September First Frost

Just to be clear, this post title refers both to the first frost of the season and the fact that it occurred on the first day of September.  Located in the Southern Tier of New York, we are accustomed to seeing the aftermath of a late September frost some years but never this early in the month.  The weather service did not speak of possible frost last night but mentions it for tonight.  Last night's forecasted low was in the mid forties.  We have been here long enough to know the likelihood of frost in our location when the weather station expects numbers in the forties.  It came as no surprise when we looked out this morning and saw wilted leaves on the squash.

The pattern of the damage raises more questions than answers about the actual movement of the cold air that caused the damage.  Long after we placed our garden we observed the pattern of frost on the grass.  Cold pours down from the high ridge behind the ridge that we can see from here and its path is defined by our low notch.  That river of cold follows the contour of the lower ground and finds an exit toward the west.  Unfortunately for us, a wide bend in that river washes over much of our garden.  The basil is planted on slightly higher ground and escaped any damage last night.  We hope that it remains undamaged come morning.

When I first came to this area little more than one half of a century ago, the old timers spoke of the year without summer.  They had heard stories from men much older than themselves of a year when frost formed every month of the year.  Only July and August are usually free of freezes but there are old tales of frost then. If the frost formed before midnight last night, then we just experienced frost in August.  So in this youngster's memory, frost eleven months out of the year is possible but rare.  A July frost seems highly unlikely but who is going to argue with tales from the collective memory of old timers.

This is just a little good news.  Ingaborg gave us these plants many years ago and we refer to them as Inga's mallow.  They self seed and reappear in many places in the garden.  They can be transplanted if the move is completed early since they grow from a taproot.  These beautiful flowers never fail to spark fond memories of a true master gardener.

This is the season of mums in front of many stores.  We prefer to grow our own but the plants prefer a warmer location.  This Mammoth Pink has held its location near the south facing house wall for the past two years.  It is self shaped since we never get around to that task.  These flowers should be fine tomorrow since our frost river flows far away from this spot.

Seasonal Shift

Last night the temperature dropped into the low 40s.  At a different time of the year the decision to cover tender plants or take a chance would have been made.  August frost is not unheard of here but it certainly is rare.  An extra early wake up found the air filled with moist fog.

New England asters fill the roadside ditches and grow freely in other waste places.  A purple flower catches my attention every time so we have this native growing in far too many locations in our planting beds.  Roadside locations show this plant flowering on short stems following highway crew's mowing.  Here the deer rough prune as they walk our garden paths.  The plant's response is to produce more flowers on shortened stems.  We have yet found the time to prune and the beautiful flowers appear at the top of tall stems.  Lower the stem is covered with dead dark leaves.  With care these plants would make excellent garden subjects.

My Great grandfather introduced me to both chrysanthemums and the notion that real men could grow flowers.  Our cold location makes mums usually an annual plant here.  These Mammoth Pinks may be an exception.  Out in the garden they frequently winter kill.  These located right in front of the south facing house wall have expanded after two years in this spot.
 

Nursery men find our native asters irresistible.  From them they have created an aggressive plant named October Skies that grows rather close to the ground while maintaining the wild form of the flower.  No pruning is needed here but a large space will be filled by this plant.  Our original scrap of a mail order plant has given us two divisions and it still closes off the path opening in the stone wall.

Clara Curtis is truly hardy here.  It winters over with ease and has taken over large areas of whatever planting bed where we placed it.  Its appearance would benefit from some timely pruning and thinning.  We do manage to weed out occasional intrusions toward other treasured plants but have so far resisted the pull to sell plants.

This resembles a weedy jumble but it actually contains treasure.  This Pinxter bush has formed seed pods.  Checked daily, we plan to harvest some seed at exactly the right moment and again attempt to raise some of these plants from seed.  Our first attempt at this failed but this time we will place a screen barrier to keep out garden rodents.  This native plant grows best in moist locations that would also support the natural growth of Cardinal Flower.  We may have the perfect spot for these two plants to grow together.  All we need now is to get the seeds to sprout.

Hardy Mums

Chrysanthemums, and the family member that introduced them to me, have been an enduring force in my need to garden.  At about thirteen years of age, I visited my great grandfather's home in south western Pennsylvania.  Carefully tended fruit trees, flowers and vegetables flourished across his home site.  He gave me a piece of one of his mums to take with me when I returned home.  The fate of that plant cannot be recalled but memories of his gardens are still with me.

This hardy mum is named Mammoth Pink.  Our harsh spring nearly ended this plant but it managed to survive in two places.  Located near the house, reflected winter sunlight and its warmth helped this plant survive.  Early growth was sparse and the plant is low to the ground but it may return again next year.  The other one is planted out in the garden and displayed similar growth.  That patch was huge but only a couple of plants remain alive now.  Bright pink color marks newly opened flowers.  Washed out white and broken petals identify older blossoms.

Clara Curtis grows here with a vigor that reminds one of dandelions.  These two clumps are on the south side of a stone wall and that favorable placement may have helped them survive.  We move these throughout the garden and the plant self seeds.

