HLS Is "Ready To Roll"

Our lights test went very well last night with very few problems becoming evident.  In fact, most of the issues with various displays or lights being out was easily remedied by actually plugging them in!  We had a group of over 30 staff and volunteers wander the HLS for the pre-preview. We also had members of the press (The Janesville Gazette, Janesville Messenger and Local Vision TV) view the show and hopefully we'll see heavy promotion of this family-friendly event/fundraiser.  The help that Tom C. gave yesterday regarding some disconcerting electrical problems really helped out and he was back today to finalize some "peace of mind" improvements!  We'll have another test night tomorrow but the lights have stayed on all day today which is good news.  The two shots above are from our "Tower of Power" (not to be confused with the 1960s/1970s funk band...) last night.  With 600 transparent C9 bulbs, this 20'+ high display is hard to miss!  Directly below are the showy seedheads of the Northern sea oats (Chasmanthium latifolium).  The next photo is of a small bird house dangling on the inside of a weeping larch (Larix decidua 'Pendula') out in the gardens.  I never knew this was out there and don't know the history of who placed it in that location.  Our founder, Dr. Yahr, is notorious for putting out bird houses and feeders which only adds to the gardens. It's like an Easter egg hunt sometimes to find them all!  The next photo down is the late season fall color on the 'Scarlet Pavement' shrub rose (Rosa rugosa) near the pergola.  This one also has some nice hips (fruits) but the reddish leaf color is quite striking.

We had a great bunch of volunteers at the gardens today.  Kay was in to tidy up her section of the shade garden and she'll be on temporary, self-imposed leave for 2012 until we get our seed order in after the New Year.  She is a big help with seed processing as well although her garden efforts this year have been quite impressive.  Bill O. (directly below) was in to tidy up paths, collect leaves and help with other projects as needed.  Del (second photo down) was around all morning creating more deer cutouts for the HLS.  His deer have been selling like hotcakes at the gift shop so he's frantically (and thankfully) trying to keep up with demand.  Vern was also in for some carpentry work and mounted a new bench plaque for me.  Maury came in and ran some very timely errands for us.  Marianne (third photo down) was out in the gardens all the way thru the lunch hour working on HLS tweaking.  She went around to check on all the 1/2 gallon milk jug luminaries and also repaired some different displays as well.  Tom C. came in to help with more electrical improvements with Larry.  Dick H. ran debris to the dump and Pat came in for some more pruning of crabapples (Malus) in various locations.  We also saw Dr. Gredler and many others today too.

The grounds staff had a full day of HLS work as well.  Larry turned on the entire show this morning which incidentally, is almost a 30 minute process.  Larry also worked with Tom C. on electrical improvements and continued securing displays, barricades and other traditional elements of the HLS.  For our test tomorrow, the entire event will be hooked up and prepared as if it was the premiere (Nov. 30th at the Taste of Chocolate, tickets going fast!!!).  Big John processed some new donations of lights, did some work with the CASE endloader (moving piles, loading the truck) and helped with all manner of HLS tweaking today.  He and I will finish the last of our tweaking tomorrow.  I had a multitude of meetings which included a trip to K&W Greenery (Janesville) to talk with Chris W. regarding some "plants of interest" for next year.  I always enjoy speaking to Chris and his plant knowledge is always impressive.  Directly below are the colorful (and backlit) fall leaves of the red barrenwort (Epimedum x rubrum) in the shade garden.  The next photo down shows some of our black mondo grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens') near the zig-zag bridge.  This is not a true grass although it sure has that texture.  I'm tickled that our clumps have overwintered for three years now as this is a very marginal perennial for us.  The next photo down is the "mosaic-like" fall color of the variegated wayfaringtree viburnum (Viburnum lantana 'Variegatum') which colors up late and has a wide range of pastel pinks and oranges because of the creamy, summer variegation.  At the bottom is one of my favorite bench quotes out in the garden.

HLS Finishing Touches

With our first "test night" this evening for the Holiday Lights Show (HLS), we turned the show on right away this morning and many of us spent some time on tweaking and improvements.  Maury (left) and Rollie above were helping Tom C. with some new cords that should alleviate some of our problems.  I thought the guys should have turned off the power first before they got to the stage seen above though...  There is still quite a bit of interest out in the gardens.  Directly below is the late season foliage color of one of the Siberian irises (Iris siberica) that we've not yet cut back in the Japanese garden.  The next photo down shows the Autumn moor grass (Sesleria autumnalis) which is fast becoming one of my favorite shorter grasses for adaptability and drought tolerance.  It looks great for the vast majority of the year and also has some winter interest.  The third photo down shows the dried fruit structure of the umbrella magnolia (Magnolia tripetala) in the arboretum.  This structure was a bright, fleshy, red/pink color back in early fall.   

