Winter Fruit in the Snow

A pastoral scene near one of our favorite dog parks, including an ice fisherman

in the distance on a frozen tributary to the Yahara River.

Suddenly...it's winter!

We've already broken two "winter" weather records near Madison, Wis. On November 29, we received nearly 12 inches of snow in 24 hours--the snowiest November day and the heaviest single November snowstorm on record!

And now it's very cold: On December 4, the high temperature was 16F/-9C and the low was around 0F/-18C. While these temperatures often occur in January or February here, they're far below normal for December.

Right after the big snow, I thought I'd go out and photograph some winter fruits--they're so interesting and colorful framed in white. But the bitter cold and heavy snow limited my choices in our garden. So I'm including a few fruits from plants in the sunroom, and another observed during a recent dog walk:



Frosted drupes on Cranberrybush Viburnum (V. trilobum);



A snowy cap for Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina);



Wind-scattered Crabapples (Malus spp.) for bird snacks;



Poisonous, drying Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum wallisii) berries, ready to be clipped;



Ripening Fuchsia 'Marinka' berries, almost ready to harvest;



And bright, cheerful American Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) along the trail.



I couldn't resist sharing this special message created by a fellow dog lover at the park. ❤️

I'm linking in with Jim's "Six on Saturday" meme over at Garden Ruminations.

Six on Saturday in the Sunroom

My garden is currently "reset" on winter, after one storm dropped more snow in one day than during the entire month of January. I admit it's prettier, and the plants now have a white blanket of protection. I'm joining in Jim's "Six on Saturday" meme at Garden Ruminations, but I hope it's OK if I focus on my indoor garden in the sunroom...



I'm thrilled to see that some shoots of the 'Canova Rose' Canna Lily (Canna x generalis) are breaking through the soil in their pot. (If you see lava rocks in my pots, it's to protect the plants from digging squirrels and chipmunks when the pots are moved outside during the growing season. The rodents don't like to dig through the tough lava rocks.)



Fuchsia  'Marinka' (F. hybrida) is putting on more buds.



And there are plenty of edible Fuchsia fruits, too!



The potted Passionflower (Passifloria incarnata) vine that I bring indoors for the winter is budding. I have another Passionflower outdoors, and I hope it survived the bitter cold of January with no snow.



Flaming Katy (Kalanchoe blossfeldiana) is full of buds, too. When open, the blooms are a beautiful bright yellow.

Purple Shamrock Oxalis (O. triangularis) is happy all winter in the sunroom. Its companion in the pot is variegated English Ivy (Hedera helix).



And the Gerbera Daisy (G. jamesonii) is the brightest star in the group. I have to smile when I see these happy faces.

So much to celebrate (in the plant world) indoors and out. Happy Six on Saturday and Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!

Berries on My Mind

 Common Yew (Taxus baccata)

Lately I've been noticing and thinking about berries, so I thought I'd reflect on them here on the blog. Some are poisonous and some are edible, but this post is simply about how beautiful they are and how they provide food for birds and other wildlife. For information on human edibility, check out this link. All berries shown here are in my garden.

Smooth Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum biflorum)

Fuchsias (F. 'Marinka') (unripe berries above the flowers)

White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda)

Cranberrybush Viburnum (V. trilobum)

Beautyberry (Callicarpa 'Pearl Glam')

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)

There are more, but this was a quick reflection. How are the berries doing in your garden? Happy autumn!

The Fuchsias of November 2022

This is an unusual November for my part of the world. We've had light frost, but it's been followed by days of very mild weather, similar to what we'd usually experience in September. While most perennials have gone dormant and many annuals have passed, some plants that can take a light frost are holding out. This includes my hanging baskets of Fuchsias.

I have many around the property, and most have not been sheltered from the cold nights or covered at all. They're actually looking better than they did during the hot summer days.

I don't know the names of most of these Fuchsias, because they came in mixed baskets without tags. The last two photos, however, are 'Markinka,' which I bring in to the sunroom for the winter every year, and the buds of 'Dark Eyes.'

