I Have Returned

I'm back from Switzerland and Italy and when we got back I found that the long summer drought had been broken.  Smashed, with almost 4 inches of drenching rain in the days just before we returned.  And then it rained off and on in the week since our return.

The grass is lushly green, everything survived.  There were high winds while we were away: the weather station recorded a max. wind gust of 57 mph!!  The leaves of the smaller more drought stricken trees are all blown down.  The maples on the back hill were so gorgeous at this time last year, but this year they are denuded.  No color out there this year, : (

The sourwood is denuded on half its canopy, although the flower sprays held on.

But all in all the gardens look good.

The Montauk daisies are in full bloom, the only contrast to the reds and rusts in the Birch garden right now.  The two clumps that are in Meadow's Edge are not blooming... too shady?

The Sheffield Pink mums have not yet bloomed, but there are tight buds everywhere.

Deer damage is evident on the ceanothus, New Jersey Tea plants.  Two of the three are chomped.  And one of the Sheffield Pink mums had been oddly pruned:

 
While I was gone the bulbs I ordered came.  Today was sunny and breezy and finally dry, so I planted them:

100 Galanthus (Snowdrops) under the Crimson Queen Japanese maple in front.

50 Colchicums 'Speciosus Albus' (White fall crocuses) in front near the steps.

12 Tulips 'Groenland' along the front walk.  They are pink with green striations.

I finally like the sedums 'Frosty Morn' that were planted along the front walk.  Last year they were so floppy and a funny dusty color, that I ripped out most, and ended up putting them in Meadow's Edge.  The couple that remained in the front walk are light and pretty and fluffy and adding some brightness this year.  They look much better.

Summer storms

All summer long the storms that come through from the west simply split over the Litchfield hills and deliver nothing here.  Severe storms to the south, rain and thunder to the north, but nothing but complete sunshine in a little wedge over us.

The map shows today, September 13.  Over three weeks now with no rain.

The state has had rain, but not here.  The reservoirs are not bone dry, there has been rain all around us.  But not a drop over us in north central Conn.

Once Again

Cloudy, cool, 60s.

Once again the rain that was forecast for today went to the south of us and to the north, but broke up over us.  No rain for 21 days, since August 22, except for the hundredths of an inch this past week.

Yesterday was abundantly sunny, just like 9/11 nine years ago.  I watered and watered out on the back hill, but I'm only getting a few inches of soil wet around the smaller trees.  The natural silver maples are completely limp and the ash tree by the road is also flagging.  Leaves on all the young oaks, including the new one I planted at the top of the sandy hill, are brown leaved now.  I could go on, but at this point in the season I'm pretty much giving up.

I changed the batteries and scent lures in 7 of the deer zappers and put them back out in the meadow and in the gardens.  I need more batteries for the remaining zappers and will put those out.

I cut back the amaryllis today and brought them into the garage to go dormant till Thanksgiving.

Ellen Sousa

Sunny in the morning, clouded up later, cool, in the 60s.

Yesterday Ellen Sousa came early in the morning to photograph the garden.  She was delightful, and after she spent about half an hour on her own getting shots, we visited over coffee and talked about our gardens.  A very nice visit.  She was very complimentary of my gardens, offered some suggestions about linking them together, and assured me she's going to use at least one photo in her book.

Her website at Turkey Hill Brook Farm

Her blog.

Hundredths of Inches

It's a good thing my weather station measures in hundredths of an inch.  Storms rolled through this morning and we got .009 inches.  Nine one hundredths, enough to wet the mulch.

That's all.  It rained only once in all of August.  Now, 8 days into September it rains less than a tenth of an inch.

After the brief storm, it became sunny, windy and warm, in the 80s.

And the worst of it is: the only rain in 17 days, and it occurred exactly when Ellen Sousa was supposed to be here to photograph the garden.  And the storm lasted for exactly the time she would have been here... 7:30 to 8:00 a.m., with only four minutes of rain in that.

She canceled, of course.  She'll be here tomorrow morning.

Earl was a disappointment

Yesterday: Hurricane Earl passed by.  Today: humidity broke, it's very breezy and cool, high 70s and low 80s but very comfortable.

Earl was a bust.  I didn't want any wind, and it was predicted to slide by to our east without any gale force winds over us.  But I expected rain.... we need it so badly.  Believe it or not, it rained in Hartford, and it rained east of the river, but we got nothing.  Nada, zip, not a drop!  The edge of the circular storm was literally less than 10 miles from us.

