Monday, October 15, 2007

Organic October Blooms at Bliss

It's Garden Bloggers Blooms Day once again and time to show what's in bloom on Bliss on the 15th of this month. But today is a very special day as it is Blog Action Day when thousands upon thousands of bloggers post about something that is so close to my heart; the environment. For more information click on banner above.
In the Bliss garden everything is grown organically and we live and garden as environmental friendly as humanly possible. Why? Well, it's really not that complicated; we're part of that environment, planet earth is our home and for many others creatures as well. If we give mother nature her reign then everything is in balance. But it's a delicate balance that can easily be disturbed.
Here on Bliss we have chosen to garden with nature instead of against it. All creatures great and small are welcome here, as many of them (such as ladybirds, frogs, hedgehogs and birds) are the gardener's friend. The few that aren't so friendly (aphids, snails and slugs spring to mind) can usually be kept under control by said garden friends. In the Bliss garden no herbicides, insecticides or whatever cides you care to mention, are used, non whatsoever as we do not want to disturb the delicate balance that mother nature has created here and of course we do not want to poison our garden friends and do not care to be poisoned ourselves either.
Everything on Bliss is grown organically both the edible and the inedible; after all it's no fun to deeply inhale the wonderful scent of a rose (ahhhh bliss!) and with it also get a noseful of poison (argh, cough, yuck). And speaking of roses, let's have a look at them, shall we?
And here she is, my old friend Madame Alfred Carriere who's been flowering her blessed little heart out since early May of this year. Doesn't she look great and she has such a wonderful scent too. I've grown this rose in my previous garden as well for over 15 years and I never ever sprayed her. There's no need for that as Madame is a very healthy and strong rose. I feed her, and all my other roses, twice a year (March and end of June) with an organic fertilizer, lightly prune her (March) once a year and that's pretty much it. It is possible to grow wonderful and healthy roses and not spray at all. Growing roses should be fun, not dangerous for your and everybody elses health.
I can't tell you how pleased I am with the way my organic front garden is looking now. There's so much in flower still; a veritable feast for the eye, nose and spirit.
In the Bliss front garden in flower today are:
- Rosa Madame Alfred Carriere (since early May)
- Rosa Sombreuil (since early May)
- Rosa Guirlande d'Amour (since early May)
- Rosa Moonlight (since end of April)
And they are not only flowering still but making loads of new buds too as you can see on the pic above. If we're not hit by frost, the roses will probably flower for at least 4 to 6 weeks more. Just think of it; organically grown , scented roses flowering from early April right through to November, possibly early December. Eight to 9 months of blooms, who or what can beat that?
But there is more in flower in the front garden than just the roses, we have asters, millions of asters, in lots of different shapes, sizes and colours. Aren't they just great?
Also in bloom are:
- bacopa (white)
- geranium (white)
- lavender (white)
- balsam (white)
- toad lilies
- a firm feline favorite: catnip (white)
- and winter Jasmin, that's just started flowering a few days ago.


In the organic kitchen garden we still have some blooms too, although not as much as before as this part of the Bliss gardens is slowly winding down.
We have Dahlias, lots of Dahlias in bloom in the kitchen garden, because we do not only grow food here for the body but also for the soul. In the ornamental kitchen garden flowers and veggies grow hand in ha.., erm I mean, leaf in leaf. And why not, as many of them are very good mutual friends.
This plant I grow as a standard in a pot as it's not hardy. For the life of me I can't remember what its name is, so if anyone can help me out here, it will be much appreciated!

