It's lovely weather here in Albuquerque, on the first day of November, with days in the 70's, nights in the 40's and clear sunny skies. I'm lucky I live here, and yet, I'm sad that winter is coming, with its bitter cold and dormant plants. I will worry with every cold spell, that my marginally hardy plants will not make it. But right now, there are plants blooming, and better yet, there are fragrant plants. This is almost enough to take me out of my fall doldrums.
Osmanthus heterophyllus is just starting to open its diminutive flowers, but already the exotic fragrance of sweet tea is scenting the air around it. With luck, there will not soon be a frost which blackens the flowers and cuts short the show.
Hoya pubera is blooming indoors, and although Tovah Martin, in her book The Essence of Paradise (highly recommended by the way), describes its fragrance as "hot chocolate milk," mine must be a mutant, for it smells of hyacinth and lilies. During the day, the scent fills the room (at night, the orchid Little Stars, in the previous post, fills the room with its clove fragrance). The one-inch wide umbels of flowers secrete a sweet nectar which attracts ants.
Ceanothus coeruleus is still, impressively, blooming, the flowers being a darker blue in the cooler weather. I put my nose in a flower panicle today and was surprised by the dusty sweet chestnut fragrance. Tovah Martin says that it is said to smell of cheese, or gym socks, but that it becomes anisey when the blooms begin to fade. I smell roasted chestnuts all the way from start to finish.
Rose Winchester Cathedral is still blooming, although with less than perfect flowers, and mildewed leaves. Its blooms are less fragrant than with warmer weather, but with blooms in November, I'm not complaining.
The last of the Crocus speciosus is blooming (above), forming a nice contrast to the fall leaves and the 'Angelina' sedum. There are still quite a few flowers on the Salvia chamaedryoides (below) although the winter will freeze the plants back to the ground.
Not a lot of posts lately since it's crunch time for thesis. I'll be presenting my thesis on December 3, at the University of New Mexico, at 9 am. It is open for any who are interested. The working title is "Healing the Land, Healing Ourselves." The long subtitle is "A physician's perspective of land's connection to health."
Osmanthus heterophyllus is just starting to open its diminutive flowers, but already the exotic fragrance of sweet tea is scenting the air around it. With luck, there will not soon be a frost which blackens the flowers and cuts short the show.
Hoya pubera is blooming indoors, and although Tovah Martin, in her book The Essence of Paradise (highly recommended by the way), describes its fragrance as "hot chocolate milk," mine must be a mutant, for it smells of hyacinth and lilies. During the day, the scent fills the room (at night, the orchid Little Stars, in the previous post, fills the room with its clove fragrance). The one-inch wide umbels of flowers secrete a sweet nectar which attracts ants.
Ceanothus coeruleus is still, impressively, blooming, the flowers being a darker blue in the cooler weather. I put my nose in a flower panicle today and was surprised by the dusty sweet chestnut fragrance. Tovah Martin says that it is said to smell of cheese, or gym socks, but that it becomes anisey when the blooms begin to fade. I smell roasted chestnuts all the way from start to finish.
Rose Winchester Cathedral is still blooming, although with less than perfect flowers, and mildewed leaves. Its blooms are less fragrant than with warmer weather, but with blooms in November, I'm not complaining.
