Cream of the Crop

Fall brings many little pleasures to us here in the south.  The turkeys are back!

I count ten in this year's flock.  They're big, beautiful birds.

Absent for most of the summer, the anoles have returned and are basking in the late-season sun, much to the consternation of the cats.  This anole checks out a dessicated spider before heading to greener pastures.

The spiders, which have been so numerous for the past month, have all but disappeared.  Now we're seeing more caterpillars.  It looks like some sort of woolly caterpillar has built himself a comfortable cocoon under this leaf.

The leaves are turning!  The back yard is absolutely beautiful. 

I love the different colors.

They make me feel as if I never left Indiana!

I bring in fallen boughs (and some that just need a little tug - ahem).  I like our decor to reflect the season.

We're definitely in the south, though.  It's still so strange to see the juxtaposition of fall leaves and palmettos.

And, of course, there's the reverse flowering season that we seem to have here.  Just last week, I glimpsed it through the leaves:  the very first camellia.

We have so many different varieties.  Lush, large pink:

Pinks with exposed centers:

The most recent to bloom, these tiny ruffled ones: 

When they die on the branch, they turn a lovely purplish color.

Many of them are very delicate.  They only last a day or so in water before the petals start to fall.  I think it looks so romantic, though, to see the 'petal drift", so I leave the petals scattered around the bouquets.  They look nice scattered under the trees, too. 

We also have a white variety, which has just bloomed, and a pink-and-white marbled color, which hasn't popped yet.

After a 'dry' summer of generic grocery store blooms...bring on the bouquets!

The cream of the crop!

So beautiful.

They remind me so much of peonies.  Now I'm anxious for the Helleborus to bloom!

Some azaleas have started to open up:

Our japonica, too, is putting forth its usual weird prickly flowers.

I can't wait to see what happens next!

Have a great week!