To my delight a lot of herbs are in flower in the kitchen garden, such as:
- chives
- ruta
- oregano
- fennel
- and basil.
Even the lavender has a few blooms here and there in white, lilac and purple. But there's more in bloom in the organic kitchen garden than just the herbs:
- pumpkins
- and strawberries too. Surprising isn't it? Must be the mild and sunny weather we're having this October.
And here's a flower I particularly proud of as it's been grown from seed. I've never grown this one before but will grow it again as the flowers and leaves are very pretty. It's called Cerinthe and its leaves are in reality much more blueish than shown here.
But also flowering are:
- violets and pansies (purple, white and yellow)
- petunias (pink and purple)
- balsam (white, pink and deep pink)
- forget-me-not (pink), yes, pretty weird that
- centranthus (pink)
- cymbalaria muralis (lilac and yellow)
- catnip (white)
A few weeks ago I cleared a bed full of nasturtiums in my kitchen garden and had thrown them in one of my compost bins. If you look carefully at the pic above you'll see that they are still flowering in there as one flower is peeking from underneath the lid. On the lid is a pretty feline girl from the neighbourhood. She and Macavity take turns in sunbathing on my compost bins. The nasturtiums are not only flourishing in the compost bin but also in a kitchen garden bed, together with the last of the marigolds.
As you've seen Macavity was not sunbathing on the compost bin today but he is enjoying the sun while he still can. He simply moved next door to the new flower border I'm busy creating. The hedge on the right separates my kitchen garden from the new flower bed.
Here's a close up of the Dahlias that are still going strong in the new border. Pretty aren't they and they've got purple foliage as well. What more could a gardener ask for?
But it's not only Macavity that feels right at home in the new border, butterflies enjoy it too and so does the Verbena bonariensis that grows there like mad.
Soon I'll be putting new plants in my pots for the winter season. Normally I would have done so by now, but I find it hard to discard plants that have been flowering for so long and are still putting up a good show at the end of the season.
This one will be going into my Victorian greenhouse soon for overwintering so that it can flower again net year.
My Salvias Oxford blue and Cambridge blue are also still in flower, as is the blue Lobelia. The Salvias will also overwinter in the greenhouse, just as my Pelargoniums that still flower now in pink and white. The cyclamen will go into the livingroom soon.
The Japanese Anemones have almost finished flowering. The double pink ones still have quiet a few flowers left, the white are almost done now.
My black Hollyhock is down to its last flower. I hope it will self seed itself and gladden my heart with lovely blooms in the years to come.
On my patio are many pots and in one of them a Camelia is growing. She is almost ready to flower as you can see here.
The south borders are still a riot of colour as the pic below shows.
The stars of this late flower show are:
- Gaura (white)
- Sedum (deep pink)
- Phloxes (pink and purple)
- Centranthus (pink)
- Lavatera (pink)
- Cosmea (pink)
- Scabiosa (burgundy)
- Geranium (pink)
- Ipomea (double, burgundy)
- Verbena bonariensis (purple)
- Polygonium (hot pink)
- Eupatorium (pink)
- french Lavender (purple)
- Heuchera (white and pink)
- yellow Wallflowers (very out of season)
- Japanese Anemones (pink, double)
- Hollyhocks (black)
- Spirea (pink and white)
As I started this post with roses I will end it with roses too. Here's my Rosa Calypso.
While I wrote this post I was eating an organically grown apple and drinking organic orangejuice. :-)
copyright 2007: Y.E.W. Heuzen

Garden fashions have about as much relevance to real gardeners as the catwalks of London, Paris and Milan do to the clothes that people wear on the number 19 bus.

40 comments:

Anonymous said...

YE: I love the overview shots of the garden! All are gorgeous, of course, but a sense of your space is gleaned from these pictures. You have so much in the space you have chosen to garden. And a lucky space that is. There is no prettier garden than the garden at Bliss! Thanks for the tour!

Robin's Nesting Place said...

Great post combining the two Oct. 15th events. Your organic gardening pictures speak volumes.

Shirley said...

Hi again, Yolanda :-)

You garden plants and produce are indeed testiment to your organic growing methods!

I always enjoy visiting especially on GBBD. We share many of the same plants and wildlife but what I always find interesting is the different stages of growth on our common plants have :-)

Thanks once again for the tour of your inspiring garden :-D

A wildlife gardener said...

I see all the things in your garden which are close to your heart, from roses and toad lilies to the kitties, and delicious fruits and salad crops.

Each speaks of your love of nature, gardening, wildlife and home grown produce...all done organically :) and, therefore, kind to the environment.

healingmagichands said...

Your place is so beautiful, Yolanda. I always enjoy visiting this blog.

I have been an organic gardener all my life, and I have never understood the position that is put out over and over again that we could not feed the world if we did not have chemical agriculture. This is one of the big lies being foisted upon us by Cargill, Ortho, Monsanto, and their ilk.

Anonymous said...