With warm weather in the mid 50 degrees F today, we had a strong volunteer turnout for all sorts of tasks and duties.  Directly below is Stan who continued his debris clean-up in the Japanese garden and fern & moss garden this morning.  The next photo down shows Urban (ground level) and Pat pruning another of our many crabapples (Malus) near the corner sign area.  These guys are a good team and will continue their pruning onslaught throughout the winter.  Speaking of good teams, the next photo shows Gary and Pat with a batch of labels they installed in the gazebo garden this morning.  Gary has been training Pat regarding the data entry and production steps to follow for our labeling program.  They continue to make labels as our material supply allows and are also doing some inventories for sign needs in other garden areas as well.  The fourth photo down shows a drag race in action.  From left to right are Eugene, Lloyd and Larry H.  They must have been up to 4 mph at this point!  The guys did a great job transferring shredded leaf mulch to areas that were most in need (i.e. Smelly Garden).  They later moved on to leaf collection in various areas.  Terry came in to secure some of our repaired HLS displays and he and John also installed some of our last displays for the HLS.  Marianne finalized some HLS preparations and spent time replacing bulbs for our 1/2 gallon milk jug luminaries.  Dick P., Maury and Rollie worked on various projects including a supply run and help with some electrical improvements.  Del worked on some carpentry projects as did Jim, Vern, Bob A. and Dave.  The carpenters are working on another raised bed planter (see second photo from the bottom).  Tom C. was a huge help with electrical projects today.  We also saw Mary F.P., Jean S. and others today.

Big John worked on HLS projects this morning and also did some significant gardening.  There are still perennials to cut back and leaves to collect in various areas.  Larry helped Tom C. with some of his work and did a nice job shifting around cords to help alleviate some of our power problems.  When the HLS is running for the public, Larry and I split up the evenings as we really need one of us there as a troubleshooter.  We are also two of the few that know where everything is plugged in and where the cords supply power.  I will state that our cord hookups are frequently quite creative.  I spent most of the day also making adjustments to the show and will continue tomorrow after we see what needs some help tonight.  At the bottom is one of our latest blooming perennials.  This is the variegated red scabious (Knautia macedonica 'Thunder & Lightning').  You can see some of the variegated foliage that is a nice backdrop for these bright maroon, "pin-cushion-like" blooms (1" diameter) that are non-stop from June until late November.

The Tower of Power

Directly above is the "Tower of Power".  This is a 20' obelisk that our carpenters (Dave, Jim, Bob and Vern ) built over the past couple of weeks.  The overall intent was to build three of these over the winter for the gardens next year but after their prototype was finished, we thought, "Why don't we get this out in the gardens and sling some lights on it!?"  Above is the final product but there were seven of us working on this for a couple hours this morning.  We hauled the obelisk to the reception garden in two sections, secured them together and attached 24 strands of bright, C9 lights.  Getting this structure up and secured was challenging but ultimately, everything worked out well and we only broke two bulbs in the process.  This obelisk will be a real focal point in that garden and they'll be no missing this bright centerpiece.  Thanks to Marv, Terry and Big John who, along with carpenters mentioned above (sans Bob), did a great job on getting this element prepared and secured.  We're still not sure if we're required to install a blinking red light at the top for low flying aircraft...

We attracted an audience for the erecting of the Tower of Power which included Mary, Kris, Rollie, Bev and Ron W., and many others.  You can actually see the top of this structure from the main parking lot as it peaks over our 16' arborvitate (Thuja) hedge.  Our volunteers today included Dave, Vern and Jim who were a huge help with this obelisk this morning.  Vern stayed to work on some other projects and we later saw Dr. Gredler, Rollie, Karen M., Janice and many others.  It was a rare day in that we didn't have any traditional gardening volunteers but our primary focus was certainly finishing the HLS which we'll continue to test next week.  Directly below is the late season "look" of the 'Northwind' perennial switch grass (Panicum virgatum).  From Roy Diblik at Northwind Perennial Farm, this stalwart, upright grass can get 7'+ in the summer and has some nice winter durability and will stay upright thru even some of the harshest snow storms.  The next photo down shows the late season color of our 'Jazz' little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) which is another nice selection from Brent Horvath of Intrinsic Perennials.  This variety is quite upright with good fall/winter coloration.  Many selections are floppy but I'm quite impressed with 'Jazz' which also seems a bit more compact at 30" or so.  The third photo down shows some of our prairie this morning which is still quite beautiful (and attractive for birds). 

