Finally more rain has arrived. The grass that greened up when cooler temperatures came in was starting to brown again with only about half an inch over the last four weeks. I don’t like fall to begin with, and a dry fall makes me want to just sit inside. Dusty flower beds doesn’t make for good transplanting and bulb planting.
Other than the hardy cyclamen only the fall blooming crocus are enjoying the season. I bought these as crocus zonatus (now c kotschyanus?) and always thought they were a little under whelming until I saw a few pictures over at Cold Climate Gardening . Apparently fall crocus can be beautiful and not just a fall blooming curiosity (such as mine seem to be). 
A little online poking around and I found that mine are a “somewhat weedy” species known for small blooms and seeding around. I can think of worse weeds, but I guess next fall I might have to reconsider my garden’s lack of decent fall crocus flowers and maybe do something about it!
In the meantime the rain and killing frosts (happened last week….) have re-inspired my garden motivation. I spent today cleaning out the dead summer vegetables and frosted summer annuals. Maybe I’ll find the time and energy to tackle spots like this poorly planted, weed infested hellebore patch.
Being outside and having a little moisture in the ground (it’s still bone dry ‘zuckersand’ a few inches down) have me feeling better. Maybe I do need to add a few tulips and such if the warm weather holds out….. I do have a few open spots in the vegetable patch now that the veggies are gone 😉
sorta like suburbia 
I don’t have any autumn bulbs, not sure why. We got some rain recently, and here as well the soil had gotten too dry. It always seems to rain just as I am on the verge of doing some watering.
I’m usually a stingy waterer, mostly because it gets so tedious lugging a hose around. I usually wait for something to be near death before I break.
I bet your garden has enough going on that you don’t miss bulbs in the fall. I on the other hand don’t have many asters and could use more fall perennials…. plus I have a little bit of a bulb obsession 🙂
I don’t have autumn bulbs either. Maybe I should remedy that. Being outside when the weather is dismal does me good too – raked up loads of leaves yesterday and the rain actually held off long enough!
I cheated. I pulled out the mower and sucked up all the fallen leaves rather than raking. Far less relaxing, but the chopped leaves make such a nice colorful blanket for my newly cleared vegetable beds.
As for the fall bulbs, maybe somewhere deep down inside I’m trying to pretend the fall bulbs are really, really, really, early spring bulbs and I’m not even facing the long cold winter!
That is a great way of looking at things – I’m with you there! 😉
I have a few Colchicum here & there, but mostly being overwhelmed by other plants so they aren’t very showy when they need to be…..something I need to fix. We have gotten lots of rain the past few days and now it’s back down into the 30’s, not much more will be getting done here.
It took a turn for cold here this morning too and I’m glad I got some things done yesterday between bowling and birthday parties.
Lots of rain sounds nice right about now.
Glad the rain finally came. Our fall has also been too dry, but yesterday enough rain came to knock off the leaves just as the color had peaked. No fall-blooming bulbs in my garden but I keep intending to add Spider Lilies which my grandmother used to grow. I await spring for gardening.
Sorry to hear about the timing of the rain, but I think you were happy to have it anyway.
Spider lilies are just something to dream about up here in the frigid north, but with each mild winter I wonder if maybe I could sneak one in to a sheltered spot. That and camellias, crape myrtle, hardy palms, rain lilies…. the grass is always greener 🙂
We’re horribly dry here, too…4th driest October on record. Fall bulbs are things to aspire-to for me…maybe someday I’ll remember to plant them? 🙂
Hah! I’m not too bad with impulse buys and ordering bulbs online, but the whole planting thing always gets me. I always remember bulbs around December and end up pickaxing a hole in the frozen dirt and hastily dumping them in before my fingers freeze.
There are some gorgeous fall crocus that you can add to that bed. You have inspired me to go to the internet and look for some options for my bed along the driveway…it would be wonderful to see them there in the fall.
Hi Charlie, thanks for stopping by.
I’m planning for the same thing next summer. A few new ones and I can find out if it’s all just great lighting and angles or if the fall crocus can really brighten up the end of the year.
We have finally gotten some rain too, but had warm weather so far this week with verbena still in bloom. I don’t have the Fall bulbs either. The mums came into flower finally this week too.
I feel like the late fall will lead into a mild early winter…. I hope it doesn’t trick my winter bloomers into too-early flowering 😦
Looks very autumnal in your garden, Frank. How could any Crocus ever be weedy? We’ve had plenty of rain for the past few days and I certainly won’t go near my soil as it’s very loam and everything sticks to you forever in this weather. I’m glad I got all my bulb planting done. There’s only one box of perennials sitting there but they’re in pots and can wait. I’d quite prefer your dry soil right now. 😉
I can’t imagine a crocus being weedy either 😉 they’re just too small and fleeting.
Even with the recent rains there’s still a long way to go before anything gets soggy around here. Right now I’m just glad I don’t have to water anything anymore. There are only a few bulbs left to get in the ground here, but all of a sudden with the planting season coming to a close I have this late season panic that I don’t have enough spring bulbs planted…. I’ve been online looking and I may break down and order just a few more essentials 🙂
I know the feeling, Frank, and although I’ve ordered a LOT I still got some more afterwards because I felt this urge to plant up some containers for a hopefully splendid show. Have a good weekend 🙂