It was more colorful in person. You will need to take our word for it.

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Anne announced she has a few more trees to plant and protect before the really cold temps arrive. Someone also needs to plant garlic before the ground is frozen. And that someone is me. I’m wonderfully tempted to plant two beds of garlic next year. And more California poppies. These proved to be a nice combination this year. We followed the garlic with sweet potatoes. I still need to see if they had enough time to mature. I’ll check tomorrow before the looming hard frost arrives. Brrrrrr.

I have not posted in eons, this time I have a reasonable excuse. I am recuperating from what at first seemed to be a nasty stomach flu. Upon further investigation it was confirmed that I had a protozoan infection, more specifically Giardia. I am slowing regaining my energy but still far from my usual vigor. A setback like this sure makes me appreciate my normal healthy state and wonder how I could ever take it for granted. Why all those hours spent lying on the sofa when I could have been whooping it up out in the garden?

Here in our parts, we can never bank on a stunning Fall foliage show every year like people living in the Eastern US can. Last year was an exceptional one for Fall color in Eastern Iowa, and this year holds much promise. Look at what this little dogwood tree is doing (most likely one of six odd dogwoods native to Iowa. Can’t be sure which, any ideas?). This little guy has earned himself permanent real estate in this bed.

Below is the new planted multi-stemmed Princess Diana Serviceberry tree. This is one of my wiser purchases of the year  (unwise purchases include but are certainly not limited to several pricey varieties of purple leafed Actea, whose foliage has looked like absolute hell all season). Why plant a Serviceberry? Sumptuous orange leaves in Fall, fragrant white blooms in early Spring, and edible berries in June! More plants around here should be forced to pass the 3 season interest test before being allowed to grow here.

In this yogurt container grows a future magical forest. Each acorn was etched with unicorn horn by the unicorn himself. Sometimes though the engraved designs were a little juvenile, akin to what you might see in bathroom stalls, but still very magical and very powerful.

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The grouping of the acorns corresponds to the stars in the late March sky. The alignment is critical to bridge the realms of our worlds. It also makes for a nice photo.

(Click the image for a larger view)

And so the forest grows and brings haven to all magical creatures – except for magical snakes because Anne doesn’t much care for them.

These little cherries are a great garden snack. They aren’t exactly sweet, but they don’t induce a pucker either. The sweeter cherry trees we planted didn’t make it – probably a zone issue, but hitting a young tree with a skid loader is also not good for it. So far, this sour variety has been just as enjoyable, if not more so than its sweeter cousin. We might need another one as a backup.

sweet and sour cherries

Perhaps it is the cooler temps and soggy ground – (stereo)typical weather  of New England states – but whatever the cause, the fall color has been vibrant this year. If only our trees were a little bigger.

The cabin blends nicely with the natural color. Almost like we planned it. Maybe Anne did – I’m a little color challenged.

Or is it just “Willowrama?”

Regardless of the term, we do have quite a few curly willow cuttings growing inside and more out planted in the garden. The garden is still dormant, but we expect some good growth from these cuttings. Then we will plant some around the property and pot some for sale at the local farmer’s market. Anne has already sold a few cuttings on Craiglist (Cedar Rapids, IA). They are fast growers and offer attractive twisting structure during Winter. The picture above shows the catkin or bloom of the willow.

It seems Winter is a good time to post about corkscrew willows, because last November I posted about these twisty creatures. They are so crazy twisty you can’t help but look at them and say, “Cool! That is twisted.”

The sad truth is that the willow I posted about last November might not make it, but this one has serious potential. It grew very well all Summer. So much so that Anne already has plans to start more. Many more. I’ll help, of course.

Willow cuttings grow roots readily in a glass of water. With just a few roots forming, I like to stick them into soil and water well. Keep them well watered as willows like it damp. I’m wondering now if it would save time or be better for the tree to plant the cuttings in buried pots or simply stick them into a growing-on bed for transplant at a later time. Maybe we will do half/half and see what happens.

Anne has been acquiring trees like she is on a mission. It’s a good mission and one that I am certain will pay off in the future. Even now the small trees add structure and levels to an otherwise empty stretch of lawn.

Lately, the tree of choice has either been Maple or Crab Apple. A Crab is featured above right up close to the porch. This should grow to about 20 feet and offer some shade relief to porch dwellers. The maples need a bit more space to grow and are planted past the garden in a large flat field of grass and weeds. The planting seems to go something like this:

1. Find a place (usually the most controversial and time consuming)
2. Dig a whole deep enough and extra wide enough for the pot/root ball
3. Place tree in hole – I usually comment on how it’s not straight at this point
4. Water and backfill with dirt
5. Place cardboard around base of trunk – helps keep out weeds and grass
6. Mulch goes on top of cardboard and then more water

There is a blackberry cache across the road and over the rusty barbed fence, just to the left of the “No Trespassing” sign. The lot across the way has been abandoned for quite some time. Medium-sized trees are growing right next to the foundation of the home that once housed a small farm family. No windows remain and the structure is probably somewhat dangerous. But the old house is not why we ventured across the road. Blackberries and Anne’s wild plum tree brought us over.

“I’ve adopted a tree!” Anne announced as she made her way into our house last weekend. She had been gone for over and hour and returned with another container full of blackberries.

“That’s nice,” I said picking a few juicy plump berries from her bucket.

“You want to see it?” She asked.

“Nah, I’m busy.” 

This reply never seems to work the way I plan. So we venture across the street with pruners and berry containers and the camera. Jake and Buddy follow – they have learned to pick berries too. Jake is very gentle while Buddy tends to strip the entire branch and later hacks up the thorns and leaves and probably the berries too.

Anne’s tree is the first stop. It’s small, but likely old for a wild plum. Anne trims the dead wood and shapes it up a bit. The fruits are small and only starting to ripen. But in a couple weeks, I’m learning to make plum pudding.

There are plums in plum pudding, right?