Odd Thing

Juniper seeds

Are there odd things going on in your yard this autumn?  In the Midwest, we've had our share of odd weather.  A look at the historical facts shows they aren't all that rare, simply an odd year.  Let's map out a few of the oddities:

My juniper trees have a HUGE amount of seeds (the blue in the photo).  If I was into making gin I would be ecstatic.  I'm betting I'll be seeing baby juniper trees sprouting up in every flower bed next year.

My dwarf red apple tree is blooming.  Can't imagine that being a good sign for next year's production.

In spite of the drought conditions, the walnuts produced a bumper crop of fruit.  The internal survival gene for our family of squirrels has gone into warp mode.  They spend the day digging and burying.  Another bumper crop of young walnut trees will emerge next year. 

Nasturtium

Several annuals are still going strong in spite of the cold frosty weather we've had at night.  Nasturtiums, potato vine (under a tree), cosmos, bachelor buttons and the ever tough marigolds.

The perennial flowers holding their own are pinks, sedium, phlox, asters and a couple of my hardy roses: "Julia Child" and a red "Knockout." 

I agree with others, the foliage did turn into one of the most beautiful fall shows of color I can remember.  Granted they are falling fast, but I'm still marveling at even the most mundane plant's bright colors. 

The leaves of my hosta are a blazing gold this year.  We haven't had a hard enough freeze to make them go to mush. 



Catalpa seed pods

The redbud and catalpa trees have the most seedpods of any year since I've had them.  Redbuds will self seed with abandon (yeah).  I've never seen catalpa self seed even though I'd be grateful.  We have an old damaged tree and another I planted some years ago.  Most modern properties don't use catalpa anymore.  They have the most amazing flowers in the spring; much like orchids.  Plus, for me they are a reminder of my childhood when I played in our farm's catalpa grove.

A walk along our road showed the many wildflowers, native grasses and weeds in beautiful colors. 

I'm hopeful the four inches of rain we received this week will be the beginning of replenishing the water supply in our area.  Agreed it's making harvesting corn and soybeans more difficult.  Saw several farmers picking in the rain.  I'm guessing that corn was headed for the local ethanol plant.   They can use wet corn since they process it on site.

What's been the oddities in your gardens this fall?  Are they beautiful, scary or a puzzlement?