Autumn Equinox...

....is today, September 22. This is an astronomical event. Daylight and night are approximately equal in length. The name ‘equinox’ comes from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night). Because of the tilt of our planet on its axis as it revolves around the sun, we Northern hemisphereans have a little more distance from the sun for the next six months. We had mid-March until now of our half tilting more towards the sun...giving us long daylight, shorter nights, more heat. Now we approach winter.

Today is a good day for calibrating your your sundial. At noon the sun will be almost directly overhead. If we lived on the equator it would be exactly overhead.

Mid September (and early October)is also a good time to...

Over-seed cool-season turf (Fescue lawns).
Begin some garden clean up by deadheading and cutting back any perennials that are looking withered.
Applying pre-emergent herbicides to put a dent in winter annual weeds.
Plant crocuses and daffodil bulbs.
Save seeds from your vegetables and annuals.
And enjoy a few minutes of the evening before nightfall.

Rainy Day Colors

It sure has been a lovely week, all this slow peaceful rain. More like November weather than September. But it's come at a good time, we were getting a little dry. I still like to look out the windows at the shining leaves and emergence of fall colors. We will be coming in to another beautiful time of year.



The dogwoods and Japanese maples are starting to turn to their red decor, even saw a little dose of red in a burning bush. Sedums, Autumn Joy are at their best mild pink, and will eventually go to the burgundy/brick color of fall. Salvias in blues and plum colors look great in the rain.

Here's a fading Celandine poppy (wood poppy, Stylophorum diphyllum) behind some annual Perilla and a Quercifolia. The hackberry leaf snuck in for a cameo. BTW here are some more lovely poppy images:
http://www.hort.wisc.edu/mastergardener/Features/flowers/Stylophorum/Stylophorum.htm




Click on this pic to see the rain droplets on the needles.



I don't mind a few consecutive days of rain but it could get old after awhile. The cats and I are getting antsy to get out side and play.

Rain?

Just a quick note to say that we are seeing a drop in rainfall totals. We had normal or above normal rain levelsfor July, but most of August was a little on the dry side.
If you dont have irrigation, a few of your plants may be getting thirsty.

Any perennials,shrubs, trees new in the ground less than a year need TLC.
Many established plants will be fine, especially hostas, coneflowers, many sunlovers. But keep your roses watered regularly, your astilbes, your vegetable gardens, dogwood trees, rhododendrons, and again, any new plantings which are still trying to establish mature root systems.

Our temperatures are great and we human types are probably really enjoying the fall-like weather. Thank goodness we are not having extreme heat typical of August. Don't forget your plants in pots too, give them a drink on your way outside.

Summer Watering

August 1, halfway through Summer!
As of the end of July the Nashville area has had three months in a row of above-average rainfall. A healthy amount of rain for our landscape plants is usually an inch a week average. In July we received a total of 6 inches.
There are no drought reports for middle Tennessee. At this time in 2007 we were in a severe drought and in 2008 a moderate drought. What a great summer!


After all this nice weather don't be too concerned if we get some hot dry days...it is August after all. Remember that you can over water to the detriment of plants. Too much moisture can set up environments for root rot, and diseases. Most plants want a good drink and then a day or two of drying out.


So here we go with some basics on watering your landscape plants:

Let's start by saying that each species has particular culture requirements so it is best to know your plants and what they want. An example is that Astilbes (a shade lover) don't like to dry out, they like steady moisture. But your geranium, as much as it loves water, wants to dry out well between drinking binges.Hostas can actually handle a lot of dry weather, most roses want a drink several times a week. Even well-established Dogwood trees may want supplemental watering in hot dry weather.



All things being equal, appropriate watering is a LONG SLOW watering, less frequently. For example, water 2-3 times a week at barely a trickle for long periods (yes, maybe hours, you have to experiment to see what works in your situation) . This allows the water to seep in slowly, reach the deeper roots and soil levels, trains the roots to seek water deeper, not shallower, establish stronger root systems. DON'T water daily for a few minutes with the sprinkler. Daily light watering is wasteful and can be detrimental.

Containers...can need more watering than plants in the ground. They dry out more quickly, especially in terra cotta or clay.



August 1 is officially mid-Summer, halfway between Spring and Fall Equinoxes. There seems to have been a blend of Christian and pagan celebrations in earlier days in Europe, marking the first successful summer harvests and the assurance of having some grain to put up for the winter. I am certainly grateful for the bounty of flowers, tomatoes, cucumber and other garden goodies received of late. At any rate I hope to squeeze a lot more fun and enjoyment out of the rest of summer.

Mid Summer

I have been pretty busy this summer so not much posting, but how about all the flowers!?

So much to do and see!
Summer is so full of color...we are seeing all the displays of the summer flowers and shrubs. Hopefully we have time to enjoy them, not just see the weeds and pruning to be done.

There's been a lot to do this past month, but here's a list of the perennial flowers and shrubs I have admired blooming in July:
Canna lilies
Echinaceas and other coneflowers
Daylilies
Hibiscus
Hosta
Hydranageas
Coreopsis
Catmint
Pop up lilies
perennial geraniums
Roses
Rose of Sharon
Buddleia
Vitex

Garden fun (I am avoiding the idea of 'tasks' in the garden): pull a few weeds; deadheading roses, coneflowers, coreopsis etc for rebloom; you can cut back hard the catmint (Nepata) if you haven't already and it will send a second flush of growth with flowers in a few weeks; dead head the flowers off your basil to keep it producing leaves; watering as needed.
We are in pretty good shape for rain...just think back to 2007 and be grateful! But we still need to water pots.

And enjoy the flowers, cut a few to bring in, doesn't have to be fancy, a few coneflowers and some of those basil blooms stuck in a water glass make a nice reminder of the beauty outside.

Whats blooming in mid-June

I do not have much spare time to write this week but I want to keep a log of the color changes as we move through the season..so here is this week's tally.

WOW - Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa) everywhere is big and orange and beautiful. Most of these plants are slow to show their foliage in spring, (mine didn't show until after the hostas even), but as soon as we got heat, they went crazy. I love this plant. It is stunning, loves heat, and is not very demanding.

Daylilies (Hemorocallis), all kinds are showing off, especially the old fashioned orange and the tall yellows. Stella d'Oro, a reliable repeat bloomer, is around on many a development corner, and look nice in small bunches in corner gardens too.

Hydrangeas are really lovely this week. I have seen all colors, but my favorite is a warm pink in an old old homestead in Woodbine.

Lots more perennials blooming are: Coneflowers, Echinaceas and Rudbeckia; Magnolias, Southern and Sweet Bay are looking good and smelling nice too; Garden Phlox; and Knockout Roses.

Events, Saturday June 6

BAMBOO

At Carver Food Park, a community garden in sw Nashville, Adam Turtle speaks on temperate bamboos.
1001 Gale Lane (corner of Gale and Lealand) 12 noon. More info: Sizwe Herring at 300-2941

GARDEN TOUR

"Seeds of Hope"
The Seeds of Hope Garden Tour will showcase eight unique gardens in Oak Hill, Belle Meade, and Green Hills. The annual Tour benefits at-risk youths ages 16-24 who reside at the non-profit Monroe Harding campus in Oak Hill. Tickets are $12 in advance at www.monroeharding.org or any Bank of Nashville location

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=186144425365&ref=mf


HIKING/TRAILS

It's also National Trails Day with at least four opportunities in Nashville for enjoying the woods and other folks while helping with park projects.

http://www.americanhiking.org/NTDSearchResult.aspx?sId=42

Opportunities!