Flower Power: GBBD September 2010

On the fifteenth of every month, May Dream Gardens invites everyone to post pictures of the plants that are blooming in their gardens.  My shady garden blooms have not changed much from last month, but here's September's bloom list:

Established Plants

The Mexican Petunias (Ruellia tweediana 'Colobe Pink') are still producing the occasional light pink blossom.

The close-up makes it look like some huge Hibiscus flower, but it's really just the small hot pink bloom of the Rock Rose (Pavonia lasiopetala).

Though this past winter's hard freeze killed the recently transplanted Coral Nymph Sage (Salvia coccinea 'Coral Nymph'), a few of  its seeds survived amongst the cracks in my stone path, sending up diminutive plants that have actually produced blossoms.

The Liriope spicata started blooming last month and most of the flowers are still there, peeking out from the foliage.

The Aztec Arrowhead (Sagittaria montevidensis) continues to produce three-petaled flowers at the end of its bloom stalk.

The arching branches of the Rose Creek Abelia (Abelia x grandiflora 'Rose Creek') end in small clusters of little white flowers.

Sporadically, small purple blossoms top slender stalks on the Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea).

As the sunlight dims towards evening, the blossoms of the Water Poppy (Hydrocleys nymphoides) also fade, seeming to lose their typical brilliant yellow color and slowly closing for the night.

In one of the sunnier patches of my garden, the West Texas Mist Flower (Conoclinium greggii) sprawls across the flower bed, its small clusters of light purple blooms appearing like small fireworks.

With its opened blossoms only lasting a day or two before dropping to the ground, its not always possible to capture the full flowers of the 'Ragin Cajun' Ruellia (Ruellia elegans 'Ragin' Cajun').  But even the incoming new blooms give a dash of color.

New Plants in the Garden

One of the un-excavated Ground Orchids (Spathoglottis plicata) is sending up a bloom stalk.  The blooms are only about the size of a quarter but do have nice color.

Basking in a rare patch of sunlight, a Firecracker Plant (Justicia spicigera) has several narrow orange flowers scattered about its stems.

Even under pretty good shade, the Salvia van houttei sporadically produces scattered clusters of purple flowers.

Potted Plants

Though better known for its variegated foliage and red/purple-black peppers, the tiny blooms of the Capsicum annuum 'Calico' are quite pretty (if you're willing to get really, really close to them).

Flower Wannabes

They may not be flowers, but the purplish berries of the American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) still add to the garden's color.

And recent rains produced enthusiastic growth from a few yellowish mushrooms that forced their way out through the twisted leaves of an aloe.