Four Patches Of Mayflowers In July

This is our only naturally occurring patch of that wonderful native plant also known as  Trailing Arbutus.  In the early 1960's the barn burned and the trash that the fire left behind was buried in this area.  A gravel bank was opened to expose material used to cover the remains of the barn.  This spot features the lumpy overburden that was pushed aside.  As difficult as it is to believe, this tiny patch of green may be fifty years old.

When we first found it we knew nothing about it other than it had sweet smelling flowers in April or May.  Some years we found and enjoyed these blossoms while other years no trace of the plant could be found.  What we eventually learned was that this evergreen plant exposes its sweet tasting leaves following snow melt.  Rabbits are particularly fond of feeding on these leaves.  Despite this damage, the plant used the next three years to reestablish itself and flower.  That explains the wire cage that covers this plant.  The dry stone walls surrounding the cage have to date made it impossible for hungry animals to push the cage aside or slide under it.

This area features our first successful transplants and a from seed plant that grew in the soil clump moved with the plant.  Arbutus is described as impossible to move in many books but we found success.  Our understanding of this plant when we moved it was limited since we were unaware that it exists in both genders.  Pure luck gave us three pollen producing plants and one that grows seeds.  The dense leaf growth here makes it impossible to know if any other plants grew from the seed produced here.  Leaf growth has reached the limits of the covering cage and we have no plans to protect these exposed plant parts.

This closeup is intended to show the difference between the new light green leaves that are new growth this year and the older dark green leaves.  We still do not understand the life cycle of these evergreen leaves.  At some point in time some must die but we seldom see a dead leaf.  One may be visible in the second wire rectangle from the left in the center row but we have no way of knowing its age.  Their general appearance may be hidden beneath the vigorous new growth.

Our second successful attempt to transplant can be seen here.  When these four pollen producing plants and two seed growing plants were placed here, we gave them great care.  Fallen White Pine needles were singularly removed so that the Trailing Arbutus leaves were fully exposed.  Recently we have limited our intrusion of the natural turn of events since we want this to be a wild native plant.  This tree suffered great damage from the late heavy snow storm and the Arbutus plants are nearly covered with fallen pine needles.  This cage will be temporarily set aside so that the heavy load of pine needles can be lightened.

When we were digging transplants, we disturbed a tiny cluster of possibly five plants.  These were placed in the corner of our first patch.  Two or three years later exactly two plants remained alive.  They were placed here adjacent to the property line under a huge White Pine.  As luck would have it, both genders are present.  We brought no soil here as we wanted these plants growing from a deep deposit of rotted pine needles.  They are doing well sending out long pieces of new growth.

Trailing Arbutus plants form their blossom buds ahead of winter.  Our next set of pictures will focus on new buds.  This year weather was harsh when the open flowers were expected so we eagerly look forward to next year. 
 

New Growth

Trailing arbutus has been a center of our attention for the twenty-eight years that we have been here.  Our small naturally occurring patch is still here and with its wire cage cover it no longer occasionally disappears but its poor location keeps it small.  The plants in the first photo are our last successful attempt to transplant this native treasure.  Placed under a huge old White pine tree, these Arbutus live on a deep deposit of rotting pine needles.  The dark green leaves are perhaps several years old.  The light green leaves growing from fuzzy stems are new growth.  Today just seemed like a good time to look in on these plants.

This picture clearly shows different stages of new growth.  The sizeable bright green leaf is new growth but is older than the new stem to its left.  It has a new leaf that has just started to grow.  In the center of the photo, at least two seed berries can be seen.  They are flanked by the remains of  blossoms that were not fertilized.  This plant produces viable seed every year but we can not be certain that any new plants appear here.  Their first year's growth consists of three small leave while the two mature plants have spread filling the protected area under the cage.

These plants grow adjacent to the lane far away from our other plants.  The center of this photo shows many female flowers that have failed to grow seeds.  Earlier this year I watched a bumble bee enter these open blossoms.  She was much larger than the flowers and frequently pulled the petals from the flowers as she backed out.  I saw this ground covered with white petals.  That in itself does not guarantee sterile flowers but some factor  left these clusters sterile.  In the upper right corner of the picture a developing seed cluster is visible.

