I really like autumn, but I don't like it much. Crazy, right??
What I do like are the bluebird days this time of year. In Colorado, autumn is the perfect time of year. If you don't live at 10,000 feet (or sometimes, even if you do), the season is Goldilocks weather. The days aren't too hot, the nights aren't too cool. The grass is green and the flowers still bloom, but the trees start to turn colors and cause everyone to grab their cameras and take a drive somewhere. Or a walk..
Charlie and I were walking along a riverbank the other day and ran across this downed, twisted tree trunk. I think Charlie was trying to "be the tree".
More fall fun below the orange fallen leaf...
What I don't like about autumn is that winter follows close on its heels. I do hope we have a snowy winter (we really need the moisture, as always), but I have a lot of work to do before that happens.
This year I have many plants to transplant from pots. A friend gave me a dozen different perennials as a trade, and it's been so hot that I hesitated to put them in the ground for fear they would not thrive. So I watered them faithfully every day and now I think the weather is cool enough that they won't have a problem getting established before the hard frosts start. I have a feeling we'll be getting our first light frost in the next week or two. I still have tomatoes ripening (who doesn't?).
The mums are starting to really get going, and they've managed to push their way out of a mass of asters that are taking over the garden.
Speaking of asters, I'm going to try and get them out of the garden once and for all, and transplant them along the fence line. I've got white, lavender and purple, and they can all mingle happily. I'm going to build a rock retainer to keep them corralled. I like them, but they tend to take over. They probably won't be so successful if they don't have the rich garden soil to luxuriate in.
Next on the list is making room among the tangle of volunteers in the upper garden for my new plants. My friend gave me some Autumn Joy sedum, a ton of Maximillian Sunflowers, purple hyssop, and some white phlox to complement the pink phlox that is already in my garden. I also want to move the lilies that are hidden behind some bigger plants. I want to get rid of some of the pink yarrow to make room for the sedum. Maybe I'll try spacing things out to give them more room to reach the sun. But I do like the wild randomness of the self-seeders like the Black-eyed Susans and Mexican Hat.
Later this fall, when the frost has weeded out some of the tender annuals but I can still dig in the dirt, I'll get in there and move some plants around. We'll see what kind of tangle I get next autumn!
That's what's going on in my garden. What are your plans for fall?