Christmas Blooms

Instead of a white Christmas, it will be a warm one with temps expecting to reach 80 degrees. That's not exactly the wintry feel of Christmas that most people experience but our plants love it and there are plenty of blooms in the December garden.

My poinsettia bloomed in time and has yet to be touched by old man winter.

A plethora of orchid blossoms bask in the warm sunny days of December.

The Christmas bromeliad. My mom says this one blooms every Christmas, and once again she was right. It opened its first bloom yesterday.

A sunny orchid to brighten our day.

and another pretty holidayish bromeliad.

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!

A Colorful Autumn

It's rare for our deciduous trees in Florida to turn brilliant colors of scarlet and gold in autumn because our weather is balmy in October and November. But this year we experienced early and consistent cool temperatures, and in return we got "real" fall trees. Even the sycamore and cypress trees usually turn more brown than golden, but not this year. They were golden and vibrant. Some of the most vibrant leaves were on the crepe myrtles. This maple tree below was draped in a cloak of deep burgundy.
And, this cypress tree looks very "holidayish" as it literally glows in the afternoon sunlight.

I was so astounded by the amount of color that I had a hard time keeping my eyes on the road as I drove around town. I'll take early cool temps every year if it brings a colorful fall down our way.

Blooms in the Fall Garden

The colors of autumn in my late November garden.
Orchids in rich golden colors with splashes of red or brown.

Colors in orange and red tones.

Milkweed

Hibiscus

Fashion Azaleas

Bromeliads & Tillandsias

And, a volunteer tomato plant