The Colors of Autumn

The "S" word is in the forecast for this week.  It's far too early for wintry landscapes, in my opinion; I want to enjoy the remaining colors of autumn for as long as possible.  Predictions of snow and temperatures in the teens always remind me of Frost's poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay."  We've had a beautiful fall, and although the colors have not been as dramatic as some years, there has been no shortage of golden hues.

The locust tree in the front yard is nothing spectacular during the summer, but in the fall it glows.

Is there anything better than gold sparking against a blue, blue sky?

Amsonia Hubrichtii proves why it's more than just a pretty spring face.  We have a very large specimen of this in the section of the Idea Garden where I volunteer, and I noticed this year how many visitors were drawn to this plant and asked about it.  In the late fall everything in the garden is cut down for the winter, even the amsonia.  I understand those in charge want a public garden to look tidy over the winter, but it makes me sad that they are missing out on a beautiful late-season show of color.  I'm almost glad I didn't have time to help on "Putting the Garden to Bed" day--I wouldn't have had the heart to take the pruners to this lovely.

For the last month, I've enjoyed the spectacle of autumn at its finest around town and while driving to meetings and appointments or running countless errands, but never the time to stop and capture the scenes, even if I had a camera handy, which I didn't. But it doesn't matter--I'm not a great landscape photographer, anyway, and there are small scenes of beauty to be found even in my own back yard, like the foliage and fluffy seedheads of the asters.

Or the glowing foliage of the spirea.

Even the hostas go out in a blaze of gold.

Gold is definitely the predominant color of fall in my area, surrounded as we are by fields of ripe corn. For a time, spots of green (or red, depending on the farmers' preferred brand of machinery) were also seen throughout the fields.

 

The harvest was completed a few weeks ago, but not before a little boy had the ride of his life.  I posted this photo on my Facebook page, but thought it was worth posting here, too.  My youngest grandson, now 2, is obsessed with combines, and so Grandpa made arrangements for him to get a ride on a real combine and see the harvest up close as they made two rounds through the fields.  It is all Grandson has talked about ever since--his favorite fall color is definitely green!

Gold is not the only color of autumn, of course.  This time of year I wish I had a red maple, but the burning bushes at the end of our drive provide a dramatic dose of red.

The white crabapple changes its hue, too. 

Unlike last year, when fruit was sparse due to the drought, the tree is loaded with tiny red crabapples this year.

The birds are happy about this, too, and have made this their favorite tree of the season.

The old apple tree was also covered in apples this fall, and I spent a good deal of time preparing sliced apples and making applesauce for the freezer.  There were so many that I didn't get them all picked, though, before Husband gave the lawn a last mowing before winter. I guess this is applesauce for the birds:)

There are some non-traditional fall colors in the garden, too, if you look closely enough.  The purple berries on the beautyberry bush are another winter treat for the birds, but I hope they let me enjoy them first for awhile.

More purplish-pink in the late blooms of a potted mum.

Less dramatic, but pleasing all the same--the muted pink undertones of the fading 'Limelight' hydrangea.

The fall color show begins in my front yard each year with the ash tree and its purple and copper-colored leaves.

And it climaxes with the turning of the large maple which shines even on a cloudy day.

Autumn's winds are stripping it a little more each day, leaving only remnants of the colorful show--and one more fall project to do before winter sets in.

"Then leaf subsides to leaf 

 . . . Nothing gold can stay."

I hope you are enjoying the colors of Autumn wherever you are!

The Trouble With Tulips

It's time to be honest.  I am a tulipaholic.  Sure I love daffodils, and I've broadened my tastes to include other spring-flowering bulbs, like these Siberian scilla that are making their first appearance in my garden this year.

They've won me over, and I'll definitely be adding more of these this fall.

But nothing lifts my spirits and makes me so excited to step outside each spring morning as tulips do. Knowing the colorful show that will soon arrive makes the long winter bearable. Although I seem to lean towards pink, it really doesn't matter what color they are...

. . . from the soft white/pastel yellow of 'Vanilla Cream' . . .

. . . to the bright yellow of this NOID in the lily bed . . .

. . . to the bright red of 'Red Impression'...

. . . to the darkest of all, 'Queen of the Night' . . .

. . . to mixtures of different colors . . .I love them all.  In fact, I'm not sure there's a color of tulip I don't have somewhere in my garden.

