the harry lauder walking stick a few days ago, taken by my husband.

here is my sister's ralph's glory orchid in full bloom. she's been nagging me for a month to post it!!! well, it is stupendous, i'll give her that. ok, and i will start posting more again!

our area has had the least snowy year since 1878! today, when it is usually in the 20's F, we are to have 70 F! mom's camellia, which usually blooms in april, is blooming now:

the whippet galloping and the poodle gamboling in the unseasonably warm weather.

we are having record-breaking warm weather here; the white camillia is blooming now for the second time ever, since i planted it 7 years ago! the flowers are 1.5 inches across. we are expecting a cold snap early this coming week, i hope it's not too cold!

the american yellow clivia that my brother gave me has continued to bloom from the center of the plant. usually clivias send up a stalk crowned with flowers, as did my sister's clivia, prince of orange (search earlier post.) now i'm trying to figure out how to teach my clivia to bloom the right way! are clivia's teachable? The flowers are 2 inches across. The plant is really pretty, thanks bro!

camellia "winter's beauty" is blooming today; this plant has been in my garden for 8 months, and i hope it winters over well. jasminium nudiflorum is also taking advantage of the warm weather today. this one has been blooming for a few weeks, and it will also bloom come february.

enkianthus today

this bald cypress was 6 feet tall when i planted it 8 years ago; now it is about 20 feet tall. the tiny leaves turn a lovely reddish brown before they are shed late in the fall. unfortunately, there's an unattractive house behind the tree... hope the tree continues its rapid growth!

this hydrangea is acutally a lovely aubergine color, but the flash made it look purple.

fall colors: dwarf oakleaf hydrangea, japanese maple sangu kaku, butterfly bush, enkinanthus crape myrtle
sedum autumn joy in front of a yellowing fern

today, my other passion...

hubs carved this pumpkin last year. the picture doesn't do it justice.

le poodle après sa coupe aujourd'hui

my mother took these at the bronx botanical garden. aren't they cute?!?! this one was cuter with mom in the picture, but i photoshopped her out...

deciduous holly winterberry is fruiting well, but will look its best when the leaves drop. i decided to photograph it now, as the birds really like the berries and they may not last until leaf drop. pineapple sage is finally blooming. its a tender perennial here, but i always harbor hopes of a mild winter and some survival.

the dward oakleaf hydrangea in fall colors fall alliums

surely this butterfly must have been cold; is was about 50 degrees when i took this picture. mums

today i threw the ball for the dogs... the whippet is very hard to catch with my digital camera... she's just so fast... see the streak of deer spore on her neck?
the poodle can't catch her, but he does try!

hubs found this beautiful bird's nest while we cut our hedges from 8 to 4 feet tall. The nest is made of twigs and bolstered on the outside with bark from our betula nigra, or river birch.

the front steps decked out for the season... water lily colchicum blooming now...

this tattered tiger swallowtail is a remnant of summer...the purple cloud called lespedeza...
river birch bark at sunset...
autumn crocus.

want a treat?

the pink brugmansia is so pretty today...

the poodle enjoying the last warm days of the year.

today is probably the last hot day of this year, with temps in the high 80s. the brugmansia are still flowering, and i took this upward shot to give a new perspective.

here is my sister's prince of orange clivia. please note my considerable jealousy that, 5 years after our brother gave us each clivias, my sister's blooms like this and mine blooms not at all. all i can say is "wow!" (now wasn't that mature of me?)

sedum autumn joy is blooming now, after surviving major deer nibbling and liberal salting from proximity to the road. it is so common around here, because its indestructible. my neighbor's sweet autumn clematis, which covers about 12 feet of her hedge and almost looks like snow. the fragrance is wonderful. i just planted one in my garden, but it is not blooming yet.

a close up of beauty berry, which is a drought tolerant and care free shrub. here is a larger picture of the shrub, which i've had for 2 years.

garlic chives are taking over the herb garden. the caryopteris does not like all the rain we've been getting, but is finally blooming.

the deer have eaten half the buds, but the japanese anemone are still the most beautiful thing in the garden right now. morning haze softens the look of various greenery today.