Today is Garden Bloggers’ Foliage Day, sponsored by Christina at My Hesperides Garden.
The arrival of fall is accompanied by a number of subtle changes in the garden. Peonies are beginning to go dormant and the edges of their foliage is browning. That is also true of some of the hosta. Muscari greenery is rising at the edge of some beds, giving a glimpse of things to come. Most of the crape myrtles have gone to seed; I will have to make a calculated decision on how much of the seed heads I will remove (my Arranger has ideas of her own about my climbing ladders these days).
As the flowers become fewer, foliage takes on added importance. Several weeks ago I moved a number of clumps of garden phlox which were receiving too much shade under one of my vitex trees. I removed the old soil, added a new soil mixture, and planted a bed largely of foliage plants: hosta, Autumn fern, heucherella, liriope, and hellebores.
The foliage of several shrubs provides form and contrast in the garden: Pittosporum tobira ‘Mojo,’ Ligustrum sinense ‘Sunshine,’ Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow,’ and Hydrangea x ‘Endless Summer.’
The annual sweet potato vine (Ipomea patatas ‘Sweet Caroline Bewitched’) however adds a rich dark burgundy. Ajuga reptans ‘Mahogany’ has grown into a tidy groundcover; its color has faded over the summer, but the new growth is coming in with another deep burgundy. The Acer palmatum dissectum ‘Ever Red’ has lost most its deep purple color but is now beginning to show the red of autumn.
My thanks go to Christina for introducing this meme. Please visit her to see the exciting things in her garden and others.
A Walk in the Garden 
Hi John, thanks for joining in so consistently with GBFD, I love all your foliage, the Acer is stunning and I like your new foliage planting. Your garden has very strong foliage interest always.
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Thanks, Christina, for the encouragement.
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I too like your new planting, I like the contrast of texture and colour that you have there. I like your other foliage too, some really stunning.
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Thanks, Pauline. As I transition to being an older gardener, I find myself wanting to change areas (that need it, of course) in hopes of their being less maintenance.
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You have a lovely selection of foliage John, I wish I could of ventured out further today but we have endless rain, your arranger is wise, my husband fell off a ladder from the roof whilst attempting to repair a gutter. We were much wiser of course after the event and a luckily just a broken foot bone!
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Thank you, Julie. I too have fallen…no broken bones but a scare and a very sore shoulder. My Arranger is the wise one.
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The shape of the leaves on the Sweet Potato Vine is unique – lovely maroon color.
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Thanks, Jason. The foliage on SPV’s is a great asset. There is a gold one as well.
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I would have to find a spot for the pittosporum if it were halfway hardy here. The color is great and it’s just a picture of health. Love the sweet potato as well, they’re such enthusiastic plants!
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