Some might say that planting many tulips isn't worth all the effort because they're short-lived.  It's true--compared to many other bulbs like daffodils, for instance, tulips often don't last more than a few years.  I know I've been disappointed by some gorgeous tulips that failed to re-appear for a second season.  But choosing types of tulips that are longer-lived, like Darwin tulips, will give you more years of enjoyment and less work.  These 'Pink Impression' bulbs have been faithful performers in my garden for many years.

Last year I ordered a collection of tulips from Breck's called 'Forever,' which were promoted as having more longevity than ordinary tulips.  I planted them on what I whimsically refer to as "Daffodil Hill," which is not a hill at all, but a slightly sloping bare spot in front of a tall evergreen in front of the house.  They certainly look very strong and hardy this spring, which is a good thing, because planting tulips in this area with its heavy clay soil and thick tree roots is not something I want to do every year.

Sometimes other varieties can surprise you--my favorite tulip of all, 'Angelique,' has returned year after year.  In fact, I think it has multiplied!

But even if most tulips last for only a couple of years, there are some benefits to this.  My laxity in keeping garden records means I can't remember what I planted for more than a few years anyway.  These tulips in the lily bed have me stumped.  I remember planting some 'Fur Elise' here two or three years ago, but not this many.  There's a second clump north of these as well.  Either they've multiplied or once again I have some "DIPITs" (did I plant this??).

Knowing not all my tulips are going to return each year also gives me an excuse to indulge my addiction and buy some new ones every year.  I'm a sucker for showy doubles like this 'Double Maureen.'

Another spectacular double is 'Sun Lover,' which has blooms that are 5-6 inches in diameter!  Although I have been planting more and more of the more robust Darwins, I can't resist showstoppers like this.

'Double Maureens' with 'Sun Lovers' and other bulbs in the arbor bed.

Some people give up on planting tulips because either squirrels will dig up the bulbs or deer will eat the emerging leaves.  I can sympathize, though I've been very fortunate not to have either problem so far.  My only disappointment this year was in the roadside garden, where a new planting of mixed colors was a no-show.  It's possible the squirrels dug up these bulbs since their favorite hangout, the old oak tree, is nearby, and this small garden is far from Sophie's usual patrol.  But I suspect the lack of blooms here has more to do with the fact that this whole garden was in standing water for a week after the recent flooding here.  Tulip bulbs will rot if overwatered.

'Fur Elise' this week

Other gardeners can't grow tulips because of their warm climate.  I guess I should be thankful, then, for our cold winters and often chilly spring days.  The temperatures reached into the 80's for a few days, and you could just see the tulips starting to wilt in the heat.  More seasonable temps are predicted for the coming week, so hopefully the show will last a little longer.

Tulips may not last forever, but neither does childhood.  A day spent with youngest Grandson who just had to reach out to touch Grandma's blooms is a precious moment that will remain in my memory for years to come.

Possibly the most beautiful tulip ever, in my humble opinion--'Akebona' begins as a pale yellow, then opens up to a lemony delight with tinges of pink and red edging on its petals.

No, say what you will about the troubles with tulips, there is only one problem I can see with these Dutch beauties, and it's the same problem with all the blooms of spring--I wish they would last for months!  But knowing their time is fleeting, I truly live in the moment each spring and delight in each and every bloom.

"A thing of beauty is a joy forever."

--Keats

For last year's Asheville Fling attendees or anyone thinking of visiting this lovely North Carolina city, check out this link:  http://www.exploreasheville.com/seasonal-fun/spring/flower-bloom-schedule/     I was so excited when I received an email that one of my photos from last year's trip was included on their website as well as a link to my blog.  I'm ready to go back to Asheville again!

ABC Wednesday: Not the Usual

As the ABC round winds down to the end of the alphabet, I find it harder each week to find a suitable word or words to highlight. Is there such a word as Un-Snow?? I think not, but that is pretty much what we've had here the past twenty-four hours. While blogging friends in Indiana and as far south as Mississippi and Texas have had snow, the big snowstorm forecast for us last night turned into a wet, cold, miserable rainstorm. So let's turn to the garden for a unique U . . .

