Winter Wildflowers

While most of the garden,…

Including the wildflowers…

Have put on the kerchief and cap for a long winter’s nap…

Looking stark but still stunning…

Hidden beneath the foliage of others…

Or out in plain sight…

Some persist.

***

The cast of characters:

#1. Aster tataricus ‘Jin Dai’
#2. Aster white wildus ‘I Made That Up’
#3. Solidago ssp.
#4. Cold bee hanging on
#5. Zizia aurea
#6. Erigeron ssp.
#7. Same as #2

To see more about the wildflowers of the wide, wide world, visit my friend Gail of Clay and Limestone on the fourth Wednesday of each month, or anytime!

Frances

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~ by fairegarden on December 28, 2012.

Posted in Wildflowers, wildlife

16 Responses to “Winter Wildflowers”

And spring will be here soon….

What an exciting thought, Mark and Gaz, spring will indeed be here in the blink of the solar eye. Many bulbs are up here, and crocus and snowdrops are budded. But there is still a period of rest left for plants and humans.
Frances

Mark and Gaz said this on December 28, 2012 at 5:40 am | Reply
I love that first, fluffy photo. Well, the photo is not fluffy but the seed heads certainly are in fluff form.

Hi Layanee, thanks for stopping by. The asters still look so pretty, I hate to cut them down, but that time is drawing near because the bulbs are showing. Fluff is good.
Frances

Layanee said this on December 28, 2012 at 8:45 am | Reply
My garden is pure white right now. We got 12 inches of snow. Whooo hooooooo. FUN, only because I haven’t had to get out in it except to play and knock snow off shrubs.

Hi Lisa, whooo hoooo is right! Nothing like that fluffy white blanket to make the plants very happy. Take it easy out there!
Frances

Lisa at Greenbow said this on December 28, 2012 at 9:02 am | Reply
Frances, your wildflowers are beautiful! How cool to have a few still in bloom, although, I love the fluffy seed heads very much! Most of the seeds have been eaten or dispersed by the wind so I will be taking mine down, too. Happy WW xoxogail

Thanks Gail. I love those seed heads, they really spice up the winter landscape. Leaving them stand a bit longer will ensure plenty of wild white asters in years to come, too. And to think I used to pull them all as weeds.
xoxoxo
Frances

gail said this on December 28, 2012 at 9:19 am | Reply
Beautiful photos…those fluffy, white seed heads are so gorgeous!

Hi Scott, thanks. The aster seed heads are more beautiful this year than ever before, or is it that I never noticed them? Or is it that more wild ones were allowed to bloom and form seeds?
Frances

Scott said this on December 28, 2012 at 11:01 am | Reply
I love those fluffy seedheads on the Aster tataricus! Thanks for iding it, I gotta get me some! LOL at the white wildus ‘I Made That Up’! I have a purple one like that.

Hi Alisoan, thanks. I love A. tataricus ‘Jin Dai’, it stands up straight and tall well into winter. The species is much taller and needs to be staked here, so has already been cut down. We are awash in those white wildus! HA
Frances

Alison said this on December 28, 2012 at 11:02 am | Reply
It looks good for getting ready to sleep. Poor little bee trying to get the last gulp of food.

Hi Lola, thanks. It does look good, more so than I ever remember before. I worry for the bees, but that is Nature’s way, I guess.
Frances

Lola said this on December 28, 2012 at 11:46 am | Reply
I saw a daisy (Becky) in bloom this morning, hidden in a sheltered spot behind the others. Makes you smile to see them this time of year.

Hi Jill, how wonderful to have a sweet Becky in bloom now. We do have some of the wild ox eye daisies open. Smiles all around.
Frances

My Kids Mom said this on December 28, 2012 at 4:45 pm | Reply
I left aster seedheads up for a while thinking that the birds might be interested. I finally cut back the asters today because I’ve yet to see any birds on them. Our weather is its usual odd combination of winter & spring right now.

Hi Cindy, thanks for adding in here. We leave stuff up as much for the way they give winter interest as for the birds. They look so pretty. I do know how your climate can swing to and fro. Spring, fro, is good!
Frances

Cindy said this on December 28, 2012 at 5:34 pm | Reply
thx for the lovely pics and thoughts. Winter has hit much harder here and it was refreshing to remember the look of late fall.

Hi Justme, thanks for stopping by. Winter has covered much of the land with a white blanket, but not here, not yet, anyway. It is nice to see the white, but still nice to see colors of evergreen plants, and the fadeds.
Frances

justme said this on December 28, 2012 at 10:49 pm | Reply
What a treat to see something still blooming! My garden settled down for its winter nap some time ago, even though it’s still waiting for a blanket of snow to keep it cozy. Love those asters!

Hi Rose, thanks. May you get that protective blanket for your garden soon. Our garden usually has no cover and must carry the cold months with winter interest. Gardening can be year around here.
Frances

Rose said this on December 29, 2012 at 10:27 am | Reply
How wonderful to have a few still going…3 feet of snow has covered mine and many of their seed heads

Wow, Donna, three feet of snow seems incredible! We seldom have any snow cover at all, so the garden has been tweaked for maximum winter interest and ease of care.
Frances

Donna@Gardens Eye View said this on December 29, 2012 at 11:31 am | Reply
Nothing persists in my winter garden. It’s buried under a foot of snow right now.

Hi Carol, thanks for visiting. Your garden fairies must be enjoying some indoor time with their cousins, hope they, and you are keeping warm!
Frances

indygardener said this on December 29, 2012 at 5:14 pm | Reply
Dear Frances: It’s so encouraging to see a post like this when we’re in a deep freeze and under many inches of snow! Today I looked longingly at the spots where my Hellebores rest–thinking about the dormant buds which must endure until the snow melts. Amazing and wonderful that some wildflowers still persist in your garden!

Hi Plant Postings, thanks for visiting. That the plants endure under so much snow is always miraculous, yet they do, and are thriving. The plants here don’t get that warm and cozy covering but we still get cold temps, they have to be tough customers!
Frances

PlantPostings said this on December 30, 2012 at 10:10 pm | Reply
Happy New Year, dear Frances! We make a calendar every year too – they’re such fun to do. Ours is of the cats, so extra ones are made for our cat loving relatives and neighbours

Hi VP, and a very happy 2013 to you. I love your cat calendar idea, and imagine it is well received. May this year see us reunited at the next fling!
xoxoxo
Frances

VP said this on January 1, 2013 at 10:48 am | Reply
I’m finally moving my garden outside as you recommended. It takes a long time to do it the right way. I buried well over 100 feet of water pipe to get water out to the back yard. The different planting areas have automatic watering on timers. Bamboo-rabbit helped me install that, he did the grapevine area and I did the blueberry pots. I’ve just started working on the greenhouse next to the blueberries. It will be heated in winter and A/C in summer now that I have my solar system set up to offset the cost of the electricity. The first greenhouse will be 16 feet wide, 24 feet long, and 8 feet high. I intend to grow my veggies year round in the greenhouse yet I will still have outside growing areas too.

That sounds wonderful, Elisabeth. There was a link url that wordpress identified as spam with your comment. It has been removed, but the comment allowed since it seems legitimate. Good luck with your greenhouses, they should be great!
Frances

Elisabeth V. Hebert said this on January 8, 2013 at 7:55 pm | Reply

Fairegarden