Aside from our big project this morning, the staff had plenty of other HLS work.  Marianne continued working on both her 1/2 gallon milk jug luminaries and on many of the dangling icicle lights.  She has a good system which continues to work well for securing and powering up these various HLS features.  Marv and Terry also wired up some of our last displays, secured small trees in some of our containers and worked on some odds and ends to finish up the day.  Big John secured the last of our donated spruces (Picea) out in the gardens and diced up the remainder for greens which we'll use next week.  John also put the last of our lights out on some trees in the arboretum.  We literally have about 97% of all HLS lights, displays, etc. out in the gardens for a record number of lights and certainly our best HLS yet.  I hope the weather cooperates.  Kudos to the grounds staff for another job well done and special thanks to Marv, Terry and Marianne who finished today as well as Janice and Pat who finished two weeks ago.  The entire year was a success out in the gardens. The ornamental bark directly below is from the Tanyosho pine (Pinus densiflora 'Umbraculifera') near the sunken garden.  I've seen 40' tall specimens of this tree at the Morton Arboretum (Lisle, IL) and the bark just keep getting redder and better!  The next photo down shows the brilliant yellow needles of the golden lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia 'Chief Joseph') in the alpine garden.  This specimen, although still quite small, is certainly an eyecatcher.  The third photo down shows the "pinky-orange" fall coloration of the golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia).  This vigorous, perennial groundcover will hold color most of the winter but new, brilliant growth will emerge in April.  The bottom photo is from yesterday afternoon and shows our "guardian angel" Tom, who has always been helpful with anything electrical and will hopefully be the hero of the HLS next week when he helps me balance the electrical loads throughout the gardens.  Yesterday he was replacing four stubborn outlets throughout the gardens.

A Delightful Day

Today was another nice, sunny day with high temperatures approaching a comfortable 50 degrees F. It was perfect weather for some late season gardening as well as more Holiday Lights Show (HLS) preparations. Larry turned the entire HLS show on right away this morning so we were able to go around and see some immediate problems, tweak some areas and ultimately see which areas will be problematic.  At least 80% of the show stayed on all day which is amazing.  I'll make some adjustments tomorrow and I think we'll be in good shape for the test nights next week.  At the top is our 'Cinnamon Snow' hellebore (Helleborus) budding out early.  I think this plant thinks it's March!  Those buds though are winter hardy and should be fine over the coming months.  I'll keep an eye on this one.  The bark directly above is from the dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) in the arboretum.  I enjoy examining bark throughout the year but these winter months should also expose some neat bark characteristics in your own garden.  Directly below is the golden Scotch moss (Sagina subulata 'Aurea') looking good in the fern & moss garden.  Although not a "true" moss, this perennial groundcover has served us well in that space and offers some nice color (as well as little white flowers in early summer).  The next photo down shows the foliage of the golden sweet flag (Acorus gramineus 'Golden Pheasant') in the Japanese garden.  This grass-like perennial offers that golden texture throughout the growing season.

We had some great volunteer help today (not the guys below though...). Just kidding of course.  You can see how safety is one of our primary concerns around the gardens.  The driver is Gene and the Brewers fan in back is Larry H., both of whom are active Grumpies.  The other gentleman is Mike, a new Grumpy that started today.  These guys did a nice job transfering shredded leaf mulch from areas where they were stockpiled to many other locations in need of mulching.  The guys did a great job on that project and moved on to collecting leaves and debris from some other target areas as well.  Stan was out tidying in the Japanese garden all morning and Pat did a nice job pruning crabapples (Malus) near the east end of the gardens.  Dick P., Maury and Rollie were in to work on some projects at the other building and our carpentry team of Dave, Vern, Bob A. and Jim continued work on the large obelisk sections (2) that needed to be tweaked before we place that structure out in the gardens tomorrow.  Bill O. arrived in the afternoon to work on debris collection in select locations.  Tom C. came in this afternoon to replace some outlets out in the gardens and his electrical expertise has been a huge help for the HLS but also the gardens in general.  The next photo down shows the late season foliage color of the 'Yellowstone Falls' foamy bells (xHeucherella) in the woodland walk garden.  This perennial has nice golden summer foliage with a red center.  It's nice to still see hints of those colors this late in the season.  The bright red leaf further down is from the Golden Raindrops crabapple (Malus transitoria 'Schmidtcutleaf') which gets this superior fall color very late in the season.

