Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day Dec 2015- Warm! Warm! Warm!

Today is the most unusual Garden Bloggers Bloom Day ever since I joined this monthly meme hosted by May Dreams Gardens, an Indiana blogger.

In the entire Northeast United States, fall never ended, and winter weather never quite began. 

We had a couple of snow events here in upstate New York back in early November, enough for a dusting but then the snow stopped.   This was my post for December, 2014, a harsh winter - now we have just the opposite.  I have never seen anything like this, and I have lived in upstate New York for almost 30 years.

Here in zone 5b, we have green lawns.
And I still have...drum roll - outdoor flowers! 

This lone alyssum was planted by seed, and until recently, had some company - a purple alyssum.  But alas, the purple alyssum gave up.  But not this hardy specimen!

 A rosemary plant, in a pot (they are not hardy here), blooms - and has been outdoors except when the temperatures dropped below freezing.
My two remaining hanging baskets, brought in when frost threatens but otherwise, outdoors.

An aster seems to be still blooming, frozen in time, although I am sure these are not new flowers.

This past March we had purchased an April Rose Camilla, our experiment in camilla growing where they say it is impossible.  If the weather stays the way it has been, it won't be impossible.

"If only I had known", I would have protected a lot more of my annual plants.  On exercise walks, I have seen calendula in bloom in several yards.

But wait!  There's more!

If I take this blog post indoors, I can show you some pink African violets.

And, here, purple African violets.

Finally, my Thanksgiving cactus are still giving thanks for something, blooming away the most vigorously I have ever seen.

Every one of us basking in the 60 degree weather (it was 64 F or 17.7 C yesterday at my house near Binghamton, New York) thinks with dread of how Mother Nature intends to make us pay for this most wonderful fall ever.

Or, will she?  Could this continue, an endless fall?


Come visit May Dreams Gardens,  and visit other blogs linked to Garden Bloggers Bloom Day to see what is blooming all over the world today.

9 comments:

  1. Nice flowers Alana. I don't know anything about even basic gardening :-)

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  2. The plants' calendars are really confused with this strange weather. I love your African violets and cactus.

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  3. Basking in 60 degree weather? Yikes. Our high today is supposed to be 63, and we're shivering and huddled in heated places and whining about the cold.

    Yeah, we're weather wimps.

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  4. Thanks for coming by to visit my Bloom Day post. I am amazed that you still have outdoor blooms upstate in zone 5b and that it is as mild as it is here on Long Island (zone 7)...crazy weather for December! Happy GBBD!

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  5. Gorgeous photos! Thank you for sharing!

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  6. My rosemary is still growing but I have never had blooms. How cool.

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  7. I haven't check anyone thing in my garden. It just below freezing in North Idaho, no snow as I speak.
    Coffee is on

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  8. Colorful and beautiful flowers. Loved your post, Alana .... :)

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  9. That's so great that you still have outdoor flowers! And I love the African violets

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