Before Autumn Takes Hold

After nearly six straight weeks of constant temps in the middle 90’s, we had a reprieve of daytime temperatures in the 70’s with dips into the upper 40’s during the night. It felt like such a relief. And yet, it was also the first time this summer I was reminded that Autumn’s arrival is forthcoming and Winter will be hanging on its coattails. Today, it’s 98 F, and feels like well over 100. Oh my.

Before Autumn takes hold of the reins, I thought I’d share some photos I took over the summer of my little, office patio. These are pictures from my cell phone. They aren’t the best versions of “photography.” Still, I think they are worthy of sharing, if for no other reason that to offer me a quick click reminder that, when the days become too short and too cold, Spring’s arrival is always promised.

WATER

I love the sound of flowing water. It’s very soothing and also can attract birds. This is a waterfall that flows into the goldfish pond. We made it out of a repurposed planter and a over-flow reservoir.

I also assembled another water feature using a resin planter into which I drilled some over-flow holes. I positioned that atop some repurposed pavers in an old stock water tub. Then, I arranged a couple of ceramic planters to provide a cascading effect. I added a floating plant basket with some aquatic lilies.

AQUATIC PLANTS

The well established Impatients hang over the right side of the pond, while the overzealous, aquatic mint has taken hold in the marginal plant basket on the left, and offer much desired shade for the goldfishes. I will harvest the mint in a few weeks. Once dried, it will last a long while and can be used for tea or even offered to our chickens (both pre and post drying) as they enjoy most fresh, green, edible plants. At this time, their late blooming flowers are offer nectar to lots of types of butterflies and even the hummingbirds flit in for a little drink.

POTTED PLANTS

My favorite annual flower to grow on my patio is the Impatient. This is a shade-loving plant that explodes in size and blooms as the season progresses. I only need to purchase a couple of flats (small containers with 6 wee sized plants) and offer a bit of love and water. They grow and grow with more blossoms than I can count.

This summer I also planted some very colorful Zinneas (to the right.)

The next picture is of New Zealand Impatients, which I acquired for the first time this Spring. This plant was one, small sized hanging basket that I transplanted to a larger planter. It flourished and pretty much took over the patio with beauty.

Zineas!

This next flower is a type of Daisy, but I have forgotten the specific name.

Look how, in just a few months, the few little Impatient plants have turned into a massive display of flowers!

The entire vibe of my office patio changed when we built the chicken coop. The coop is a resin 8 x 10′ shed to which we made many improvements, including three windows. So that I could access the coop easily, we placed the coop next to the house where I can cross a small deck that Robert build to access the door on the West side. The east end of the shed is just next to the patio. Before we built the coop, there was a kennel gate in that space, and I could see the goings-on of our client dogs. We took some of that outdoor dog run space for the coop. Now, the coop wall makes my patio seem like a cozy place, with the window box of flowers and a couple of storage boxes that I brought over from our larger, kitchen patio.

You can also see a couple of Mums (one purple and one orange) that I brought home from a trip to the local building supply & garden store.

I use the round mirror in the winter to see wild birds coming to feeder that I put out at that time of year. The reflection in this photo is of the flowers that surround the patio pond.

I hope this was an enjoyable post. Flowers always make me happy.