The autumn is well advanced; most of the pretty leaves are off the trees. But these strawberry leaves are showing an almost Christmas color scheme.

For more ideas on the color red, click HERE.

I took this photo of begonias out back in my last garden in August 07. They are good plants, never needing their faded flowers picked off (deadheading), and blooming their heads off for months. This one even made it over our Seattle winter a couple of years, but it was heavily mulched, it’s true. I’ll have to plant some here in a shady spot.

For more fascinating flowers around the world, click HERE.

I’m going on a trip to Arizona today for a conference so I won’t be near my computer for a few days. If anyone leaves a comment, be sure I will read it and visit your site when I return. I plan to sneak away at least a little bit and take photos, of course!

I’ve learned that fuchsias (the late, long-time San Francisco columnist Herb Caen called them the world’s most carefully spelled flower!) require a steady diet of fertilizer to bloom well. So I finally was generous with the plant food, and look what happened! For more beautiful flowers from around the world, click HERE.

Maybe it’s because I just finished planting over 400 spring bulbs, but tulips are on my mind. These tulips are so happy in the bright sun and shadows they cast. For more ways to see shadows, click HERE.

We have two columnar apple trees. They are about a foot wide and four feet tall, and have full size apples, so amazing. This from last year around this time. Happy Ruby Tuesday, all! Join the fun by posting a photo with red in it HERE.

This rose is called Double Delight. The more sun it gets, the darker the red edges. I read that the unusual coloration was first seen as a flaw by the breeder. Not only is the bush healthy and vigorous, its scent is sweet, spicy, strong, and completely magnificent. This was taken in the rose garden in our other house, last June. I will just have to plant more roses.

For more flowers around the world, click HERE.

They are so beautiful and they are still doing what they do: give such pleasure. Here is another, just for you.

There are still some flowers blooming, and this one shows our Seattle specialty, rain. It doesn’t rain all that much, but it can get a bit gray. Flowers like this cheer me up, though. Click HERE for more ideas about the color red.

It seems I jumped the gun posting my flower yesterday, so nothing for it but to make another post. These dahlias won’t quit, not quite yet. This one is over 6 inches across. The late afternoon light was just right for the tender petals to glow, I think. Click HERE for more beautiful flowers around the planet.

All these dahlias and other flowers were from my backyard. Not too bad when you figure that we just moved here in May and there were no flowerbeds, just some big shrubs and one huge cedar tree. I’ll get the perfect photo for that someday, but not yet. Today we have two bouquets. We had some people over and of course I had to pick flowers. Please let me know which photo you like best! For more Flowers for today around the world, click HERE.