The master gardener: Cooler days set stage for winter

We have had a wonderful, beautiful slow slide into fall this year. The heat of July yielded to a comfortable August and now the gardens are giving us their last hurrah before the first frost. This is my time for reflection as I start fall projects.

I welcome the cooler days to accomplish more in the garden. This was a catch-up summer. I spent last summer incapacitated until hip replacement relieved movement restrictions. This spring as the garden emerged, I discovered truth in the observation that there is no garden without a gardener. To be fair, our gardens (the plural is correct) take the combined efforts of two people. Karen is a valiant gardener, but some work couldn’t get done.

Grandchildren arrived for three weeks in late June. Time with them doomed garden work. But they helped me weed the south side garden when Max said he’d work for a dollar a weed. After their visit, a dear friend from Arizona came for a two-week stay. Although she admired the gardens, her health did not allow her participation in weeding, even for a dollar a weed. But she had something to say about what should be done. Her advice was well-taken because she’s a longtime gardener, too.

That left the rest of July and the heat moved in with a vengeance. I hauled hose to keep everything growing without burned leaf edges and prematurely wilting flowers. When cooling arrived, I reduced overgrown specimens, tore into weedy grasses that were over 6 feet, removed a viburnum grown leggy and unattractive. Most frustrating were the invasive ornamentals – corydalis, Icelandic poppies, pulmonaria – that know no limits, but spread willy-nilly.

Ideas for new garden elements begin to emerge. I have long wanted to redesign a portion of the back garden to accommodate a water feature. But more was in my thinking. I believe gardens are changeable, not a static once-and-for-all accomplishment. With each addition of new plants, observable changes occurred; but overall, the garden has a monotony to it that I hadn’t seen, and don’t appreciate.

Make the changes now! Autumn’s an auspicious time to plant new spring bulbs, new perennials to exchange for those worn out, new shrubs to replace those past their prime and out of control. Many perennials need dividing and sharing with friends. Paths need clarification. Borders need redefinition. The hole for the water feature needs digging.

If the weather’s good, strength and energy persist and commitment to renovation holds; the above will happen. And the anticipation of seeing the garden anew in spring will carry through the winter.