Today was another exceptional one in terms of weather with sunshine and a cool breeze. The daytime temperatures are around 62 degrees F although it is quite a bit cooler in the shade. I love this image above of the long border in the distance framed by this old mulberry (Morus sp.). I enjoyed my morning walk and photography and continue to run in to Carol who also helps at Great Dixter and is no stranger to photography there! She’s given me some excellent suggestions for shots and I’m sure has captured the essence of the place with her superb photography. “Thank goodness for kneeling pads” is my comment for the day as there was lots of path weeding and additional weeding to tidy up before the big Plant Fair this weekend. The gardens continue to be entrancing and the people (staff and volunteers) here at Great Dixter are certainly gracious with their guidance, support and friendship.
some roses still continue and I’ve seen some climbers over 20′ tall!
asters are really starting to contribute color
the dragonfly above paused long enough for this shot
here is a segment of the brick “wheelbarrow path” that we worked on (Thies and Susan below) – love that scraping tool by the way!
The nursery is very well run and I snapped the photo above and two below in the primary building for sales. I like the biodegradable bags too and their nursery signage is excellent
Ben (Head of Maintenance) showed us their Biomass Boiler system which was installed three years ago. In lieu of sounding ignorant trying to describe exactly how this works, I encourage anyone interested to view www.building4change.com/article.jsp?id=1257#.Vgwu0vlVikp to understand this energy-efficient process and the very interesting history regarding the installation of this substantial system. The circular device above and below with the “arms” is rotating and feeding locally sourced woodchips in to this system. Pretty “Eco-Cool” (and warm)!
awesome foliage dominates in the Exotic Garden
afternoon light through a yucca (Yucca filamentosa)..probably the variety ‘Color Guard’
‘Queen Red Lime’ zinnia (Zinnia elegans) – awesome variety (annual)
same dahlia (Dahlia sp.) above and below…amazing how impactful they can be from bud to bloom!
Dahlia ‘Oakwood Fire’
awesome fall color on the containerized Acer japonicum ‘Aconitifolium’ in front
beneficial backlighting on ‘Lemon Queen’ perennial sunflower (Helianthus hybrida) – perennial
the plumes of variegated pampas grass (Cortaderia sp.) are a focal point right now!
Bidens aurea ‘Hannay’s Lemon Drop’ was standing about 7′ tall! Center petal tip notches are interesting too. Awesome!
the Oast House “vents” are always architecturally engaging!
