Garden surprises and Red Geranimums

In the fall I love to walk around the yard and find little blooming surprises. I didn't have to go far before noticing this lonely little cosmos growing right in the grass.
Not a blooming plant, but I thought it was odd to see an asparagus fern growing in the bed in front of the tree. Now, where did that come from?
I bought this little plant because I thought it would look good growing around some of the large rocks in my garden. I don't even know what it is..so how surprised I was to find a little yellow bloom on it!
The little star creeper has started to bloom again. Poor little thing has been struggling to survive this summer. I think the ground ivy is taking over.

When I put the new trellis in the wildflower bed, I saw this one BIG bloom on White Swan Coneflower.
And look at the tiny bloom of a rose moss growing in with the hens and chicks. I think this pot at one time was full of rose moss.
Not a surprise though are the red geraniums all around my yard. Now that the temps are lower and we have gotten so much rain, they are lush and blooming up a storm. This is one of two containers that I kept on the front porch. They are just too heavy for me to move around, so hubby did one final move and put them in the back bed. I will try and keep them over the winter, but this may be the year they go.
An old tin picnic basket holds more flowers...

I actually started both of these plants from cuttings from the large pot of geraniums.
Red in a garden is my favorite!
I completely forgot there was a little geranium in the basket of all mixed plants I bought in March. It never really bloomed, but I see now there is one tiny bloom.
I love these late fall surprises..and I especially love seeing all the geraniums blooming for probably the last time this year. I guess I will move all the plants to the corner of the patio and cover them during the really cold days (if we get any of those!). It's quite a treat to have early blooms in spring after looking out on the brown of winter. Flowers never fail to brighten my day.

"Flowers are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul."

Luther Burbank

Front Porch Geraniums

I don't have a greenhouse so keeping potted plants over the winter is not an easy task for me. There are a few in back I move to the patio, put in a corner and cover, but most things are perennial, or I just "let go."

However, there is one big exception-the 2 pots of red geraniums on the front porch. I have keep them through the winter for several years. They are so big, and so showy, and bloom so well I cannot bear to leave them out in the cold. Because they are so big though, they are hard to move. Poor hubby helps me move these 2 plants around all winter.

Sometimes they stay in the garage, sometimes they are inside, and sometimes they stay in the protected corners of the front porch covered with sheets. Now remember, it does not get very cold here in my part of Texas , and even when it does, it warms up quickly.

This is what the geraniums look like today. As you can see, they have lots of blooms-and even more buds! I do not feed them at all during the winter months, so they are blooming like this without food!

It has been cool and cloudy for a week or so here. Seeing these beautiful flowers remind me that spring is almost upon us and sunshine is on the way!

"Flowers are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul!" Luther Burbank