 

The grounds staff had a busy day that almost entirely revolved around HLS tasks and duties.  Larry worked on a wide range of cord and power issues and set up the displays around the koi pond.  He and Tom C. worked later on some of the power upgrades and improvements.  Big John did a little bit of everything.  He filled containers with small trees, cut up greens for general use, decorated trees, ran cords, etc., etc.  He was quite versatile today and did a nice job.  We also saw Janice today (off the clock) and she gave our new Grumpy (Mike) an orientation.  Janice also did some office work and lights work too (decorated the two interior obelisks).  I had a couple of meetings but was able to run more cords and make some adjustments out in the HLS already.  Tomorrow should be icing on the cake.  However, we will be putting up our "tower of power" in the morning.  I can't describe this real well so check the blog tomorrow!  Directly below is 1 of the 2,000 half gallon milk jugs that Marianne has been finalizing along the route of the HLS.  Each jug has a C7 bulb in it which makes the jug glow warmly.  These are great for guiding visitors thru the HLS.  The next two photos down are coral bells (Heuchera) that are still looking good.  The lightly frosted, maroon-leaf variety is 'Dolce Licorice' and the bottom variety is 'Dale's Strain' which has some nice veination. 

91% Complete

We had a lot of progress today on the Holiday Lights Show (HLS) and are on track to wrap it up by this Friday.  I think we're over 90% complete with the exception of some final displays and cord running.  This was another monumental effort and kudos to everyone that helped with the set-up and preparations, especially the RBG grounds staff.  The day was quite nice and the sunshine kept the day pleasant, particularly in the afternoon.  I had my camera in my jacket pocket all day (which isn't unusual) so was able to catch some nice November color and interest.  At the top is the 'New Look' dusty miller (Senecio cineraria) which is very frost tolerant and isn't a true annual.  We've seen various dusty miller plants make it thru the winter too although we treat them as an annual and replant every year.  The shot directly above is some of the last of the fall color on one of our burning bushes (Euonymus alatus) near the woodland walk garden.  Directly below is the 'Plum Pudding' coral bells (Heuchera) still showing off some beautiful foliage.  While coral bells regenerate new foliage each year, the old foliage is colorful throughout the winter.  The next photo down shows the coppery fall color of our only American beech (Fagus grandifolia) which is in the Japanese garden.  We have some nice European beeches (Fagus sylvatica) too although the native species is beautiful, particularly with age.  When I worked at Fernwood Botanic Garden (Niles, MI), there were enormouns American beeches in the surrounding woods and they were impressive with 3'+ wide trunks and mature heights over 70' tall.    

We had some great volunteer assistance today out in the gardens and with our HLS preparations.  Whitey B. was in all day and did a nice job of decorating many more of our temporary spruces (Picea) that were obtained Monday.  Whitey is a great worker and we appreciate his time over these last two days.  Dr. Gredler was in this morning to help process some new lights.  Maury popped by a couple of times and is going to get us a couple more HLS cords so we can continue wiring tomorrow.  We're getting very light on cords due to new displays and some creative power diversions...).  Nancy (below) was joined by Gena and Myrt (next photo down) this morning as all three ladies did a nice job collecting leaves and perennial debris in the Scottish garden.  This was one of our last gardens to clean-up and the ladies did a great job as usual.  The third photo down shows Pat who was here all morning helping Whitey decorate trees out in the gardens.  We also saw Kris, Mary W. and many others.  We'll continue to garden as long as the weather doesn't turn too sour!

All five of the grounds staff (myself included) jumped right in to HLS preparations and that's all we did.  Big John (seen below with his spruce hat) hauled and secured many trees, modified displays and in general, was a great help with other projects as well.  Marianne helped wire up the many icicle lights installed by L.P. Tree Service yesterday.  This involves hundreds of drop cords and John also helped with this process.  Marianne also finished up her luminaries for the HLS route.  Marv and Terry placed and secured another new LED lights display (second photo down), put lights on trees and hung up additional lights and HLS features.  I also ran cords all day and will spend most of tomorrow and all of Friday finalizing the cord connections.  The third photo down shows a view thru the "cheese mold" circle over the pond to the observation pier.  The bottom photo is one of our many metal sculptures out in the gardens.  John pointed this one out today and I remembered when it was installed the first year I was at RBG (1998).