Green Thumb Sunday

I've been really busy not doing anything over the Thanksgiving break. I cleaned house, did some late fall cleanup of dead/dying plants, lots of raking, and some cooking, as well as lots of eating (obviously...), but, strangely, I didn't get to sleep much. Also, I've been completely offline since I left, which explains the lateness of this post. (not for folks in Central, Mountain, or Pacific time!) To make up for it, I'll post a few today!

With fall ending, I can't help but think of all of the dahlias that I planted this year, and how I had to let them go and start over. My mom, I found out, has always had a sweet spot for dahlias. She can remember them when she was a child in the Philippines: the only places that they could grow and be sheltered from the searing tropical heat were the cool mountains. For all their beauty and majesty, they are not hard to grow and maintain at all. a few:

I don't recall the exact name of this one; all I can remember is that I saved this one from last year, when it wasn't doing so well due to bad placement: I put this near the front of the bed, expecting to be able to prune and train it into a bushy form, but instead it grew like a sunflower, ultimately growing to be taller than me!

I don't remember this one either, but I really liked it: it was a lot shorter than the last one (which towered over everything else), and flowered prolifically; plus, it was already flowering when I planted it!

This one, however, I can remember: I believe this one is 'Checkers'. My mom had high hopes for this one: she bought it, expecting a black-and-white flower, as the name suggests; instead, it's red and white, which is not bad, but not the desired effect. It's a somewhat short plant, and it wasn't as floriferous as I had wanted. The pic is a bit fuzzy; it's my cameraphone again!

Here's to fall, and all that it brings! Now let's trudge into winter, with our heads already in spring!


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