler rose named for Dorothy Perkins, is brightening up another corner of the garden.
Despite the heavy rain and wind last week, the clematis (Jackmanii) below has proliferated, clinging stoically to the fence and spreading horizontally for over six feet.
On the other side of the same fence, a clump of mallows has attracted a bee in search of nectar.
Farther along the fence, there is a massive tangle of perennial sweet pea plants that bear delicate pink blooms like those shown below.
A Bonnica rose that was pruned twice by deer this summer has somehow rallied to produce this tiny perfect bloom, which has to date escaped the ravages of roaming herds.
If we were to include all of the other flowering plants in bloom in the Chester area today, the post would be even longer than it is now, but here are just a few more photos. Below: another lovely day lily, a bright yellow variety with the name “Alice in Wonderland”.
Next up is a shot of delicate honeysuckle flowers that are a favourite with hummingbirds in the area, and
an architecturally dramatic structure that is a Yucca in full regalia.
The garden being home to many varieties of day lilies, your blogger couldn’t resist yet another photo of their blooms. If my records are correct, this variety is named Siloam Double Classic.
And to complete the samples in this Bloom Day North post, we have a shot of bees at work on a globe thistle flower-head.
We enjoy receiving photos from your gardens to include in the blog. You may send them to the Chester Garden Club e-mail address indicated on the side-bar.