There’s no better light than October in the garden. The sun has moved south on the horizon and now filters through the thin thicket of trees to the east of the property filling the backyard with a warm glow. The shafts of light come through and illuminate slivers of the garden just long enough that scurrying into the house to grab the camera to capture the perfect scene is a waste. By the time I return, the light has shifted, and I am better to pause and just enjoy the moment. These fleeting moments are what we celebrate at Ephemera Farm.
The clear days that we had all month have brought with them no rain. We are becoming more parched by the day. Our last rain was a third of an inch in late September, and there’s a mere chance in next fortnight.
But, these cloudless days are a blessing for enjoying the bluebird sky that the recent cold fronts have brought. They clear the dust and humidity out of the air revealing the rich blue above.
We are hitting peak autumn bloom here at Ephemera Farm. Many of the plants are riding the wave from all the rain we had in the spring and summer, and so far they seem unfazed by the dry conditions.
Salvia azurea is a drought tolerant native for naturalistic plantings.
Take Salvia azurea (prairie sage), for example. It has been blooming since late September and shows no sign of slowing down. The blue flowers provide a different color against the tawny colors of autumn and match our cobalt blue sky so well.
Plants are tough and persistent. Research conducted after planting a mini-prairies in Nebraska showed that this perennial had one of the highest survival rates (80%) after 10 years. The authors also noted that the plant’s vigor began to choke out some of the Buchloe dactyloides (buffalo grass) and Bouteloua gracilis (blue grama). Its performance makes it worthwhile adding to the southern plantings.
I love looking at Salvia azurea against the bluebird sky where one almost can’t tell where the flower starts and the sky begins.
A Clouded Skipper visits Salvia azurea in the warm light of October.
I also enjoy seeing the pollinators visit this native. It is fun watching the inflorescences bob in the mornings as bees work the flowers. Even butterflies like Gulf Fritillaries and Clouded Skippers find it worthwhile to work the flowers.
If the bigger bees struggle to access the flower from the front, they may bypass pollination in an act called nectar thievery. They cut a hole through the top and access the nectar while never transferring pollen, thus potentially affecting seed set.
But, I’m not worried about the bee’s parasitic behavior as new seedlings readily appear. I even find them coming up in the cracks at the edge of the pavement. My plants came from wild collections in Louisiana and Oklahoma, and while there’s a difference in color from both locations, them mixing adds variety to the bloom display.
Oklahoma collected form of Salvia azurea was a lighter blue…
… but those prairie sage from Louisiana were a darker blue. Even the calyces and stems showed hints of dark blue.
I was greatly rewarded the other morning as I walked past a prairie sage that had dropped its flowers. The corollas from the late evening had fallen on the matrix of Eragrostis spectabilis (purple love grass) below, and the spent petals lay there suspended in time and place.
The heat of the sun would surely bake them later in the day, but for now they could be enjoyed. And, at least this time I had a camera.
Fallen art, the bilabiate flowers of Salvia azurea
KEEP GROWING
