Autumn sedums

It doesn't matter if you are happy or sad, daily life still happens around you. Life goes on is an annoying (but true) old platitude.

Around here in October, life goes on is about cleaning out flower beds and hacking off the soggy, dying plants I worked hard to grow all summer. And then a final mulch with maple leaves carted over from across the street. It's dirty, heavy work but good outdoor exercise, and I don't have to do it all at once.

Rain or shine, I would spend time outdoors almost every day of the year with Sizzle, and that is added to the long list of things I'll miss-- even in winter. If you know about keeping nice horses, then you know they're a lot of work. But it's the fun kind. Brushing, fussing, combing, picking, polishing, tacking up-- then you ride a bit and do it again in reverse. (Pulling down sticky dead vines is that other kind of work.)

Anyway, when October comes I'm glad I once planted too many Autumn Joy sedums. It's a common, easy to grow plant and nice to look at year round. But in the fall they really come into their own when the silver flowers turn a dark rose color. Even in the winter the dried seed heads are interesting, and I think the birds like them.

For what it's worth, "they" are forecasting a hard winter in the Northwest with more snow, wind and rain than normal. Our summer was one of the coolest on record, and apparently these are often followed by cold, wet, snowy winters. Oh, boy.