October Snow



Oh no! In all of my years here in New Hampshire we have never had a snow like this in October! I was counting on global warming to give me the few extra weeks of fall that I have recently come to expect. now I understand why it it better explained as "climate change". You just never know what is going to happen.

I worked hard and fast this afternoon getting the garden ornaments in, the hammock put away, and the still unplanted viburnum protectetd in the basement. I had to make a last minute trip to the local Agway for three more burlap sacks to cover the pointy yews mostly to protect them from foraging deer in the winter. The snow came on fast and I had to make the mile travel home with the wipers running, worrying about the people who forget how to drive on slush.


Beauty Bush in the snow

I don't know how to rotate this image. Can anyone help?

Now I am comfy cozy inside drinking a nice hot tea, wondering if I will get the 300 tulips and 100 crocuses planted this year. It is really a two person job; usually Joel helps me. We dig out 6 inches of earth from the first part of the border by my patio and put it in the wheelbarrow. Then we set a portion of the bulbs 4-6 inches apart, with the tops up. We cover those bulbs with the next portion of earth from the border and repeat until we are at the end and cover the last bulbs with the earth from the wheelbarrow. It takes a few hours, but it is worth it in the spring when those glorious tulips bloom.

May 2011 "Camargue" and "Dordogne"

May 2010 "Queen of the Night" and "Renown"

This year I chose the "Beautiful Mother Daughter Special" from Van Engelen Wholesalers, http://www.vanengelen.com/ 100 "Blushing Beauty" and 100 "Temple of Beauty". They are described respectively as "A ravishing Temple of Beauty sport, it is aureolin-yellow, blushing rosy-red toward its edges woth an interior pink rimmed canary yellow base" and "...this award-winner has lily-shaped, salmon-rose flowers above slightly mottled foliage." Sounds wonderful. I also ventured another patch of tulips this year in the border next to my new stone wall. For this I chose "Yellow Mountain". It is peony flowering tulip and describe thus' "This opulent puffy Mount Tacoma sport is pale lemon with faint green flames licking the lower exterior petals."

Fortunately the fall clean-up crew at All Saints' Church planted the 400 bulbs in the circle garden last weekend. I usually schedule for the last week in October or the first week in November, but this year I must have had a premonition. Click her to see a picture of last year's tulips: http://www.allsaints-nh.org/

So long for now. So far the power is still on, and no trees are bending over. Happy winter dreams to all of you and may your tulip reveries be lovely.