The growing season went on extra-long this year. In the afternoons the sun is so low now that most of my flowerbeds only get full sun for a couple of hours each day. Instead they sit in the shadows of the oak trees that surround our property.
But that amount of light seems to be enough for my annual flowers which I’ve left standing. Bumblebees, honeybees and other pollinators are still visiting the flowers that haven’t gone to seed.
Meanwhile, goldfinches and sparrows are plucking seeds from the flowers that are done. And the hummingbirds passing through on their 3,000-mile-plus journey take advantage of the still-available nectar sources.
Even one of my daylilies decided to give me a nice little October surprise and start blooming again:
