Winding Down

A matching set of two what I think are Pinus contorta 'Taylor's Sunburst' followed me last week. They were half dead from last year's drought and no longer pretty enough. They will get a second chance with me in a less drought susceptible soil.

In three to four years I could have some nice looking pines. Or not.

I hope that is what they are since the only full sun location I had was behind the roadside vegetable garden under the utility lines. They need to be the slow growing dwarfs I think they are.

I wait for autumn. The color is slow in coming. I would expect a bit more pizazz than I am seeing by the middle of October.

Growing has stopped. Brown desiccation is more plentiful at the moment than color.

The garden season is over. Winter and I will take our time and put the garden to bed in the nick of time as usual for the bulbs to rise in February.

Joe Pye died one night while I wasn't looking. Now the seed will go forth and multiply.

The fading process is interesting, not near as exhilarating as the fresh green emergence of spring.

Other things will help make the winter garden interesting.

Last night the forest went silent. The night singing bugs are very much on an on/off temperature switch. We dipped well into the off position.

There was frost across the scenic byway on my neighbor's scalped hillside of grass this morning and none in my forest or meadow. All this wild helps hold the heat.

The leaves are falling brown without color. One would expect that to change very soon. Where's autumn?