As usual, Yolanda, your garden is overflowing with beauty. What a lovely post to combine the two themes of Bloom Day and the environment.

I think 'Madame Alfred Carriere' must prefer your northern clime. She barely blooms for me at all except in the coolest months here.

Rusty in Miami said...

Congratulation on your organic grown garden, which is the way we all need to go. I doesn’t look like the cooler fall weather has affected you garden yet. Beautiful as usable.

Anonymous said...

I've made a post about environment too! I totally agree with you, we should live with and not against the nature even in our gardens. That's pretty much in flower in your garden. We have had minus degrees but there are still som flowers in bloom.

Have a nice week!

Garden Cats + Crafts said...

Liebe Yolanda,
eine richtige Botanik-Lehrstunde kann man heute hier bei Dir erfahren. Die Vielfältigkeit Deiner Pflanzen, Blumen, Stauden und Sträucher ist einzigartig. Danke für diesen schönen Post.

LG Birgit
PS: Schau mal auf meinen Blog. Ich habe nach Deiner Anleitung einen Herbstkranz gebastelt. Vielen dank auch dafür.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful as always. I like the way you combined your Bloom Day post with the Blog Action Day post. And you made Stuart in Australia happy too with your organic-gardening information.

lisa said...

Your bloom day post is magnificent! I especially like your organic roses...glad you could show folks how it's done. I bet many people don't grow roses because they think spraying chemicals is mandatory.

stadtgarten said...

Still so much in bloom in your garden! Autumn still seems to be far away at Bliss...
Can the name of the flower be "solanum"?
Have a nice week, groetjes, Monika

Annie in Austin said...

Stunningly beautiful, as always, Yolanda - with your blooms making a firm statement of how you live in the world. I also combined the two posts, but went all nostalgic instead.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

Sweet Home and Garden Carolina said...

Your garden is like an incredible painting! Thanks for giving us an enchanting tour of your paradise.

Carol Michel said...

I truly enjoy these glimpses into your beautiful gardens. Flowers, vegetables, fruits, you are inspiration to all us. Thank you!

Carol at May Dreams Gardens

Anonymous said...

Wat ziet je tuin nog schitterend eruit! Prachtig zijn ze je Rosa's
Trouwens het blauwe bloemetje is volgens mij Solanum

Linda said...

So many beautiful blooms still in your garden. Lovely photos.

Jen Fu said...

Everything is SO pretty; I especially love that first pic. How's Macavity doing? I hope you blog about him soon.

Connie said...

There is still a lot going on in that wonderful organic garden of yours... and you have such a nice way of sharing it with all of us. Thank you!

Heidi said...

I once again was in a virtual paradise visiting your garden! It is so beautiful. How do you keep your Dahlias so full in bloom. I have tried to plant them here and they never come up. I think the bulbs are eaten in the ground as we can never find them when we dig. I want to try planting some in a pot next summer and see if I can get them to bloom. Any advice?

~~ Heidi ~~

Anonymous said...

You're an organic inspiration maven! I wish our roses were even half as healthy and happy as yours - Gives me something to shoot for and I'm going to stick to my no-spray guns - no matter what.

Brimstone said...

Heerlijk nog zoveel in bloei! Je tuin is echt een plaatje.

Anonymous said...

dit was weer zo'n superrondje tuin !!! héérlijk van genoten zeg !
Ik zit middenin de bladeren ....vegen ...vegen en nog eens vegen !!!
maar met dit weer geen straf ;)))
groetjessss

Poppins said...

Thank you for guiding us trough your lovely garden i October! There are sure a lot flowering.
Mme Alfred Carrier was one of my favorite but she didn't like the hot spot where I placed her...

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Unknown said...

Wonderful post, YE--I've been away for the last 36 hours with no internet and am just starting to read the bloggers action day posts tonight. A very positive and uplifting post--we share similar attitudes about enviro-nazis, as with other things!

SchneiderHein said...

Hallo Yolanda,
hoffentlich dauert es auch in diesem herrlichen Herbst noch ein paar Tage bis zum Frost. Es wäre wirklich schade um Deine Blütenpracht!
Hast Du eigentlich irgendwo in einem Deiner Posts schon geschrieben, wie groß Dein Garten ist? Ich habe überhaupt keine Vorstellung wie viele Quadratmeter man für so viele Blumen plus Gemüsegarten benötigt. So langsam wäre auch von Deinem Garten mal ein Lageplan ganz hilfreich, um Dir bei Deinen Spaziergängen im Garten besser folgen zu können...

