It was in the air today

 

The clean, rain-washed air, low humidity, a light wind, and temps of a mere 80 degrees today made for blue, blue skies and a beautiful day. This evening there was even a very slight chill to the air, not really cold.. but there’s definitely a different feeling in the air, different from the hot, humid, hazy feeling of the last few months.

 

Butterflies are still here, bees are everywhere, and hubby’s tomato plants are still flowering and producing dozens and dozens of tomatoes. Portulaca, zinnias, treasure flowers, and other annuals are still blooming throughout the yard. (click any photo to enlarge)

 

 

The containers all still look good, including silvery dusty miller along with fuschia pink impatiens, red begonias with maidenhair fern..other annuals are still in full bloom. The coneflowers are all reblooming, my blaze climber is blooming again after being pruned, and some of the other roses still have blooms on them. The coleus and polka dot plants are at their peak. I have petunias, pentas, evergreen hibiscus, pinks of all types and colors, yellow and orange marigolds, red salvia, purple, pink, and white vinca, purple and red verbena, the stella d’oro lily is still producing blooms, impatiens, orange and red lantana, yellow dahlias — all over the yard, in containers and hanging baskets and beds, the flowers are still blooming…

But, I noticed today that the sourwood trees are blooming and have a red tinge to the leaves, the nandina bushes have green berries all over them, and the perennial mums and asters are covered in buds and a few open blooms. The burning bushes are turning red. The Hearts-a-Burstin’ buds in the secret garden are bright pink and orange. The dogwood leaves are turning a reddish brown and the berries are bright red right now, and the spicebushes also have red berries. I even saw a few poplar leaves on the grass this afternoon.

 

The sun is setting a little earlier and the days are getting a little shorter, the shadows a little longer, and fall was definitely in the air today.