prairie point

Those lavender pincushions in the foreground belong to Sedum spectabile a fall-blooming plant that was in the garden when I came here ten years ago. I’ve noticed the very same plant in several other gardens on this street, a testament not only to its popularity at one time but also to its hardiness. I’ve also heard it referred to as “Autumn joy.” The flowers are very popular with the butterflies.

In the background is Salvia regla or mountain sage. Betsy Clebsch reports in A Book of Salvias that in its native Chisos Mountains the large red flowers are an important food source for hummingbirds making their return migration to the tropics. Here the timing is off for it just started its bloom this week and the hummingbirds are already long gone.

This salvia doesn’t put out leaves until quite late so it can seem dead in the spring. The stem is very woody but still can barely hold up the lush foliage, so the plant always seems in danger of falling over. It continues to bloom through November.