leaves

A Good Blanket


Raking leaves. This is a thing now, a must do thing. So why not do it when it is unseasonably warm in March? No good reason. Although the top inch of the soil is a mushy, slippery mess, underneath that top layer it's frozen solid. Except near tree trunks. There I find I can dig a little, but there's no good reason to.



 And, there's this.



But, also this. It took me too long to identify this garlic mustard. Shame on me. Visibly green before the snow had fully melted and the soil still completely frozen must have thrown me. It's the only thing growing out there, well, besides the garlic in our little plot and the duckweed in the swale.

Seventy degrees F on Sunday, a high temperature and highly unusual, possibly a record. I sat on the front porch steps in the evening swatting away mosquitoes. Yes (you say No). Yes. Thankfully, yesterday afternoon, a cold front came in. Twenty four degrees F when I rose this morning, and with St. Patrick's luck the mosquitoes had no warm places to hide. Our little pot of gold.


Leaves Adrift



As I ran out the door this morning to pick up the laundry I was reminded of dreaded winter winds.

On my way back I enjoyed the swales of maple and sycamore (plane) tree leaves drifting over the sidewalk.


I thought of the unison of winds and plants -wind pushing and plant stems collecting leaves.


Crazy Hard Early Freeze

I haven't seen it this cold this soon since 2002. I didn't have a garden that year, but I remember the cold on Thanksgiving morning as I went off to the parade with my then girlfriend and now wife. It was cold then, but this cold comes with a stinging wind. Brrr.

As we walked through Prospect Park this morning to pick up our Thanksgiving turkey from the farmer market, I couldn't help but to notice all the south facing slopes that had full grown canopy and understory trees with totally green leaves on them. Now, I don't mean the evergreens, but maples and the like, deciduous trees that seemed to not even have the chance to change color before the freeze. Those leaves look flash-frozen, perfectly green.

So it was disjunctive to feel the brisk wind on my face and see masses of perfectly green leaves attached to groupings of trees. Its particularly noticeable on the west side, near the cemetery as you descend the moraine's slope and also between the massive, green brick Parks' garage and the drive. Unusual, or at least I cannot recollect this scene from past years.

Free Compost This Weekend

Don't forget the NYC Compost Project's compost giveaway this weekend at the Soundview Compost Facility in the Bronx.

For specific info, see the calendar below to the right or go to the above giveaway link.


Apparently this is the last opportunity for free compost until the city budget changes for the better. Separate leaf removal by the DSNY has been suspended for budgetary reasons. Without the leaves there simply is no reason to do bulk composting in NYC according to the DSNY. This is a sad moment for us, not unlike the previous suspension of recycling. Leaves will now be collected with the regular trash.

Winter at Last

I am not one of those people who absolutely loves winter. Yet I am glad it is here. I am glad that those everblooming roses finally threw in the towel. Its good to see the sun set on those goldenrods, asters and sunflowers (those cousins party together into the wee hours of autumn). Maybe it was a little alarming to see the pineapple sage I wish to overwinter so suddenly turn black after being so brilliant green. But still, come on, it is December. As I remember it, its cold in December and the plants should be long dormant.

Yet how magnificent was it last Sunday as I traveled through Manhattan on my way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in a full blown snow? Fresh, dry snow on golden leaves still not dropped by the Honey Locusts. The two seasons came together quite marvelously on Sunday. The sidewalks near my apartment were still littered with freshly dropped yellow maple leaves as the snow began to fall. It is so unusual to see the snow and leaves together. So it is with pleasure that the winter ushered in and the garden gave out.

Besides, I still have a bag of bulbs to plant. Its not that I was in denial of the passing moment for planting, but with the blooms still going, I simply could not bring myself to start digging around. It seems that anywhere I dig I hit bulbs anyhow- even though I do not have a full spring bulb garden. Simply, I have run out of space, yet couldn't resist a deal on some tulips. I really don't like tulips much, yet there I was seduced by those pictures on the boxes at the nursery. Now the anxiety that a warmish, humid day will not present itself and those bulbs will be passed over for other, seasonal activities -like shopping.

Christmas shopping will send me over to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden next week. I am hoping to bring together my own personal interests with the possibility of finding all those small gifts we need to find at this time of year. The garden has two shops now- garden and gift and it is free to enter BBG during the dormant season weekdays, November 20 through February 28. Check out these leafy Christmas ornaments they are selling. There are Gingko, Oak, Maple, Birch, Aspen and others made of metals that are silver, copper, and gold in color.



Jill at brklynstories asked me about a month ago, "By the way, I've always wondered - what can a gardener do during winter while the ground is frozen?" After giving it some thought, I think I have the answer. Rest.