October Snow

Yesterday we watched the rain change to snow. It fell all afternoon before the ground surface cooled enough for the snow to stick. Overnight the temperature dropped into the twenties. Forget frost. The garden got a real freeze. This morning the garden had a thin white covering of snow. It was not a big surprise. In 2009 we had an even earlier October snow  and it was much heavier than this one.

This afternoon most of the snow is gone. Just a thin layer remains  in places that are shaded from the warmth of the sun. Mother Nature has given us reminder of things to come. Garden tools will soon be replaced with snow shovels . The garden tractor will swap its lawnmower for a snow plow. We hope for more gardening time, but tomorrow another storm approaches. It could be rain. It could be sleet. It could be snow. It could be all three. October weather in zone 4 can be just a little spooky!

A Tale Of Two Lilies

Planning our garden just has not happened. We work on a find a place to stick this plant system. Plants always outnumber open spots. Here is the rare exception. Yellow and purple is a favorite color combination and the lemon lily was deliberately placed behind the Allium aflatunense. Now we know that the taller plants should be planted in back. Remember we are new at planned planting. Several bulbs were spaced along a crescent. The lily was tucked in behind. Bloom time is another issue. The alliums will likely be past when and if the lily blooms. More tuition has been paid and perhaps some learning has occurred.

Nearby lemon lilies occupy the end of a planting bed. It is now clear to us that these lily buds shrivel and die when frosted. Limited materials available for covering plants would likely have left these plants unprotected. Heat radiated by the stone wall protected the buds in the first picture. That wall is West facing and went into the cold night with enough stored heat to hold back the frost. Freeze warnings are posted for tonight. Temperatures are expected to drop into the 20's. We have covered what we can but expect to be hit hard. A year without lemon lily flowers awaits us. The leaves look OK so perhaps the plants can build themselves up and provide a grand display of blooms next year. Gardening builds character.

Falling Temperatures, Falling Leaves

We've dropped through the thirties and into the twenties at night. Now it's freeze not frost! The trees are dropping their leaves. The temperature went up today, but now is dropping like a stone. I think it will be even colder tonight. Most of the fall color is gone, (Sigh...) but so are the bugs. (Yea...) It's time to dig up the browned glads, get the garlic planted and begin plans for next year.