It hasn’t rained in almost seven weeks. Despite the lack of rain, many flowers are happily blooming. I cut back the black and blue saliva, which had become yellowed and ungainly, to the point where only one-foot stalks remained. Six weeks later, it’s lush and loaded with bees again. The two biggest surprises are the orange Gerbera daisies and sulphur cosmos.
The daisies were indoors for two years in a small pot. They were in a window, but failed to thrive. Once they were down to one good leaf, I felt there wasn’t much of a future for them inside, so I planted them in an inconspicuous spot in the yard. In July, when it rained in downpours all month, they grew quickly. In August, I left them to their own devices and paid no attention to them until three weeks ago. At that time, a single bud had appeared, and now, after seven rainless weeks, they look great!
The sulphur cosmos grew from seed. They were the first wild flowers to bloom, and they are prolific—which is an understatement. After the initial group of sulphur cosmos flowered and died off, I assumed they were done for the season. Nope. Not only are they growing in the sidewalk beds, but they have also spread. Some are even growing out of cracks in the cement and random patches of soil in the gutter. I have never seen a plant self-seed so quickly.
There seems to be little hope for rain for the next three weeks, and the frost usually appears in early November, so this may be the season’s final blooms. It has been a good year.