. . . Umbel

Since beginning to garden, I have found that there is much more to a plant than just the stamens and sepals I learned about in junior high science class. Flowers like roses or lilies that produce one flower per stem are called solitary flowers. But other flowers produce an inflorescence, which refers to a cluster of flowers and how they are arranged on a single stem. One type of inflorescence is the Umbel, in which the clusters of florets are borne by small stems that arise from one point on the main stem of the plant. An example of an umbel inflorescence is the "Queen Anne's Lace," pictured above.

You can see more clearly in this budding "Queen Anne's" the shape of the umbel, which resembles an inverted umbrella, and, in fact, the two words come from the same root. This plant is also known as "wild carrot," but I much prefer the more regal name of "Queen Anne's Lace." Though it grows wild on the roadsides here, it's much too pretty to be called a weed, in my humble opinion.

Two other excellent examples of plants with Umbels are dill and fennel--I think the fennel is to the left, and the dill to the right.

To illustrate further how different inflorescences can be, you need only to look at other flowers in the garden. Notice the florets growing along the stem of this pineapple sage. I think this is a spike, but it is definitely not an umbel.

Neither are these--another salvia, "Black and Blue," and the rudbeckias, or Black-eyed Susans, illustrate other types of inflorescence as well.

Regular readers of this blog know that my knowledge of botany is very limited, so I had to do a little research to clarify this definition of umbel. I had planned to include this photo of a geranium, more appropriately known as a pelargonium, as another example of an umbel inflorescence. But when I looked it up to be sure, one source called this a pseudo-umbel. I think I'm getting in over my head . . .

And I certainly don't want to mislead anyone, in case you think all these flowers are now in bloom in my garden. Other than the geranium now residing in my garage, all these photos were taken in the summer.

No, this is what an Umbel looks like in my garden at the moment . . .

Frozen Fennel, anyone?

***************************

I had planned to end this post here, but this past weekend brought to mind another U for the Unusual harvest we have had this fall. The cornfields surrounding us were finally harvested on Monday, the latest I can ever recall. Usually the harvest is done by the end of October, but a late spring planting coupled with a very wet fall kept farmers out of the field until recently.

Once the soil was dry enough so that farmers could enter the fields with their heavy equipment, there was yet another problem. The corn itself had retained so much moisture that it had to be dried before it could be stored.

Grain elevators could dry only so much grain at a time, resulting in limited hours of operation while the corn was readied for storage. Semi-trucks loaded with grain found themselves sitting in line for hours at the local elevator or even having to wait until the next day to unload. This meant the harvest was extended even longer, as the farmer had to stop his combine and wait until he could unload the corn into an empty truck. In our fields, for example, what should have taken a day or day and a half to complete turned into a four-day task instead.

But all this doesn't matter much to a two-year-old who finds tractors, combines, and any kind of machinery totally fascinating. I picked up Youngest Grandson one morning so that he could get a firsthand look from the family room window. I think he was pointing out the combine to Sophie, who also finds all this activity very exciting.

Idle hours spent waiting for an empty semi also gave Grandson a chance to get a close-up look.

Looking out my window as I type, I can see corn still standing in some fields in the distance. After last night's downpour, I don't know when those fields will be harvested. Some farmers may find themselves working in the fields while Santa gets his sleigh ready.

Once again, thanks to Mrs. Nesbitt for hosting ABC Wednesday, and do check out the ABC blog for more interesting takes on the letter U.

Weekend News

The Saturday edition of our local paper had a couple of articles that I thought would be of interest to you. Did you know that this is National Pollinator Week? Concern over the decreasing honeybee population has led scientists to create more awareness in the public about the important role bees play in maintaining the world's diversity of flowering plants. In the U.S. the number of honey bee colonies has declined by half since 1947. According to the head of the University of Illinois' entomology department, "Without pollination, for these species there will be no fruits, no seeds and no future. All the organisms that depend on those particular plants are thus jeopardized." The U of I entomology department is taking an active role in promoting the week by sponsoring several activities, including getting the public involved in monitoring wild bee populations through a web site called BeeSpotter. A related article stated that "ordinary people" can help conserve bees by "limiting our use of pesticides and favoring native plants in our landscaping."

I know I am preaching to the choir with this last statement, but I think it is great that more and more people are being reminded of the importance of protecting our bee population. As for me, I was never much of a bee lover and remember all too well what a bee sting feels like. But in the last few years I've come to understand their important role in nature, and I can now say that the bumblebees and I happily co-exist in my flower garden.



