‘Tis the last rose of summer,
Left blooming alone;
All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone ~Thomas Moore, Irish poet
November and December have been very mild this year, encouraging me to work in the garden late into the season. But this morning brought both fog and a frost, turning the world into a frozen fairyland. The moisture from the fog that coated leaf, flower, twig, and spiderweb was transformed into a spectacular structure of glistening crystals. Sadly, the last lingering roses of summer have come to a sudden halt, now preserved in ice.
I have a few more shrubs to plant today once the temperatures rise but it is probably the last time I can play in the dirt. Dreams of next year’s garden are starting to stir as I begin a list of seeds and plants to be ordered in the dark days of winter. Enjoy the photos of the last blooms of summer, both in flower and frost, while you listen to Irish tenor John McDermott sing this wistful song (video at the bottom of the page).
Click on any photo to start the slideshow (all photos ©2015 by Lynn Emberg Purse, All Rights Reserved).
Since the lovely are sleeping,
Go, sleep thou with them ~Moore
composerinthegarden 
Given the unseasonably warm weather (with more to come, apparently), it seems as though “The Last Roses of Autumn” would be a more accurate title. But then you’d have to find another accompanying song. 🙂
Very nice images, Lynne.
Thanks, Kerry. After the freeze, I thought of calling it “The last roses of winter” but we’re not quite there yet 🙂 The weather is supposed to be mild for the rest of the week; I may actually finish all of my gardening before Christmas!
Very beautifully constructed and grown as always! Has been a strange year for me! Glad you enjoyed your garden and the roses did fabulously! xo
Thanks, Nancy! It was a strange weather year, wasn’t it? I’m definitely enjoying the fall weather though.
Very well captured images! The last flowers in the late fall-early winter garden are always such a wonder. I am also able to do a bit more work in the garden, mostly setting some stones for a new stone-cropped area – the mild fall this year is a blessing.
Thanks, diversifolius. I think the last flowers and the first flowers of the year are in some ways the most important since they are so rare and such a treasure. Enjoy the mild autumn!
Thomas Moore was quite popular in the 1800s, but I’m afraid few people today know about him. I may have told you that when I was still teaching high school 10 years ago, I was shocked to find out that even my very best students had never heard of Stephen Foster. It isn’t only leaves that fall away.
Yet everyone seems to know this song, Steve. I’m always amazed what my students don’t know, but then, I don’t know their music either. Anyway, I love the poem, a great metaphor for seasons changing in nature and in life.
I am sad as well. So I am trying to find beauty in each new day of leafless trees and grey days. Yesterday, I looked out my window into the nature preserve that abuts our backyard and saw a bare tree except for one colorful maple leaf the size of an extra large dinner place. It was stunning.
Keep warm and cozy . . .
Yes, Eleanor, the gray and brown season begins! So I scrubbed and waxed my tile floors today in preparation for the planned elaborate Christmas decorations – the only known antidote to the sleepy world outside! Stay warm and cozy too.
We had some, too, and being without a garden, I found a roadside spot to take pictures. How I love the last roses – they’re so poignant. This is a lovely post, and the images are so restful and content somehow, frost and finality or not.
Thank you Lynn. I always have mixed feelings at this time of year; content that the garden is going to sleep but missing it anyway. This is one of those transitions that pulls in both directions at once! Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
As always, Lynn, I find your posting to be so wonderfully beautiful and enjoyable. I especially like the slideshow of what this most recent frost had done to the garden. Take care and have peace in your heart. 😀
Gene, this morning was truly magical. By the afternoon, the spiderweb was once again invisible and the garden was hiding its secret face. Thank you for your comments and for stopping by. Peace to you in this season!
Beautiful pictures and a splendid Irish tenor.
Thank you Tootlepedal; yes, the tenor seemed to truly grasp the meaning of this well-known song. Glad you enjoyed!
Beautiful photography~
Thank you, Cindy!
Goodness, Lynn, what stunning photographs! Thank you for these and for the lovely rendition of Last Rose, a song I always associate with my grandmother. 🙂 Gentle Peace to as your gardening days close…almost…for another year.
Kitty, thank you; the song seemed to capture both the beauty and the wistfulness of this time of year as the garden goes to sleep. Gentle peace to you as well.
How lovely! and one of my favorite poems and songs too. I had an event to go to yesterday so I missed photographing the spectacular fog, wishing I could stop every few feet to photograph what I saw. But I did get one of my roses in similar condition. Until next year’s garden blooms again…
Bernadette, fog is made for photographers I think 🙂 Can’t wait to see your rose photo; thank you for stopping by.