Ja, über Nebelungn haben wir auch gelesen, als wir uns immer mehr für die Russen interessierten. Einen kleinen Teil davon haben wir wahrscheinlich sogar in unserer Maus: Ihr Fell ist ganz anders als von Allegra. Auch haben wir ihren Vater nie gesehen. Sie und einer ihrer Brüder haben kurzes Fell, der dritte jedoch halblanges Haar. Aber egal - wir wollten 'graue Katzen' und die haben wir, und sind damit sehr glücklich. Warum fragst Du?

Marie said...

Wow! So many beautiful flowers!
Here in Norway the blooming season is almost over now.
I have a lot of photos of the norwegian fall on my blogg. You are welcome to see if you like :o)

Tira said...

Excellent posting and philosophy.
I also do only organic gardening, I cannot understand the people who are happy to dump all these dangerous chemicals in the environment. We compost all our kitchen waste and recycle as much of our kitchen water as possible.
As always, your fruit looks delectable.

Lis vom Lindenhof said...

Bei so vielen Fotos kann man sehr wohl Hunger und Durst bekommen! :-)
Bei dir blüht ja noch sehr viel, ich habe gestern fast schon alles abgeschnitten. Im Moment fängt es bei uns zu regnen an, schade, jetzt dürfte der goldene und warme Oktober vorbei sein.

Anita said...

Thank you very much for this interesting garden tour at Bliss, Yolanda!

Guess what, we do have strawberries now in October, too (like last year).

My favourite autumn flowers are definitively those wonderful anemones, they look so pretty! I planted several anemones this year, they still need to grow bigger.

Yolanda, once again I am looking for something special (like that clay forcer) and I was told that those things are more cheaper in the Netherlands. It's a little victoriaans kweekkas that you can put in the veggy pot, around 45 x 45 x 45 cm big (here's a link: http://www.jantuma.de/start.php?garten_gewaechshaeuser___beetkaesten.php) Did you ever see something similiar?

Groetjes uit Duitsland en dank je wel voor je help!

Anita

Anonymous said...

Bij Bliss is nog veel kleur te zien....mooi zijn je asters. En het huis heeft ook een vrolijk (scandinavisch?) kleurtje :-)

Anonymous said...

Thank you for speaking up about gardening organically--it's so important! And your garden: so beautiful! It's nice to be able to see a lovely garden, since mine is a big patch of nothing at my new house! It's hard to be patient all over again! ~A :-)

Ki said...

What a wonderful tour of your ever abundant garden. The Cerinthe is an interesting looking plant and that butterfly is really a knock out.

Naturegirl said...

So-o-o-o-many beautiful flowers blossoming! Oh my you have encouraged me to get outside and take a look! I have been healing STILL from the {{virus}} your photos lift my spirit..the cats especially..
OH YES>> organic gardening the only way!! rather than spray I have just thrown the plant away and replanted.. My poor white birch shall be replaced soon..birch beetle got at it..ouch NG

joey said...

Lovely post. Especially enjoyed photos of 'your kitchen garden'. I wonder how anyone could live without one?

KC MO Garden Guy said...

Thanks for the wonderful post Yolanda!! You are so right about mother earth and taking care of her. I do as much as I can to make sure she is taken care of. Thanks for sharing the wonderful pictures of what is in bloom and letting everyone know they too can grow flowers without all the cides that are out there.

Angelina said...

I found your blog through Zanthan Gardens and this was the post I read first. I love all the roses, the flowers, and the bounty in your garden. And of course I love that you are growing it all organically!

Gardenista said...

Hello, I was just reading about malicious websites that steal bits of garden blogs and noticed that this post was used (I won't put the link here exactly but you can type it in) yvettesflowers DOT com

There's no "about" or "profile" link, so I don't know how to contact the owner. They have stolen from my site as well. It seems to be an automated blog-content thief!

Anonymous said...

HI Yolanda,
There is still so much in flower in your garden, it's amazing.
Great pictures. I'm curious to see what will flower next month.

See you,

Bert