We've been spoiled with this mild autumn. I'm not ready for the cold days of winter ahead.

A Few Fleshy Fruits of Autumn

Garden blooms are gone and foliage is fading in my neighborhood, but a few fruits remain here and there. Some will last through the winter, while others offer happy feasts for birds and critters as winter's cold, icy claw will soon grip the landscape.

As I glance around the garden, the berries, drupes, pomes and other fruits catch my eye amidst the brown and gray of "once lush" trees, shrubs, and forbs. I'll refer you to a list of types of fruits for proper identification.

Can you identify what types of fruits (berries, drupes, pomes, hesperidia, other) are shown here?:



Cranberrybush Viburnum (V. trilobum)



Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina)



Pachysandra (P. terminalis)



Yew (Taxis canadensis)



Crabapples (unknown Malus cultivar)



Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)

Those are a few of the outdoor fruits; here are two I overwinter in the sunroom:



Developing Fuchsia fruit (F. 'Marinka')



Meyer Lemon (Citrus x meyeri)

Can you correctly classify these fruits? What fruits are growing and ripening in your garden?

[Disclaimer: Not all of the fruits shown here are edible to humans! Research before you consume the parts of any unfamiliar plant!]

Join Me in the Sunshine at the San Diego Botanic Garden

It's looking like the Midwest will have an early spring this year. However, even during a mild winter my mind tends to wander to warmer places.

Last year, in March, when we traveled to San Diego, one of my favorite destinations was the San Diego Botanic Garden, in Encinitas. As with all botanical gardens, my time there was too short. But here are a few highlights.



In the children's garden, signage and garden descriptions are friendly and informative.



This whimsical planter on a post describes the precious resource of water and how to conserve it.



Without words: sculpture illustrating the importance of pollinators.



This sign explains hummingbirds' penchant for long, tubular flowers, as the little friends circle around the nearby flowers and hide in the treetops.



The San Diego Botanic Garden provides protected habitat for Monarch caterpillars.



And a "bed and breakfast" enclosure for butterflies through all their life stages.



Many butterflies, like this Giant Swallowtail, flit and float throughout the gardens.



This "Fiddler" steel sculpture seems to come to life at the center of a mixed garden area.



Mariachis covered in succulents--perfect!



And dancers nearby--pure joy.



One area of the garden is dedicated to a tropical rain forest theme.



Including the specialized plants that inhabit rain forests.



Some epiphytes in the gardens are potted, while others perch on trees.



Likewise with plentiful succulents, like this Kiwi Aeonium, planted directly in the soil.



Others planted in pots.

And then more plants ...



Lilac Verbena (V. lilacina; syn. Glandularia lilacina), native to Baja California and Mexico.



Olulu or Cabbage on a Stick (Brighamia insignis), nearly extinct and native to the Hawaiian islands.



Coral Tree (Erythrina caffra), native to South Africa.



Long-Leafed Cycad (Encephalartos longifolius), native to South Africa.



Baja Fairy Duster (Calliandra californica), native to California.



California Brittlebush (Encelia californica), also native to California.



Blue Chalksticks (Senecio mandraliscae), native to South Africa.



Clivia (C. miniata) native to South Africa.



California Lilac (Ceanothus arboreus), native to California.



The botanical garden also has groves of Citrus, native to various Asian and Pacific locales.



And other fruits, such as Bananas (Musa acuminata), native to Southeast Asia.



One of my favorite spots: the walled garden. Secret gardens with benches always beckon.



Draping over the walled garden are giant Weeping Bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis, syn. Melaleuca viminalis) trees.



Yummy.



While I was in this walled garden admiring these trees, hummingbirds were buzzing by. But I couldn't seem to capture them in a photo--partly because of the great camouflage of the trees.



Later, I enlarged one of the photos and found a surprise hummer. You can see how easy it is for them to hide among the leaves and flowers. :)



Bye, for now, walled garden and San Diego Botanic Garden. I hope I'll visit again before too long.

**************

(Note: The San Diego Botanic Garden has a substantial collection of native and xeric plants. A future post will focus more on these plants.)