This is the planting under the huge pine tree.  Old leaves are dark green while new leaves are bright and light.  This combination of old growth and new leaves is what makes it impossible to spot new growth from seed.  We are pleased that these two original plants are doing so well.  New growth now extends beyond the cage inviting us to try again to root cuttings and drawing in rabbits to feed on these apparently tasty leaves.  We were very lucky as this old pine did suffer breakage from that heavy snow storm but none of the fallen branches hit this cage.
 

Another White Pine Hit

We have transplanted Arbutus in three different widely spaced plots on our land.  Each of these and the one wild patch are near White pine trees.  Soil under these trees contains everything necessary for Arbutus to grow and prosper.  One group of plants was placed behind a drystone wall directly adjacent to the lane.  That was our destination today since Arbutus flowers were found open elsewhere yesterday.

This tree suffers from multiple trunks growing close to the ground.  An adventurous lad walked out on one such trunk causing it to break.  We knew that this tree was flawed but still we built the wall and transplanted six Arbutus plants between it and the base of the tree.  For more than a decade all went well.  Then a heavy wet snowfall broke off parts of  many trees.  

That is Becky wearing her pink hat sharing tender moments with Luca, the good neighbor's dog. We are pleased that this white pine dropped its heavy branches without contacting the stone wall or the arbutus patch.  After surveying the damage we realized there is nothing we can do about it today.

This group of plants started out as six transplants.  Two were female with the others male.  Seed is seen here every year but the growth habit of the plants covers the ground.  If plants from seed are growing here we cannot see them since now we can no longer even find the original six plants.  Seed is formed on the outside of a small white ball much like a raspberry.  Ants carry off pieces of the berry interested only in eating the white substance.  Seeds are simply cast aside.  We wanted to see plants growing away from these but have yet to find such a plant.  Without a wire cage, young plants would be eaten by rabbits or woodchucks.

This picture does not show the pink color of these buds.  None of our other groups make pink flowers but these do.  When first transplanted, these plants received water every week that it did not rain for two years.  We also carefully removed all fallen pine needles that were in contact with the leaves.  Full exposure to sunlight air and rain were maintained.  Their survival was our top priority then but now we recognize that these are wild native plants capable of getting by on their own.  Fallen needles sometimes completely cover leaves leading to their deaths but that is the nature of life in the wild.  The wire cage will remain to block out animals that feed on Arbutus leaves.

This fallen red maple branch is blocking use of the lane.  I parked the truck and Becky and I walked under this branch so we could continue up the lane to check the arbutus.  It was slow going because small broken branches  are scattered everywhere. We have along standing rule here that says stop and stand still to look around. The sheer number of broken trees to look at, together with the branches to trip over made this a slow process. 

The ROW users misunderstood the deeded terms of the right of way and involved a lawyer that found me impossible to move.  This fallen branch is totally blocking their access to their campsite at the top of the hill.  The tree that the branch fell from is not on land that I own so I am under no obligation to clear it.  When it is cleared, I will then have access to other places where removing the fallen branches is my obligation.  We shall see just how this situation is resolved.

 

Damaged Giant

With any luck the power will remain on.  Our first outage lasted for twenty-four hours and our close to needing a  refill propane tank prompted no action from me.  Twelve hours later the power went out again with that outage also lasting twenty-four hours.  At that point we desperately needed a delivery. The Mirabito truck arrived here before lunch.

This stately White pine tree grew along the edge of the river bottom field.  Fortunately much of it remains intact but it did suffer a huge hit.  The ground at the base of this tree features a deep deposit of decayed pine needles.  That seemed like a perfect place to transplant Arbutus plants.

 

Fortunately the broken tree pieces fell toward the river rather than on our land.  This loss to the tree is enormous but it appears that enough undamaged tree remains to support continued growth.

This welded wire cage protects the two Arbutus plants placed here.  It is designed to keep hungry  woodchucks and rabbits away from our plants.  The tree debris that fell here was limited to small dead pieces.  Both the cage and the plants escaped injury. 

