“Pale amber sunlight falls across
The reddening October trees,
That hardly sway before a breeze
As soft as summer: summer’s loss
Seems little, dear! on days like these.”
~ Ernest Dowson (English poet and novelist, 1867 – 1900)

Gladly shared by Betty Hanselman
Gardener’s wife (& inspired by October)

“. . . you know what autumn looks like. . . . you have surely seen postcards and photographs of the kind of autumn I mean. The trees go all red and blazing orange and gold, and wood fires burn at night so everything smells of crisp branches. The world rolls about delightedly in a heap of cider and candy and apples and pumpkins and cold stars rush by through wispy, ragged clouds . . . .”

~ Catherynne M. Valente, contemporary American writer and poet, in The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland . . . .

Shared by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& autumn enthusiast)

Most people fertilize their lawns in spring, but did you know that fall is actually the best time to perform this task? Fall fertilization will help your lawn recover from

summer stress and prepare for next year’s growth.

Applying nitrogen fertilizer to lawns during the late season months of September through December–while the grass is still green and growing–provides several benefits not realized by spring and summer fertilization:

• Better fall and winter color;
• Earlier spring green-up;
• Increased shoot density;
• Improved fall, winter, and spring root growth;
• Enhanced storage of energy reserves (carbohydrates) within the turf plant.

Researchers and turf grass experts find these advantages far outweigh the disadvantages (potential snow mold injury and decreased cold tolerance), and heartily recommend fall application of nitrogen fertilizers to lawns.

To give your lawn the advantages of fall fertilization, call us today (717-653-1273) to schedule a visit this fall. Sean will be happy to come out and give your lawn a healthy head start!

Contributed by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& green-lawn endorser)

Snow-white clouds scudding across skies of intense, endless blue; Goldenrods dancing in the afternoon sunshine to the tempo of a gentle breeze; fuzzy orange Wooly Bears scuttling across roadways . . . . Nature is hinting that autumn is just around the corner. And soon, God will flick His paintbrush and splashes of orange, red, and gold will appear on hillsides, in meadows, in our own gardens. Without a doubt, autumn will be here in all of her radiant splendor and we will be wishing that October lasted five months instead of just one!

I have an idea for prolonging the colors of autumn for at least one more month:

This October, when the trees in your garden or a nearby park are flaunting their colors, pack a picnic lunch, rally the kids (or grandkids), and head outside for a leaf-collecting adventure. Bring home the leaves you gather and place them between the pages of some old, heavy books you’ve been meaning to donate. Then, in November, as you set your Thanksgiving table, bring out the leaves and scatter them across your table for a spectacular encore of autumn’s extravagant colors!

–Contributed by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& avid leaf collector)