Color Still Persists!

Posted: October 20, 2016 by Mark Dwyer

While colder evening temperatures are arriving soon, there is still plenty of late season color. Some annuals like this ‘Velvet Elvis’ lavender spurflower (Plectranthus hybrida) seen above are still going strong. Temperatures around 34 degrees F tomorrow night might test the remainder of our annuals which are being removed in advance of a “killing frost”. We had a great day out in the gardens and at the Horticulture Center with a wide range of accomplishments. Both volunteers and staff worked seamlessly together during one of the busiest times of year.

While Larry H., Larry O. and Big John all had mowing duties, the guys also had significant Holiday Light Show (HLS) duties as well. Bobby K. was in to help John out and had some projects of his own. Cindy helped with various projects including the continued “purging” in the Hummingbird Haven theme of the Nancy Yahr Memorial Children’s Garden. I ran some cords but also had some significant indoor projects on my “to do list” as we also prepare for the 2017 budget year.

fall color before “needle drop” on golden larch (Pseudolarix amabilis) – woody tree (deciduous conifer)

Packers colors on the transitioning fall color of the bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora) – woody shrub

‘Tabasco’ hot pepper (Capsicum frutescens) – annual

flossflower (Ageratum houstonianum) – annual

white baneberry (Actaea pachypoda) – perennial

weeping Alaskan cedar (Xanthocyparis nootkatensis ‘Pendula’) – woody tree

Despite the chilly weather, volunteers like Eva (above) were not daunted! Our volunteers included Eva, Kathy, Shirley H., Liz, Marilyn, Cheryl D., Dr. Gredler, Maury, Gary, Ron Y., Dave, Vern, Jim, Gene, Alan, Bob K., Bev D., Ron P., Peg, Mary Kay and many others. Tasks included lots of plant removals (annuals), path tidying, carpentry projects and a lot of other odd jobs. We also saw Mark S., Jenny E., Marv B., Terry and many others today. Despite my lack of specific task descriptions for everyone, suffice it to say that we had a great crew. The education volunteers were out most of the day with students enjoying our fall program. Our Horticultural Therapy Committee of Darcie, Cindy, Art, Elaine, Karen and I all met as well to discuss our August 9th event next year!