Our first Arbutus transplants were placed further up the hill under a much smaller White pine.  Our normal path to these plants was blocked by downed Sumac trees.  No damage was done to the plants and we were surprised to find open flowers.  Only a few of the buds are open but they created a welcome display.  Age related decline prevented me from getting on the ground to smell these unforgettable sweetly scented blossoms.  Perhaps that will be part of tomorrows visit here.  
 

March Heat Wave

It was wonderful to work outside in the summerlike temperatures today.  This cluster of Jacob's Ladder has been in the shade garden near the house for many years.  If we soon find a new spot for some of the younger plants, a move would be in order.  This has proven to be a hardy and beautiful native plant.

This Winter Aconite is not native here but its early bright yellow flowers lift our spirits.  This plant has self seeded in the lawn and its open flower is ahead of others previously planted in the gardens.

Snow Drops are another nonnative plant that simply had to be set out in our shade garden near the road.  Placed just inside of the path defining stones we have a pure white line of open flowers when little else has even made an appearance at this time.

 This is our small patch of native Arbutus that were growing here when we bought the land more than a quarter of a century ago.  Some years we could find sweet flowers while the plant seemed to have disappeared many other years.  This patch taught us that wild animals feed on this evergreen plant and protection is in order.  Chewed to the ground several times somehow these plants regrew.  Now a wire cage keeps them safe.

Three days ago we discovered the remains of a deer quite close to the house.  Coyotes have harvested our deer in the past but never before this close to the house.  We did make a close inspection of the various body parts scattered about.  White hair under the chin suggested that this was an old deer.  We expected that we would have to clean up the less desirable body parts scattered about but left the site just as we found it.  That night Becky heard unusual noises outside of the bedroom window.  She carefully opened a window just a crack and listened to what sounded like conversation between the coyotes.  The following morning we went out with tools and buckets expecting to clean up the less appealing body parts.  The only objects remaining were the tufts of hair pictured above.  A well chewed nearly clean section including backbone and the rib cage had been dragged away from the house.  We expect a return visit tonight with another meal taken.  It is likely that we will not be able to find any body parts tomorrow.  We have found fresh kills before and always have quickly left the area.  One amazing event that we did witness this time was two of the dead deer's companions feeding quite close to the remains.  It would appear that wild animals see death as a normal component of life. 

It is not uncommon for our first Deer Tick encounter to occur in March.  Our recent experience was uncommon in that the tick was not found on our body.  It was seen leisurely swimming across the toilet bowl water.  Go figure. 

Beautiful March Day

More than one decade ago, we flew in the face of conventual wisdom and attempted to transplant Trailing Arbutus.  Writings spanning the previous century described this native wonder as impossible to transplant.  We discovered the hard way that these plants could be moved but their evergreen sweet foliage would likely be eaten by starved rabbits or woodchucks early in the year.  A beneath the surface dry stone wall extending up along the wire cage edge has to date solved that problem.  The appearance of this native plant's apparently wild placement  is destroyed by the wire cage.  In the past we would carefully remove fallen pine needles and oak leaves.  Our treasured babies were given extensive care with the hope that they would survive.  Not only have they survived, plants now extend past the limits of the cage.  That exposed growth may be eaten but these plants are otherwise mostly on their own.

 

Many of the early flowering plants form their flower buds ahead of winter's arrival.  A cursor click on the image will enlarge it and if you look just to the right of center near the lower edge of the photo you will see a cluster of buds.  We find this promise of early flowers both exciting and reassuring.  Why the squirrels or chipmunks did not carry off the acorn remains an unanswered question while the Arbutus looks great.

 

Cardinal Flower is another incredible native plant that is not commonly found in our area.  The loss of snow cover has revealed a sizeable group of plants.  The dead stems mark the location of last year's flowering plants and their need to increase the number of new plants now holding their spot.  When the ground thaws these clusters can be unearthed.  Gently pulling apart the plants, individuals can be transplanted into pots.  When the snow cover first disappeared  great looking plants are on display.  The bitter cold that will surely visit here will likely turn these plants into dead mush.  More to the north, snow cover exists for a longer period of time and the warm Georgia winds do not blow there.  Here southern warmth followed by bitter cold often ends these native treasures.

