These tiny plants transform themselves every fall.
They change from little rosettes to tall towers.
Most plants just throw up a stalk of flowers,
but this little succulent turns into a mama stalk.
I watched a bumble bee climb the flower towers over and over yesterday.
I do not know its name. I just call it “Ghost Rose.”
I hope a reader can help me identify this “All-In Mama.”
FLOWER
I found a surprise while hiking in the mountains last week.
How lucky to find a lovely grouping of Jack O’Lantern mushrooms on a fall afternoon.
These orange Omphalotus olearius may look yummy, but they are poisonous.
These were perfectly positioned right beside the trail.
I have heard that the gills glow green in the dark, but I have never seen this.
The leaves had not transformed to their lovely fall colors yet here in North Carolina.
I am glad the Jack O’Lanterns stepped in to add color.
Flow
I have had to water these dahlias during the drought.
I knew if I could just get them through to cooler weather
they would return to their glorious blooming condition.
I have been rewarded for my efforts.
They have pulled through and prospered.
Definitely worth the water.
Flow
We have been in a drought here in North Carolina.
I have had to water to keep most plants alive.
My Muhly grass did not need me.
This lovely Florida native is drought tolerant.
Its pink plumes add much needed color in October.
For my Lutheran readers, Muhly is short for Muhlenberg.
It is named after a Lutheran minister/ botanist Henry Ludwig Muehlenberg from the early 1800’s.
Muhly grass is a super star, rain or shine, in October.
Flower
This vine is a party.
Its name is Cardiosperma halicacabum due to its seeds with hearts on them.
It has lovely tiny flowers that remind me of confetti.
It is grown for its pods that resemble balloons.
Each pod contains three seeds with a white heart on each.
I love this vine for its blooms, pods and seeds.
Flow
Back in March I posted about a stick I purchased from a local nursery.
https://floweralley.org/2019/03/22/the-expensive-stick/
Mr. Flower saw it as an expensive stick, but I saw more.
I saw lush green leaves covered with dew drops.
I saw speckled bark the color of cinnamon.
I saw white tight buds that will turn into yellow chandeliers in winter.
My visions have come to fruition.
This is what brings me joy.
My Edgeworthia / Chinese Paper Bush a treasure.
Flower
I spied some yellow umbrellas under a Key lime tree.
If I were a fairy, I would have sat under one to drink lemonade.
Since I am only a busy human, I had to continue with my menial tasks.
But I can dream while I work
of sitting under a yellow umbrella
beneath a Key lime tree
drinking lemonade in the shade.
Flow
I am beginning to wonder where I have been instead of present.
One of my favorite vines, Clerodendrum thomsoniae, surprised me yesterday.
I found pods and seeds on it for the first time ever.
Have I just missed this every fall? Or are these the first ever seeds?
The hearts of my bleeding heart vine have busted open with seeds.
I thought I was paying attention.
Maybe I was skiing instead of swimming.
That’s what I say when I am zooming across the surface instead of being submerged.
Could I really have missed bright red and black seed pods every year?
Have I been this busy?
It’s like missing a stop sign…red light…exit on a highway…
I must just tell myself, YOU SEE IT NOW.
Pay attention now!
I must have missed a few measures of music. Keep playing. Keep singing.
Look now. Pay attention now.
SEE NOW
FLOW
It’s about staying up as you go down. Strength and balance are key.
That’s where I am in life. It’s not a time to move forward.
I am pausing and assessing.
There is no bar to get over. No hoops to jump through.
This is all new to me, this life in limbo.
The pausing and pondering .
I am not planning or preparing.
I am quietly balancing and bending.
Taking slow, careful steps.
The season is about to change… again.
Flow
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