We had not even a breath of air, no breeze, no sprinkles.

Today it's clear and sunny and I watered everything I could get on the back hill, and in the yard.  Last rain was an inch and a half 13 days ago, on August 22.

Earl

Hot, in the mid 90s, very humid, sticky and icky.  Hurricane Earl is coming up the coast, the first hurricane to hit New England since Bob in 1991 (the year we left for the ranch just ahead of Bradley airport closing).

Earl will miss us, but head right over Boston and the Cape.  We should get rain from the edge as it goes by us tomorrow afternoon and evening.  Badly needed rain!

Everything is again so parched and stressed.  The climbing hydrangea is a real mess.

In other news, Ellen Sousa from Turkey Hill Brook Farm e-mailed me that she would like to photograph my yard for a book she is writing on creating wildlife habitats in the suburbs.  She loved my photos from Wordless Weds. last week on Evening Shadows, Morning Mists, and left very nice comments.  I am pretty flattered!  She is coming next week, in the early morning.

Two Weeks Left

Hot again, for the last several days.  In the 90s, intense sun, too humid to do anything.  We need water again, especially in the heat.  Last rain was the inch and a half we got over a week ago.

Officially we have two weeks left of this season.  It's September 1, and on the 15th we leave for Europe for two weeks, back on October 1.  Where did it go?  Much of it just disappeared into the oppressive heat which came so early in April and never let me really enjoy being outside.  And the total lack of rain made every day a worry about how things were surviving.  Nothing ever really looked great except for a few instances once in a while.

Here's my list of what needs to be done before we leave.  Two weeks to get it done.

• get the plastic mesh deer protectors on all the back hill trees.  Put one on the new black gum in front as well
• put little cones of mesh protectors around the Arbor Day saplings and transplanted sassafras on the berm
• fix the east side faucet
• spray rabbit repellent just before we go

End of August

Beautiful day, cool, sunny, in the 70s.

With the inch and a half of rain last Sunday (5 days ago) and the cloudy weather since, everything looks good.  The lawn got fertilized last week, so suddenly it's green and lush.

Bartlett came today for their last visit of the season, and although there are mites on the crocosmia and some of the shrubs, all else looked fine.  Chris showed me how to prune the spruce tree next to the front door.  It is getting barrel shaped, it has multiple leaders after this summer's pine weevil (we cut the top off), and it is simply going to get so huge it will cover the entire walkway and then some.  Next week: prune the whole thing pretty severely!

The clematis by the patio came out today.  Although it is reblooming and the flowers looked nice in the dew, I don't like this one (Bee's Jubilee).  The flowers are an indeterminate pink, sometimes purple, that gets really washed out. An aggressive weed of some kind was wrapped up in it, and when I tried to pull the weed, most of the sparse clematis vine came out with it, so I pulled the whole thing.

I want to try Gravetye Beauty there, or another texensis.

I made cuttings today of some favorite perennials.

Perennials
Lobelia (the red one.  some earlier cuttings that I stuck when I had moved the plant are already taking).  Add more to the back garden
Physostegia Miss Manners.  Add more to the back garden
Bergenia Rosi Klose.  We'll see if they take.
Asclepias.  The orange butterfly weed.  Add more to the drier parts of the back garden.

Tender Perennials
Coleus Chocolate Drop.  Made 12 to winter over inside and then plant as edgers in Spring.
Salvia, both Lady in Red and Black & Blue.  I'll try wintering them inside, and the parent plants I'll put in the unheated garage in their pots.

Sassafras Reconsidered

Cloudy, breezy, damp, in the 60s.  After all this hot dry summer weather, it was too cool and wet last night to sit on the deck when Phil arrived!  He's here for a few days.  Very atypical conditions!

I put a plastic mesh tube around the linden in the circle today to protect it from antler rub.

I reconsidered where to put the little sassafras.  It really should not have been moved so  close to the house.  When Jim and I were up at the Arnold Arboretum for my birthday Saturday, I saw aged mature sassafras trees and they are beautiful but very big, very rangy and not appropriate so close to the house.

Big old sassafras at Arnold Arboretum

So I moved it (again) to the back of the berm where the blackhaw viburnum had been.

I hope it can survive multiple moves.