We considered working among the plants but the ground is still frozen.  This section of the driveway has taken a real beating.  Where we can direct the running water to flow in the higher ditch, the situation improves.  Flowing water softens the frozen soil and a deeper channel can  then be established.  We need to continue widening and deepening the ditch ahead of serious rainfall.  With persistence and luck we may be able to at least reduce the amount of water roaring down the driveway.  Last year we were able to use a shovel and lawn cart to move enough gravel to raise the road surface above the level of the ditch.  We plan to do the same thing on this side after new gravel becomes available.  For now it is dig, dig, dig. Happiness is being outside, working, getting the spring runoff to run downhill my way. 
 

Arbutus Cleanup

This is our first patch of transplanted Arbutus.  Our goal was to reestablish this native treasure in a natural setting.  The visible tree trunk is a White Pine that provides a new layer of fallen needles each summer.  Their thick coating allows generous amounts of sunlight to reach the low growing plants while their decay deepens the highly acidic soil layer that is so beneficial to Epigaea repens.  If nothing else grew nearby, these plants would likely make it on their own underneath their protective wire cage.  Yes, a galvanized wire cage is not natural but the sheer number of hungry rabbits or woodchucks here may not be natural either.

Unfortunately, the small Oak trees growing nearby are now huge and their shed leaves form a thick layer that totally blocks out sunlight.  No Arbutus plants would survive the winter if kept in the dark.  One solution would be to cut down those trees but that seems extreme.  Still the Arbutus will not survive if kept in the dark.  Those leaves would possibly blow away in the wind but the wire cage keeps them trapped.

 

It was above 60 degrees F today so the time seemed right to clean up this mess.  Down on hands and knees is the only safe way to pick away the fallen leaves.  Pain is ever present and getting up is not graceful.  No fall accompanied this work but several bobbles were seen.  The wire cage fits inside of the low stone wall so that it cannot be pushed aside.  The four interior stones were placed to give me a handhold to reach distant leaves.

An old blog post featured a photo of a young plant sporting reddish buds.  The text identified this as the from seed plant that grew here following transplantation.  That plant and the four moved here have formed a dense mat preventing me from finding the plant that grew from seed.  If we remember to look for pink flowers when winter ends we may finally find it.  Other plants have reached the edge of the cage.  Our plan is to try once more to root cuttings.  We now have three different strengths of rooting compound so success may finally find us.  We certainly are looking forward to the end of winter despite its failure to find us yet this year. 
 

Native Promises Of Spring

If there is a native plant that has inspired more written words than Epigia repens, I am totally unaware of it.  In our early days as a new nation, personal hygiene was severely lacking especially during winter.  One of the women of years that influenced and helped us with gifts of plants shared an experience she endured at the one room schoolhouse that she attended as a child.  One late winter day she fell through ice completely soaking her clothes during recess.  Back inside she was seated near the stove soon filling the room with the scent of both her clothes that had been worn for some time and her body that had not seen a bath recently.  Soon she was moved away from the stove and her classmates.  Needless to say, that stinky experience stayed with her for the rest of her years in that school.

Everyone's home, church or place of business needed sweet scented air as Spring took hold.  Great expeditions into the forests where Trailing arbutus grew were made to harvest the unbelievably sweet scent of these early flowers.  Unfortunately the flowers grew from the stem necessitating the removal of much of the plant when the flowers were gathered.  Concerned that these massive harvests were endangering the survival of this plant, a group of Massachusetts woman used several years of political activity to push for a law outlawing the harvesting of this plant.  Their organization became known as the New England Wildflower Society and this plant still grows in the wild today.