We have spring purchased small potted mums from Bluestone Perennials for several years.  Their mums are clearly labeled as hardy to zone 5 but we try and try again with mixed success.  At this moment only one of their traditional mums remains alive.  Small and showing only a single bud atop a solitary stem, the plant remains alive.  If the coming winter brings lasting snow cover, it may make a greater appearance next year.  We will order again intending to place the new arrivals in the area in front of the house.

This Emperor of China has been here for years.  In milder weather it spreads widely.  Late to open flowers, it is without question among the last to bloom.  It is possible that the buds must be frosted before they will open.  It too is shorter than usual this year.  We will watch to see if this gardening year ends with these pink blossoms.

Spring Preview

With our December thaw so far most of the beds still have a covering of snow, but here and there the perennial plants are putting on new growth to be ready when spring finally arrives.  I am encouraged to see this kind of growth at the base of my perennial flax.  This plant put on quite show last summer.  I can close my eyes and remember the beautiful blue flowers but it's a lot more fun to actually see them.  Those delicate blue flowers that sway in the slightest breeze that open in the morning  and drop their petals to the ground before noon on a hot day, are a delight!

Ed's Mammoth Pink chrysanthemum is sending new growth in all directions.  If this continues we will have plenty of these gorgeous dark pinks flowers to spread around.  It almost feels like money in the bank!

The Doone Valley lemon thyme  looks perfect peeking out from the snow.  The fragrant and tasty green and yellow leaves are the stars here.  In the cold their fragrance is somewhat subdued, but if you rub a small sprig with your hands the aroma of spring is right there just waiting!

I failed in my search to find a picture of the sweet clove scented flowers that remind me of the fragrance of the carnations I remember from my youth.  I would be really tempted by the carnations at the checkout in the but that aroma seems to be missing and without that the flowers have lost their appeal for me.  I'll have to wait for these to bloom!

New Autumn Joy shoots are pushing up through last year's stems. It's kind of amazing since they don't bloom until September.  They will wait right where they are until the warmer weather.  Planted in the bed down by the road, the  big round mound of leaves get larger every year. The flowers are loved by bees, and Ed uses the dried stalks to make trees on his train layout. 

Of course some of our plants show absolutely nothing above ground at this point.  That doesn't prove a thing. Nature has to save some surprises for later. It's part of the fun!

New Growth

Death seems to be a large player in the fall garden.  Slippery slime from frost blackened squash leaves still coats my garden gloves.  Less tropical plants take the change of season in stride and are presently putting out new growth.  This foxglove seedling found itself growing at the west facing base of a dry stone wall.  Shelter and warmth should carry this plant into next summers garden.  The picture would look much more impressive without the dead leaves but finding and operating the pruner with cold gloved hands seemed too much.

Mammoth pink chrysanthemums are reliably hardy here.  Soon the ground will be frozen and the old growth will be cut and placed over the new growth.  The light airy mulch will help the young plants overwinter.  Wood sorrel and Johnny jump ups are persistent weeds here and will overwinter no matter what.

Great lobelia has finished two seasons with us.  Some are blue flowered and some are white.  Not everyone understands why we buy this rather common ditch weed but taking any plants from the roadside comes with risk of a fine.  Many new plants crowd around last season's stems.  Spring division will be required to keep these plants growing freely.  For now, it is time to cut the stems and place them over the new plants.

Only the first Rose campion  requires planting by the gardener.  Following that they come up everywhere.  Their delicate looking whitish foliage and the promise of magenta flowers combine to make it difficult to weed them out.  We always leave more than we should.  Their delicate appearance belies the toughness displayed in the face of frost and freezing.  Compare that with my unwillingness to take off my gloves and snip off some dead leaves.  Working in the cold used to be easier!

Mum's The Word

Bright flowers backed by a dry stone wall is a favorite setting of ours.  It is a combination that seldom  fails to stage beauty.  Here a long time resident Clara Curtis chrysanthemum holds the eye.  We are getting a little better at pinching off early buds to both shape the plant and to increase the number of blossoms.  The taller plant in the back may have only been pinched once.
  

The business end of the flower is the yellow central disc.  A newly opened flower will show raised pollen bearing anthers completely around the disc.  Various insects harvest the pollen and as the flower matures it shows less and less pollen.  The pink rays simply look nice.  Whether or not they actually attract the pollinators is conjecture but they certainly catch my eye.
  

These Mammoth Dark Pink Daisy chrysanthemums were purchased from Roots and Rhizomes in 2010.  This spring the plant had increased in size enough to allow division.  The three pictured plants were placed in front of  Oriental lilies and behind a daylily.  A better foreground plant will have to be found but the chrysanthemum foliage worked well in front of the Orientals.

Newly opened flowers display the darkest coloration.  Older flowers lighten toward white begging to be pinched off to keep the display bright.  Vigorous and hardy here in zone 4, this mum is a definite keeper.

The appearance of flowers on the Asters and the Chrysanthemums sweetly signal the move toward fall.  We are now spending most of our outdoor time preparing the garden for next year.  Pulling weeds before they seed, we may be a little late on that front, and planting buckwheat are our primary activities.  It will soon be time to open new ground for the garlic.  September frost is common in our area at the higher elevations so we need to begin potting up our tender favorites.  Soon all of the horizontal surfaces near windows will be covered with plants in pots.