Golden Rain or Gingkos Monday, Nov 4 2013 

gardening and Trees , , acairfearann 21:06

We have two Gingkos, one about 120 years old and one about fifty.  Thankfully, both are males, so no fruit.  They are lovely trees, though the young one is too big for its space.  They are quite hardy in this area, but they have some quirks….  In the fall, if the temperature drops to a certain point, they drop ALL their leaves ALL at once (as in less than eight hours).  It doesn’t matter if they are still green or have turned gold, they will drop.

As it turns out, it would seem that 25 F is that temperature.  At least, yesterday both had essentially all their leaves.  Last night hit 25 F; this morning there was a gentle, steady patter of falling leaves.  By noon they were bare and the ground was carpeted several inches deep in leaves.  This year about eighty percent had turned, so it is a mostly gold carpet; but they are still a bit green and a bit soggy.  I will pick them up tomorrow.

The other quirk is that gingko leaves do not decompose easily.  Fallen leaves, if they have turned gold and dried out, can last several years in dry shade.  They are hydrophobic, even in a watered compost pile, they will form clumps that are literally bone dry despite being surrounded by soggy material.  If they are green when they fall, they will decompose…..much like banana peels will…. (i.e. suffocating slime) this is not desirable!  We pick them up, separated from the other leaves and create a pile which just sort of sits there.  We try to pick up only about half of the oak/maple/magnolia/beech leaves, leaving the rest as mulch; but we try to collect essentially all of the gingko leaves.

 

Red Maples Sunday, Nov 3 2013 

gardening and Modern Photos , acairfearann 22:06

I fail, utterly, to understand why people plant Norway Maples by the thousand.  Japanese Maples I understand (I’d better, otherwise I am a total hypocrite).  But Norways?  Now, we have several very large Norways, but I cut every sapling I see.  They have poor fall color, rarely have good structure (especially the more modern cultivars), and blah bark. Never mind that havoc they are wreaking as invasive species par excellence!

The quandary is made worse by the existence of three outstanding native maples: Sugar, Red, and Silver.  All three have gorgeous fall color, the Red and Silver are very tough trees, (the Silver is a common urban street tree in Montreal), both the Red and Silver are fast growing, they have generally good structure (full grown Sugar Maples are classics), elegant bark, and did I mention the fall color…?

Here is a shot of our young Red Maple, looking up into it, hardly doing it justice.  And this, in a Terrible year for fall color.  It is an orange one, some around here are a true scarlet.  Each tree has a specific color that they turn each year, the base color is not weather dependent, only the brilliance and length of the show.

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Photo of the Day Tuesday, Oct 29 2013 

gardening and Landscapes and Modern Photos , , acairfearann 16:04

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Fall Cleanup Thursday, Oct 24 2013 

gardening acairfearann 19:28

Continues! I took the Morning Glories off the pergola today, I suppose they might have managed one more day; though I think it is too cold tonight.  A fiddly job, carefully cutting them out of the clematis and grape. I have also finally gotten the last few crocus and daffodil bulbs planted, probably not enough…never enough! Mostly in the daylily fence-line, which meant a long break because my horse was adamant that I ought to be on the lookout while he took a nap leaning against me.  It is very hard to ignore a horse that is leaning over the fence and wondering if daffodil bulbs are edible.

The meadow grass areas are all cut as well, slowly the bare bones of the landscape are emerging.  It is a fascinating process; it reveals what has happened during the summer far more clearly than would other wise be possible.

The big garden and long garden are also clean and sharp in their shapes, though I can take no credit for them; everything is Neat.  It should pay dividends next spring!

 

(now, if I could just finish off the bushels of apples and tomatoes….)

 

American Beech Tuesday, Oct 22 2013 

gardening and Landscapes and Trees , , acairfearann 23:12

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It took its time getting established, but it is now growing steadily, at about seven feet tall (when planted it was shorter than the stakes).  They Hate being transplanted and they Hate any sort of chem-lawn environment, which is why one never sees them in suburbia.  It is just opposite the big bay windows, and at this time of year looks like a metal sculpture, all bronze, silver, and gold.  The red maple to the right has yet to turn color this year.

(and why the formidable old style t-post stakes? Because the drive is right there in the shadow of the house, and people are utterly incapable of staying Off the lawn)

 

Falling gold Sunday, Oct 20 2013 

gardening and Trees acairfearann 18:01

This year, is a golden year.  At least for fall color. The maples didn’t really do much, so we have been content with the sassafras (which is gold this year, instead of psychedelic orange), hickory, beech, birch, tulip-tree, and witch-hazel.  They are being followed hard by the oaks, in the standard shades of bronze. A lovely fall day, even if we have yet to have a frost!!!!  I’m cutting things down anyway, enough is enough.

Fall is a time when the bones of the forest are suddenly revealed.  For those who live here, a New England forest can never be mysterious*, unlike a tropical forest or jungle, because each year the trees and the land are stripped.  Late fall and early spring are when a landscape can be truly understood.  Each tree stands alone, even in the densest stand.

*assuming, of course, one goes regularly into the woods!

 

(in other news, I recall commenting about the road and the probability of having to scrape people off of it a few days ago….a rear end collision in broad daylight, with no major injuries, doesn’t really count I suppose?  I feel bad for the black car trying to turn into the neighbour’s driveway, which was solidly rear-ended by the idiot behind them.  Stop texting and Keep Your Eyes on the Road!)

 

 

October Nasturiums Friday, Oct 18 2013 

gardening and Modern Photos , acairfearann 13:19

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Bulbs! Tuesday, Oct 15 2013 

gardening , acairfearann 21:30

And more bulbs!

I like planting spring bulbs…possibly because I don’t have to water them? In any event more blue crocus and white daffodils along the fence, pink tulips in the garden, various oriental lilies here and there, and a small smattering of blue chiondoxia and squill here and there.  A promise for the next year in the dying days of fall.  Either very profound or simply very enjoyable depending on one’s whimsy!

oh, and an attempt at garlic.  Have to try everything once!

 

Mega Gardening Sunday, Oct 13 2013 

gardening and Landscapes and Modern Photos , , acairfearann 19:20

We have an over-sized tree: namely a lone hemlock towering about seventy feet over the little summer kitchen, Minnietrost (the smaller of the two cottages), and even over the south end.  It is beloved of the birds, in the winter because it is a good roosting spot; but in the summer because of the Woodbine (Virginia Creeper) which is now managed to get well over halfway up it.  For much of the summer it blends in (though when it flowers, the hum of the bees is audible from the ground) but in fall….  We can’t take any credit for the impressive display, a happy accident.*

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From below

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From two high stories up, the little summer kitchen is visible below.  The south end is about thirty-five/forty feet tall.

 

*The woodbine, perhaps more than anything, is why taking it down isn’t really something I want to do.

 

 

Hydrangea and Lilac, Fall Thursday, Oct 10 2013 

gardening and Modern Photos , , acairfearann 21:51

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Old Hydrangea paniculata and lilac by the west stairs.

 

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