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slideshow: golden days as the garden slides by

AS MUCH AS THE GARDEN STARTS UP WITH A GLEAM OF GOLD, it goes out with one, too. Yes, yellow is certainly spring’s favorite color–but it is likewise autumn’s. In words and photos, some thoughts about how gold works in the garden (hint: it’s not the least bit shy), and the plants who are offering up their biggest payoffs right now.

So many plants seem at their loudfest and most insistent now, don’t they?, positively shouting from all corners of the place. That’s a tender thing, Oxalis vulcanicola, up top, defiantly hanging on and getting more fiery each day as if it dares frost to just try to take it down.

Click on the first thumbnail to start the show, then toggle from slide to slide using the arrows beside each caption (or the arrows on your keyboard). Let this newest gallery be the matching bookend to the one about garden gold that I posted in spring. Enjoy.

  1. Iris Garrott says:

    oh I do love your slideshows… and thanks so much for the photo and description of Rhus ‘Tiger Eyes… I noticed one in Chicago a couple of weeks ago and am glad have ID info about this glorious specimen…

    1. Margaret says:

      Welcome, Iris. Of course all this gold will soon go into hiding — hidden treasure, I guess you could call it — as winter comes on, but for now, gorgeous. Nice to see you, and do come again soon.

  2. Michelle B says:

    It makes me so happy that your garden exists, it’s just gorgeous.

    No gold hanging around in the southwest of France at the moment, since all the potimarrons , Charentais melons, and Golden Delicious apples have been harvested mid-September. However, in a month or so, a fuyu persimmon tree in my neighbor’s front garden will startle us suddenly by letting its golden globes peek out amidst the tree’s greenery going on to astound by framing gilded fruit with equally gilded leaves, then dropping all its leaves while giving permission for the fruit to hang on, burnished and gleaming on their own.

  3. Miss Becky says:

    oh what a beautiful slide show. thank you so much. I marvel at your lovely spot, and how much time and work you’ve put into it all. what a pleasant place to call home.

  4. terryk says:

    Oh, everything is beautiful. The garden must really be shinning. Each photo makes me say “I want that for my garden!”. It’s nice to see these shrubs and perennials at various times of the year. It really gives one an understanding of how they look throughout the various seasons. Thanks Margaret.

    1. Margaret says:

      Hi, Suzanne. It came to me as ‘Chermesina,’ and as the weather gets colder, it will (hopefully) take on a golden-orange (sometimes even hotter-colored, depends from year to year). You can see a big old pollarded one here in a garden nearby me, in late winter color. That one is cut back every year, which supposedly will prompt the most colorful (coral) twig color, compared to older stems…but as you can see, theirs is more golden than coral. Hmmm…always mysteries, right? :)

  5. Laura says:

    HI Margaret – thank you for the beautiful photos. The clethras, redbuds and winterberries in my garden are all a bright gold and make a lovely understory. But the birds ate all the berries already – so much for my winter interest!

  6. Leigh Williams, Austin, TX says:

    I really enjoyed this, Margaret. Many of these are attractive enough to set my garden lust going; but of course, the heat and lack of water here in Central Texas might do them in. I’ll do a little research to see if any of them might be candidates!

  7. tetrarose says:

    This was such a pleasure, thank you! I always think that in autumn, plants are giving us back the light they soaked up all year, a heartening counterpoint to the dimmer days. Maybe this is why we love the yellow and gold colors so much, they remind us of all that sweet sunshine we thrive on!

  8. Nancy Franke says:

    Gosh, Margaret, the slides how is gorgeous. I’ve been clearing vines and brush on our property, and now I want to fill all the “new” space up with gold!
    Nancy

  9. Daisy Marshall says:

    If I ever have a garden I want it to be like yours! Thank you! Positively beautiful. My little yellow butterflies are back in the mangrove bushes behind my apt. building, unfortunately they were cut back in Jan so I can no longer call it my butterfly bush but, now the birds are more visible so I have a front row seat to a beautiful bird sanctuary. Not a bad trade I guess! Thank you again, Daisy.

  10. sandy says:

    Hello Margaret

    Are your shrubs rated for zone 4? Seems everything I adore needs at least a zone 5 which I am not. Unfortunately. Sandy

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