The sunny, pleasant days of early autumn are perfect for getting outside to prepare your garden for the cold weather to come. The following garden care tasks can be done now:
~Clean up dead perennials. However, only cut down perennials if they are brown. If they are green, they are still storing energy in the roots for next year’s growth. (Remember: If it’s brown, cut it down. If it’s green, let it be.)
~Plant any perennials and grasses you have divided, shrubs you are relocating, or bulbs you want to add for spring color.
~Do final shaping of shrubs by hand, since shearing when the weather gets too cold may cause your plants to brown (from ‘winter burn’).
~Contact Hanselman Landscape (or your irrigation system installer) to blow the water out of your irrigation system so that the hoses don’t freeze and burst.
~ William Kent (English architect, landscape architect, painter; 1685-1748)
This Lancaster County homestead, once a tangled wilderness of scraggly trees, barbed wire fencing, and scattered trash, has been transformed into an oasis of serenity, beauty, and deep joy in all seasons of the year. It is amazing what thought, care, love, and hard work can accomplish! Is there a tangled area of your property you might like to transform into a place of refreshment and peace? Please call us (717-653-1273)! We’ve done it before and would love to do it again–for you!
Snow-white clouds scudding across skies of intense 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 glory 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, the radiant splendor of autumn will soon be here 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 a little longer: This October when the trees in your garden or a nearby park are flaunting their glorious 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 the phone books you keep forgetting to recycle. In November, as you set your Thanksgiving table, bring out the leaves and scatter them across your table for a spectacular second showing of autumn’s extravagant colors!
Recently, while pruning in the garden of a new client, I became aware of a sickly, struggling Japanese Maple. The diagnosis was easy: it had been planted too deeply, evidenced by the fact that the root flare was invisible.
What are Root Flares and Girdling Roots?
Root flare is the widening at the base of a plant just above the roots. If the tree has been correctly planted, you will SEE the root flare (first photo below). If the root flare is not visible, the plant has been planted too deeply and will likely struggle because it will not receive adequate oxygen (this scenario can also happen with too much mulch). In fact, ‘girdling roots’ may grow up around the trunk in search of air and can sometimes wrap so tightly around the trunk that they strangle the plant and stunt its growth. ‘Girdling’ roots also trap moisture close to the trunk, causing root rot. In addition, buried root flares are unattractive; without visible root flares, trees look more like telephone poles in the ground (as in the second photo to the right below).
Fixing The Japanese Maple’s Planted Height and Root Flare Visibility
The Japanese Maple I excavated for our client was 5” too deep. I replanted it so that the root flare is now visible. I expect it will do much better now. But wait, there’s more! In replanting and raising the Japanese Maple, I was surprised to find that the person who originally planted the tree never removed the nylon NON-biodegradable twine wrapped tightly around the root ball and trunk. Had I not cut and removed this twine, the tree would have been dead in two or three years.
A tree planted with mulch covering the root flare, depriving the tree of oxygenA tree, planted by Hanselman Landscape and Gardens, with its root flare exposed slightly above the surface for proper oxygen intake.
“And here are the hummingbirds, humming hymn to the morning, making a final round to the last of the petunias. It is time for hummingbirds to leave . . . .” ~ from Time of Wonder by Robert McCluskey (American writer and illustrator of some of our family’s favorite children’s books; 1914-2003)
Joyfully shared by Betty HanselmanGardener’s wife (& hummingbird enthusiast)
“All in all, it was a never-to-be-forgotten summer – one of those summers which come seldom into any life, but leave a rich heritage of beautiful memories in their going – one of those summers which, in a fortunate combination of delightful weather, delightful friends and delightful doing, come as near to perfection as anything can come in this world.”
~ L. M. Montgomery (Canadian author known for Anne of Green Gables series; 1874-1942)
Joyfully shared by Betty HanselmanGardener’s wife (& grateful for a garden to share)