It is common to find written words describing Trailing arbutus's resistance to transplanting.  Mrs. William Star Dana wrote that this plant should be left alone.  Not one to blindly follow conventional wisdom, these pictured plants were moved here in a carefully selected location.  Soon the woodchucks and the rabbits demonstrated their need for food as Spring approached by chewing to the ground these evergreen plants.  Carefully laid low field stone walls hold the protective wire cage in place and so far have discouraged all attempts to get under the wire.  Other than this necessary protection, these impossible to transplant treasures have been on their own here for several years.  They have reached the edge of the cages and new growth will of necessity be available to the animals.

This photo shows flower buds now forming ahead of the Winter snow.  This seems risky to me but how else can flowers open so soon after snow melt?  Nothing will prevent us from dropping to the ground to sniff their fragrance without harming the plants.  Getting back up will not be graceful but the memory of their scent will once again get me past winter.

 

 

Lobelia cardinalis is a native treasure that has demonstrated its difficulty surviving in the Southern Tier or Catskill regions of NYS.  John Burroughs wrote about its scarcity more than one hundred years ago.  This plant is an evergreen that has already started next season's  growth.  These bright green new leaves will emerge from snow cover undamaged and ready to grow.  Early southern warm weather will push these leaves to fill with moisture.  Then the freezing night air will turn this water into ice exploding the leaf cells sometimes killing the entire plants.  We have seen many of our plants die and are searching for locations that will insulate survivors from death.  These plants are growing on our impossibly small piece of river bottom land.  Sheltered by sloping ground, the snow cover lingers here.  River fog helps to soften the freezing nights.  So far so good although one year we did have one close call with frost blackened leaves.  New leaves appeared and these plants still survive here.

Cardinal flower is hard to categorize.  The almost dead stems mark the complete disappearance of this year's plants.  Young growth around the base are totally new plants.  In the past we would dig up and separate these young plants and place them in pots in early Spring.  Moving them inside on cold nights gave us new plants to try again.  Now we have found protected areas where these plants have survived without attention from us.  Our time here is limited but we want these two native treasures to hold this ground after we are no longer here.
 

Arbutus In The Hands Of Mother Nature

This naturally occurring patch of Arbutus plants is located in the lumpy overburden that was pushed aside to open the gravel bank perhaps sixty or seventy years ago.  We have been on this land for twenty-seven years.  Initially, these plants were difficult to find.  Some years a few flowers were present while other years no trace of the plants could be found.  It is likely that foraging wildlife fed on the leaves during late winter's lack of green plants.  Our solution to the attacks was to construct a shallow stone well whose sides would prevent entry under the wire cage.  That intrusion into the natural cycle has protected these evergreen leaves for the past eleven years.  Any plant growth outside of the cage is fair game.  This planting remains small perhaps in response to the stone laden soil.  We have been unable to identify just how many plants are growing here but seed production has remained absent.

Conventional wisdom holds that Arbutus cannot be successfully transplanted.  Never having limited my activities to conform with ideas held by others, four plants were transplanted about a decade ago.  During the late winter of their first year here, a woodchuck feasted on three of these plants.  One was eaten clear to the ground.  Two others suffered considerable damage while the fourth plant was small and hidden by moss.  The critter never found the hidden small plant.  Fortifications were built and to date no rabbit or woodchuck has been able to feast on these plants.

Our accumulated knowledge about Arbutus plants at the time was scant at best.  We did not know that there are both male and female plants.  As luck would have it, three of these plants are male.  The small plant growing with moss eventually matured and revealed her gender in flowers that were different from the others.  For whatever reason seeds have never been seen in this group.

This is our second attempt to transplant Arbutus.  We gathered more knowledge between the two attempts so this group of six plants contains three male plants and three females.  These plants have reliably produced seed for several years but no identifiable from seed plants have ever been found.  Attempts to start plants from seed have also been unsuccessful.  This plant has taught us that it will proceed only at its own pace and no attempt  by any man will move it from its natural schedule.  The density of these plants is something never seen among wild plants.  The pruning by hungry animals may result in open ground among wild plants.

This transplant site was chosen because of its nearness to a White pine tree and the lane.  The center of the lane marks the border between three property owners.  The right-of-way users have been slow to demonstrate respect for the limits of their use of this land so the stone wall was built to define the location of the end of the lane.  To date these plants have suffered no damage from man nor beast.

