Seasonal confusion: Don’t ya know it’s November?

by Yvonne Cunnington on November 1, 2009 · 10 comments

in Fall, Plants

Arnold Promise witchhazel in bloom in November

Arnold Promise witchhazel in bloom in November

Lenten rose

Lenten rose

We have a few cases of seasonal confusion happening here. Or is it seasonal delusion? I have just discovered that a few spring-flowering plants are doing their thing.

Most impressive is Arnold Promise witchhazel (Hammelis x intermedia ‘Arnold Promise’) which is in full bloom and looking very lovely indeed.

The trouble is it’s supposed to bloom in spring, but it rarely does this for us. Could it be that our shrub isn’t what its name promised? I don’t know, but the profusion of flowers is certainly more impressive than the common native witchhazel, which also bloomed nicely for us this fall.

Another surprise bloom is a Lenten rose (Helleborus x hybridus). We have a mass of them in our shade garden, all grown from seed collected by my husband, John. One member of the group has decided to leapfrog into spring.

Gentian acaulis

Gentian acaulis

In the rock garden, too, there are a few blooms. Most notable are the deep-blue flowers of Gentian acaulis. About half a dozen of them have one or two flowers each. And then there is rock cress (Arabis) with just a few flowers, as if it’s testing the waters.

Fothergilla shrub in fall color

Fothergilla shrub in fall color


It’s not a flower, but the foliage color of this Fothergilla gardenii is so splendid that I couldn’t resist adding this picture. This shrub is, of course, doing the seasonally correct thing. Do you have anything blooming out of season in your garden?

{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Eve November 1, 2009 at 6:26 pm

Well, what a lovely surprise anyway Yvonne! Splendid colors in your gardens abound! Hope your winter is not too long nor too cold.
Cheers!

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2 Yvonne Cunnington November 1, 2009 at 7:23 pm

We will see about winter soon enough, won’t we? I’m sure you’ll enjoy a milder winter season, or do you think you’ll miss all that cold and the snow?

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3 Eve November 1, 2009 at 8:46 pm

I wont miss the snow at all Yvonne, but as some are saying, I may have brought the snow with me this year! Time will tell. I hope my friends down here will still like me!!! :-)

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4 Salix November 1, 2009 at 7:14 pm

It’s funny. You walk (or work) in your garden and suddenly something hits you, merely because it’s not supposed to be. I’m doing my best to weed/clean up before winter to make spring a little easier – and a couple of days ago I stumbled upon my daffodils, their shoots (not blooms, though) 5-10 cm off the ground.
I love your Lenten Rose, which I believe often blooms late winter? And what a stunning colour of the Gentian.

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5 Yvonne Cunnington November 1, 2009 at 7:21 pm

Our Lenten rose plants usually bloom in spring when the bulbs start. Sometimes, after a mild fall, we’ve had one or two in bloom in December.

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6 Keith Funk November 1, 2009 at 7:15 pm

Yvonne,
We had some confused plants here in Colorado in August after a severe hail storm. Crabapples, flowering pears, lilacs and mockorange just to name a few, flowered lightly this fall. Do you think they’ll still bloom in the spring like normal?
Keith

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7 Yvonne Cunnington November 1, 2009 at 7:19 pm

Welcome, Keith. Your plants will likely be just fine in spring. Most plants have the good sense to do what they’re supposed to do.

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8 Janet Davis November 2, 2009 at 11:30 pm

I saw a Kousa dogwood the other day with several new white flower bracts amidst its autumn-red leaves. Quite festive (and weird!) Evidently, this fall re-bloom is somewhat common in the south but not usual in our neck of the woods.

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9 Janet Davis November 3, 2009 at 1:01 pm

My apologies, Yvonne (must be seasonal confusion….). I went by today to photograph the shrub and found it was not a Kousa dogwood but a doublefile viburnum with several white lacecap flowers just coming into bloom as the rich red leaves were falling all around.

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10 Yvonne Cunnington November 3, 2009 at 3:07 pm

Hi Janet. Ah, I’ve certainly seen sparce late flowering on a number of different viburnums, but never on my Kousa dogwoods. Makes sense…

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