The Weather Can Always Be Worse...

Nice shot of the fall color of the Amur maple (Acer ginnala) in our Japanese garden. Very few deciduous trees and shrubs in the gardens match this vivid red which seems to be quite consistent from year to year. We are seeing seedlings coming up here and there from this tree and it has the potential to be weedy or invasive in warmer climates. We have a dozen or so specimens of this tree including some specific varieties and it has been quite durable for us but "comes in to its own" this time of year! Below is a specimen pruned low to arch over the raked gravel "sea" in the Japanese garden as well.


The day started rainy and we were fully prepared for inside work all day. However, the drizzle let up and while we've had overcast skies, everyone got outside and it has been an "awesomely" productive day. Marv and Terry hauled back our largest containers for storage and helped with some event preparation. Both Janice and Marianne helped with lights for the Halloween Walk, organized bulbs, yanked plants, tidied and also had time to plant the last of our perennials (almost). Dr. Gredler was here to mow and Little Jerry worked on planting shrubs in the Japanese garden and pruning. Kay removed annuals in the sunken garden and Jumbo Jim brought down four RECAPPERS to help tidy up the Japanese garden. We also saw Maggie, Maury, Dr. Yahr and Jenny came in to work on making close to 800 new labels for our donated daylilies.

We hope the rain doesn't affect the Halloween Walk (see our Jack O' Lanterns below) and we'll finish the last of our preparations tomorrow. Nice shot (above right) taken today of the azure monkshood (Aconitum carmichaelii 'Baker's Variety'). This perennial has taken five frosts now and hasn't blinked an eye. You can see how it gets the name monkshood! The bottom image of our arched bridge was taken today and that new coat of paint really made a difference. Hard to believe this bridge was 1/2 under water last spring.

Fall Clean-Up Continues

Nice shot of the fall color on the golden larch (Pseudolarix amabilis) in the gardens. This deciduous conifer is native to the coastal mountains of South-East China and while green thru the summer, the fall color really catches the eye. See www.mobot.org/gardinghelp/plantfinder/plant.asp?code=A166 for more information on this tree. This tree is located along our larch wall bed that was ornamental edibles for the summer. Kay wrought destruction along this bed this morning and totally cleared it out as frost had finished most of it off already. She did a nice job tidying up and we hope to use her "talents" thru the rest of the week. To the left is another shot of the golden larch overlooking the pond and observation platform. It will be nice to see this when it is 40' tall!

We had lots of other volunteers here today. Hal and Doris cleared there area today as did Pearl and Don. Patti and Sally started removing annuals in their section of the sunken garden and will be back later this month. Janice cleared out containers, collected debris and worked with our high school volunteers this afternoon. Little Jerry was out pruning and Bill spent the day collecting leaves and other debris. Larry helped flush out the irrigation system and water lines, planted shrubs and ran electric cords for the upcoming Halloween Walk. Dr. Gredler was here mowing and we saw Dr. Yahr, Maury, Dick, Joanne, Carrie and Gary for various reasons as well. The frosted annuals continue to be removed and we're about 50% done with that activity. We're also starting to haul in our obelisks from select areas (as seen in the picture of Urban and Ron). We'll decide on their 2010 paint color shortly.....The Halloween Walk starts this Thursday and we'll segway in to Holiday Lights Show preparations next week. We hope to have a good work day on Saturday and should have all of our fall planting completed by then (if we get thru our bags o' bulbs below... and these are just the daffodils...not the 3,000 tulips).

And Frost Taketh Away...

Well, it came a bit earlier than we like but the frost was at least very thorough! "Deep roots are not reached by frost." [J.R.R. Tolkien]. However, everything else was affected and the gardens looks quite different than one week ago! Above is the plume celosia (Celosia plumosa 'Fresh Look Red') that still has some color but most other seasonals around the gardens are black. We're glad that we pulled most of the impatiens last week as those that we missed were mushy today. Needless to say, we started some major clearing today as seen below with Bill and the Grumpies.
Marv worked on hauling and spreading compost and bringing back loads of frosted annuals on his return trips. Few match Marv's industriousness and solid work pace. Terry is off today but we'll get him back Wednesday. Marianne and Janice cleared annuals from in front of the building with Urban and Ron. We'll be planting bulbs in that area this Saturday so need a "clean slate". It was tough to see that display go but there's always next year. Janice moved to pumpkin hauling with Larry (for the Halloween Walk) while Marianne worked on some lights and other projects. Larry has been helping facilitate the projects today but has plenty of shrub planting to go and will help me run power cords for the upcoming Halloween Walk this Thurs., Fri. and Sat. The seasonal merits of 'Karl Foerster' feather reed grass (Calamagrostis x acutilfora) and 'Autumn Joy' sedum (Sedum spectabile) can be seen to the left although the decimated annuals in the formal garden sections still have interest in their demise (see to the right). Note the 'Strawberry Fields' gomphrena will hold color for quite some time.

The Grumpies had another great day with Urban, Ron, Dick K., Dr. Yahr, Del, Ed, Charlie, Roger, John and Bill all removing annuals. Ron W. and Gary worked on composting then hauled pumpkins to a local middle school for carving. Dick H. helped finish composting and the carpenters kept busy with building a walnut bench. Mary was here to help remove annuals and worked with Marv. Magda removed most of her annuals and we anticipate that more of our "assigned garden volunteers" will come in to deal with their removals as well. We'll continue to garden in earnest this week but will shift to holiday lights show preparations next week. Lots coming up this week for me including two speaking engagements and our work day this Saturday. The weather should "warm" a bit we hope but winter is looming large. "Winter is nature's way of saying, 'Up yours.'" [Robert Byrne]. Nice shot of the ornamental fruits of 'Red Peacock' crabapple (Malus sp.). The birds will get these later this winter but this feature is quite conspicuous from a distance.