 

 When we were digging the six plants seen above, an unusual group of five tiny plants was found.  They also were removed from the ground and placed along the inside edge of a protective cage.  Several years later two plants remained.  Both genders were present and seed production followed their relocation and maturity.  Here again we have been unable to find any plants from seed despite the more open ground.

The jumble of stones in the background marks the area where fertile river bottom land borders the gravel and stone filled mess that the glacier deposited between the river and the bedrock ridge.  Those stones were cleared to produce fields fit for cultivation.  Our land contains no river bottom land but the deep soil formed from fallen White pine needles seems to suit these two Arbutus plants.  Little time passed between their initial planting and reaching the edge of the cage.  We are eager to see if any of the growth beyond the cage survives.

Age has severely limited our attempts to care for much of our gardens.  Many areas have become weed filled but the arbutus were planted in the natural soil under pine trees and remain largely weed free.  They are basically on their own now.  For a short time we will continue to watch these plants and enjoy their unfolding life cycle.  Hopefully the next owners of this land will recognize the special nature of these plants and help them along if that is needed. 

Going Native

The whole idea of our native plant garden was to have native plants where they could be observed and appreciated by Ed and myself but for others too.  However going native is not easy!  My beautiful Miterwort plant is caged for protection from being eaten or stepped on.  But because of the cage this plant has had a chance to grow, flower and even go to seed.  Tiny black seeds sit in little green baskets.  When the wind blows and the seeds are ready Mother Nature will disperse them.  Wow I'm so happy that I got to see that!

Maidenhair spleenwort looks like a delicate wispy little plant but tucked into a rock crevice for protection it is doing beautifully.  This plant is lovely.  I never saw this plant in the wild or if I did I never noticed it.  I'm watching it now.  What a pleasure that is! 

Partridgeberry is a plant that grows wild here. When Ed last moved trailing arbutus here it was when long time friends moved away.  He never moved arbutus plants in October before.  He had no choice. It was his last chance. That was in 2019.  Sadly the Trailing arbutus died.  However, the Partridgeberry and the Wintergreen that came along with it are doing great.  Partridgeberry is to my way of thinking a perfect native plant.  The leaves are attractive.  The red berries are edible and have the unique mark of two navels.  I was delighted to see that the twin flowers are starting to bloom.  One flower is open here but there are more buds showing.  Knowing when your favorite wildflowers bloom makes them so much easier to find!

Wintergreen is also a perfect native plant.  It has a reputation for being somewhat difficult to transplant and that has been our experience.  It is almost three years later and finally we are finding new growth on these plants.  I love to chew on fresh wintergreen leaves, but these are forbidden fruit!  It was not until I saw the photo that I noticed the tiny beginning of wintergreen flowers.  If we have flowers we might have berries.  Wow I love teaberries!  These plants had beautiful berries when they were moved.  I will keep watching and perhaps see them again!

Early Arbutus Flowers

Several years ago four small Arbutus plants were transplanted here.  The following Spring a woodchuck ate one of the plants down to the ground.  The wire cage placed inside of a low stone wall was the result.  The stones make it impossible for a critter to simply push the cage aside and with protection and care these native treasures have prospered.  The tree trunk visible in the photo is a White Pine since rotting pine needles created the acid soil required for Arbutus growth.  Fallen Oak leaves also create acid soil but the covering from these sizeable leaves can smother and kill Arbutus leaves.  Recent skin scrapes have prevented me from kneeling on the ground to date so the Oak leaves remain.  For now these Arbutus are truly wild native plants and some death is natural.

 This Spring has been nearly totally lacking rain.  Recently we had a two day rain event that resulted in nearly one inch of gentle rain spread across two days.  Previously we had a single day of light drizzle.  With these early drought conditions the plants have widely responded to moisture.  The common name May Flower has been earlier been used to identify these plants but here we are just short of mid April and we have flowers.

