Subtle Shades of Autumn


Autumn is officially here and with it, my favorite season has arrived!!!! Yet, while I am ecstatic, I am also missing my summer garden. So much that I wrote a love letter HERE saying goodbye. But the fall garden is bringing me much joy. Now, I know you are probably tired of seeing dahlias, but this is prime time for them. And if you have read a few of my back post, you know I have a deep love of dahlias, and this weekend the garden gifted me with some beautiful blooms that are definitely autumnal in coloring.

Part of this is that the past three days we have definitely had fall temperatures. It is as if mother nature turned on the “fall temperatures” switch and we have had mornings in the 45F with highs in the low 70F. This is important because dahlias are highly reactive to temperature changes causing their colors to vary. Pinks become lighter, intense colors more subtle— like Penhill Watermelon which has take a russet tone (far right bloom).

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But today’s vase is very special because it is the first time I have been able to harvest perfectly pristine blooms of ‘Iceberg’ dinner plate dahlias and ‘Center Court’, both white dahlias that have been decimated by beetles all summer.

Between using organza bags and now cooler temperatures, I have managed to win this battle against the beetles. By the way, the ‘Iceberg’ below it is bigger but had to harvest it due to a storm we had a few days ago that toppled some branches.

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Below, ‘Center Court’ shines with its lovely white petals. That I have managed to harvest perfectly beautiful white blooms is a gardening win for this novice gardener.

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For this vase today, I used a $5 vase from Target (for those in the UK, this is a department store hugely popular in the US). They have these bins at the entrance of the store where they offer seasonal items that are absolutely adorable and super affordable. I love those bins! :) Anyhow, I love the beehive pattern of this vase and the teal color looks beautiful with these flowers.

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How was your first day of fall? Did you do anything special to celebrate the autumnal equinox?