On Vacation

Sorry for no recent posts. Unwinding until Monday! Nice shot of the annual feathertop grass (Pennisetum villosum) late in the season.

A Pleasant Day Overall

Above is drooping sedge (Carex flagellifera 'Toffee Twist') hiding amongst 'Saturn' coleus (Solenostemon scutellerioides). With looming frost this weekend, both of these plants may be "toast" by Monday but have been good partners all summer. Great day today with sun and blue skies. The temperature was around 63 and quite pleasant. Marianne, Janice and Terry were gone today so Marv, Larry and I were the grounds staff although Little Jerry popped in for a bit. Marv worked on converting containers to fall plantings, removing annuals, composting, rototilling, watering and eventually working on his huge composting projects. Larry worked on water features, put in tree signs and planted shrubs. I worked on various odds and ends and did get out in the gardens a bit as well. To the left is more 'Fat Spike' amaranth (Amaranthus sp.) blooming above the seed capsules of 'Carmencita Pink' castor bean (Ricinus communis). We all realize how fleeting these compositions are when Mother Nature heads in to winter dormancy.

The Grumpies had another very productive day with Ed and Terry removing the rest of our beans while Gary and Ron hauled mums and helped clear another annual berm. Many guys (Roger, Charlie, Ron, Del and Bill) worked clearing brush from an overgrown area along our shoreline while others collected debris from around the gardens. John helped Larry plant shrubs while Mary helped remove annuals as well. The carpenters kept busy as well and we saw Dave and Mary H. come in to work on their garden as well. Overall, a great day to get a lot of work accomplished out there. Dr. Gredler also helped with mowing and many runs to the dump with debris.

I ran to a local nursery today and picked up a neat weeping white pine (Pinus strobus) called 'Angel Falls'. It has such a neat form and as we head in to winter, I appreciate the large collection of conifers that we have out in the gardens as anchors, focal points, winter interest, etc. I love the golden spruce (Picea orientalis 'Skylands') in front of the building as seen to the right and if the deer can stay away this winter, our conifer collection will have another healthy year under its belt. Despite the date on the calendar, some perennials are still doing well out there, particularly the Japanese anemone seen below. This is Anemone hybrida 'Honorine Jobert' that looks awesome right now and loves the recent moisture.

Don't Tell The Wife I'm Here...

I'm here on a Saturday temporarily and thought I'd do a quick blog. Nice color above with this New England aster (Aster novae-angliae, unknown variety) in the sunken garden but look how floppy it is! This perennial is taking up 80 square feet and smothering neighbors. Staking would have been warranted but better yet, we should have cut this plant back by 50% in early June and perhaps again at the end of June. This would have resulted in a more compact plant with even more blooms. Taller asters spaced amongst ornamental grasses and sturdy neighboring plants would be held up better as well. The color is great but try to minimize the floppiness. Larry, Bill and Dr. Gredler are holding down the fort today. There is a wedding scheduled outside in the rose garden today so we hope the showers will hold off for awhile. It is cool but not overly chilly if you dress for it. Lots of plans for next week as we continue fall clean-up and special event preparations. Below is 'Bright Lights' Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris) that is quite nutritious and has nice vivid coloration in the garden. The common name for this plant is summer spinach.

Fall Moved In Fast!

Despite the rainy, cool, windy weather the past couple of days, there is still color to be found out in the gardens. Above is the 'Chilly Chili' hot pepper (Capsicum annuum) that gets more beautiful as the season progresses and is one of the mildest of hot peppers. These peppers are on borrowed time now and we'll pick what we can before frost. Marv and Terry ran for gas, delivered tropicals to a greenhouse for overwintering, pruned boxwoods, hauled mums, etc...We worked around the weather a bit but had a very productive day despite it looking so ominous this morning. Marianne worked on labels for the alpine garden, did a nice job with our cutting display and started on our holiday lights testing!!! This event needs to be ready in 62 days (whose counting?) so we start now so we can deal with any surprises. Janice helped Marianne for a bit with lights but worked on mowing and disposing of plants from around our maintenance facility. Little Jerry came in to mow and Dr. Gredler mowed and aerated. We had Vern here drafting and Ed helped clear beans from our bean towers (in the rain). I was able to fertilize some lawns, finish a presentation and check off "to do" items on my "to do" list. Below is another hot pepper called 'Bolivian Rainbow'. Beneath that image are the Grumpies planting 500 ornamental onion (Allium 'Purple Sensation') bulbs throughout the iris collection. This will look uber-cool next spring.Despite sporadic drizzle yesterday, Shelley Ryan from The Wisconsin Gardener (WI Public Television) came with Kerman, Mike and Greg to film two segments out in the gardens. These segments will feature our "ornamental edible" wall plantings and late blooming perennials. Shelley does such a nice job and the crew is very professional and fun. I'm glad the weather cooperated and we look forward to seeing these segments next summer sometime. The two hot peppers below will be featured as ornamental edibles on her show. Directly below are the spherical fruits of 'Holiday Cheer' and beneath that is the dark-leaved, award-winning hot pepper called 'Black Pearl'. Those glossy black fruits do age to red in time. I'm looking forward to camping with my younger daughter and wife next week as we're heading in to a busy time with fall clean-up, The Halloween Walk and the Holiday Lights Show getting closer on the calendar. Sweet shot at the very bottom of 'Fireworks' goldenrod (Solidago rugosa) blooming in our sunken garden. I love the sprays of color and we have this goldenrod in many locations.