The other interesting article was in a weekly column written by a horticulturist with the County Extension Office which this week featured a suggested garden destination: The Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan. This immediately caught my eye, because we visited these gardens a few years ago while on a short vacation in southwest Michigan. There are indoor garden areas as well as outdoor themed gardens and nature trails. The Meijers, founders of the grocery stores of the same name, also were very interested in art, particularly sculpture, and have an excellent sculpture park as well as three art galleries on the grounds. I don't know very much about modern art, but even I recognized the name Rodin among the artists. My favorite piece, though, was the huge bronze horse sculpted by an American artist and modeled after the famous bronze horse attempted (but then destroyed) by Leonardo Da Vinci. It is one of two such horses, the other being in Milan, Italy. This summer they also have two special exhibits honoring Monet and Degas. My husband and daughter were trying to humor me when they agreed to drive over to Grand Rapids for the afternoon to see the park, but I think they wound up enjoying it as much as I did. If you live in Michigan or are driving through, I highly recommend a stop at the Meijer Gardens--it's worth the trip!

So how did I spend the weekend besides reading the paper? On Saturday Beckie and I went on a Garden Walk sponsored by the local Master Gardeners. (I'm thinking of changing the name of my blog to "The Gardening Adventures of Beckie and Rose," what do you think?) This is the first time we have attended this yearly event, and we had been looking forward to it for several weeks. Since neither of us are early-morning people, we decided on a late morning start, which was a good thing since a brief thunderstorm hit the whole area about the time the garden walk began. By the time we started out, though, the sun had come out, and we had a great day admiring other people's gardens.

Beckie has already posted about the walk, so I'll keep my description brief. Besides, I apparently was oohing and aahing over all the gardens that I forgot to take many pictures!

We visited 6 of the 8 gardens on the walk, all of them at private residences which varied from modest homes to larger homes in new subdivisions (read: no trees) to one home in an established, very affluent neighborhood in town. I was captivated by the front lawn and garden of this house across from the Country Club, and it wasn't even on the walk!

All of the homes featured large expanses of plantings from the front yard to the back. One home was on a lake, and the homeowners had plantings right up to the lake as you can see below. It was beautiful, but I kept imagining myself falling into the water trying to plant irises on the hillside.

Beckie was in dragonfly heaven here as there was a flock (a throng? a herd?) of dragonflies hovering about the waterlilies. We even saw two flying together in what appeared to be the mating act. Both of us kept snapping away with our cameras; she definitely got the better picture. The sun was much too bright to get a good shot, but I wanted to show you this one anyway. I didn't know until I looked at the photos later that there were two in the picture!

Besides just enjoying the beauty of a well-planned garden, one of the advantages of this type of walk is seeing how people combine different plants and their placement of garden art or accessories. I saw this sedum at one home surrounded by a collection of medium-sized rocks. I don't know the name of this particular sedum, but I've seen it in local nurseries. Seeing it in this setting gave me the idea of the perfect spot for it in my garden.

I do not have an eye for decorating, so I especially enjoy getting ideas from the ways people use different objects as garden art. This decorated pink flamingo apparently won a first prize in some kind of contest.

Funny and original, yes. But I'm not a big fan of pink flamingos. I don't think I'll be rushing out to buy one to decorate any time soon.

My favorite garden on the walk was actually the first one we visited. The front of their modest-sized, tidy brick home was surrounded by these Annabelle hydrangeas and large hostas. The Annabelles seemed pretty popular as we saw them in several of the gardens.

Passing from the front yard into the back, every other square inch of property had been transformed into a garden. In the middle of the back yard/garden was a pond complete with koi fish and a small waterfall. If I had a pond (and how I wish I did!), I would love to see this little guy floating in the middle of all the lilypads.

It was a lovely day, and you might think I went home with a serious case of garden envy to go with my camera envy. Yes, I did see some beautiful gardens and wished I could add more to my own garden, but at the same time I kept thinking, "These are huge! Unless I could afford someone to dig up and prepare all these beds, I couldn't keep up with all of this." Instead I went home and looked at my gardens with a critical eye, thinking about what could be added or moved, but I have no plans to dig up my whole front yard! I'll let someone else worry about trying to create an award-winning garden.

Our weekend ended on a sweet note--literally. Our youngest grandchild celebrated his first birthday with a party on Sunday. The chocolate cake was delicious, but no one enjoyed it as much as he did!

Happy Birthday, my dear little one!