Sunday, October 17, 2010

For Vermont

Parts of Vermont got six inches of snow this week. I was glad to hear the news. That means it's now officially time to start rubbing in the mild winters we have here in Athens.

Nighttime lows are starting to drift south of 50 degrees. The days have been sunny and clear with highs in the 70s. We could use some rain, but otherwise the weather has been perfect.

My pick for the best mid-October combo is a huge planting of perennial ageratums, wild boltonia, mums and begonias backed with tall grasses. The ageratums are related to Joe Pye and Iron Weed, and spread like mint. They're even in the lawn despite having been mowed every week all summer.
Below is a better picture of them. They grow 18 to 24 inches tall. You don't really notice them until they start to bloom. If they'll grow where you live and you've got room for them to run, I recommend them.
Finally, I had to share a picture of Cousin It. He (or she) is actually a long-leaf pine. This one is three years old and about four feet tall. Pinching back side shoots maintains the shape but shortens the life of the tree. This one hasn't had a side shoot to pinch yet.
And that's what's happening this week in the garden of...
The Crotchety Old Man

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi Deborah here...wondering about something dear to my heart. I have a maple tree..two years old and when I put him outside he begings to die...when I remove him and put him back in the house he grows. I can't explain this or understand him? but I have been doing this with him for over a year...why can't he live outside? I was raised as a young child in Vermont, and this was important to me to be able to grow this tree. I grew over 90 trees in California..(mostly pepper trees) .and I am trying with this young one in the state of Oregon. What am I doing wrong?

 
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