A Promise For Spring

Trailing Arbutus has been at the top of our "It's Special" list for many years.  Becky still remembers a childhood experience with the scent of its flowers.  Everyone has written that Trailing Arbutus is impossible to transplant but in this picture you can see the current status of four plants that we moved here years ago.  Evergreen plants face increased risks at snow melt as there are few green plants for wild animals to eat them.  The dry stone short wall surrounding these plants is part of our system to keep the rabbits and woodchucks on the outside.  To date it has been completely effective.

We have found that the ground under White Pine trees supports impressive Arbutus growth.  In this location several young Oak trees grew close by.  With the passage of many years, these Oaks are now quite sizeable as is the depth of their fallen leaves.  These Arbutus leaves were hidden from view by the fallen leaves before we cleared the area.  We believe that Arbutus leaves need light even in the dead of winter so the blanket of Oak leaves was carefully removed by hand.

 

It came as a surprise to us that many plants form their flower buds during the Fall season.  Here again protection is needed to keep the animals away.  This photograph reveals the location of at least six bud clusters.  Spring will find two supposedly rational adults well into their seventh decade on hands and knees so that their noses can be brought close to these unbelievably sweet scented flowers.  Getting down to the ground is handled with some ease but returning to a standing position is increasingly more difficult each year.  So far it has been unnecessary to bring lunch to a stranded sniffer.

This rather huge bud cluster clearly deserves a photograph.  Its location is well within the range of our noses.  Finding a clear spot to place a supporting hand is becoming increasingly difficult but to date no one has fallen forward into the jumble of plants.

With the protective wire cage in place, these plants are safe from foragers.  The wall stones prevent a persistent snout from simply pushing the cage aside.  When we built the cage we knew that someday the treasured plants would reach the edge of protection.  Our plans remain to try to root cuttings taken from the edge of protection.  There is nothing to lose since those newly exposed plant parts are sure to be nibbled away.  This is the time of year when I steel my resolve to survive yet another winter so that I can once again drink in the unforgettably sweet scent of Trailing Arbutus flowers.
 

Sixty Planted

Today the first sixty garlic cloves were planted.  Usually their planting date corresponds with my Father's mid October birthday but with the early heavy frosts it just seemed right to get the cloves into the ground.  Susquehanna White and Guilford Purple Stripe were the chosen varieties.  These varieties will not be found in any catalog as they are locally grown and named.  We discovered Susquehanna White at a hidden from the road organic garden stand.  A more perfect spot could not be found.  A south facing slope gently rolled down toward the D&H Railroad main line and the mighty Susquehanna River.  I have never before been envious of a garden location.  Guilford Purple Stripe was grown by a retired pharmacist that lived in Guilford.  It has a different growth habit than the rest of our varieties and is used to visually separate the other varieties.  Four by ten and two by ten is the general planting scheme.

This shows the remainder of the bed that will be planted over the next several days.  Another section of fence that is rotated 90 degrees was placed over the two pieces shown.  Since it was needed to close in the garden it is now tied to the fence posts.  All of our beds are five feet wide and our method of push a hole then skip two before pushing the next hole gives us ten plants per row.  The spacing for the rows is push a hole then skip four before pushing the next hole yielding twenty-two rows. 

This unknown to us Aster was just discovered growing near the Arbutus plants.  We plan to carefully dig it from the ground and move it into a garden spot.  Transplanting at this time of year is not usually done since Fall planting frequently results in frost heaved plants.  We must remember to cover it with a cage since the deer eat garden grown Asters to the ground.  The unusual color of the flowers is what drew me to this plant.  Asters are a huge family of native plants and we will try to find the name of this one.  Ed's Delight may have to suffice.

This is our second group of transplanted Arbutus.  We have found that the soil under White Pine trees suits Arbutus.  This is the time of year when the evergreen tree sheds its needles.  New growth pushes the old needles away so the tree always looks green.  Many of these fallen needles will be hand picked so that the Arbutus leaves receive enough sunlight all the winter.  I never realized that native plant gardening required so much work.

 This native New England Aster consists of but a single stalk.  The recent frosts ended many of the Goldenrod flowers leaving asters as the food source for late Monarch butterflies.  Deer left this wild plant alone but heavily feed on the same variety placed in my gardens.