A Different Kind of Gardener

Friday, October 9, 2009

Forty degrees here this morning, still and quiet, The back door just closed as Gail took Karl the Wonder Dog for a morning walk. It's barely light enough to see but Gail has this fearlessness to the unknown that scares me at times but doesn't bother her. She has a way with animals and I guess if you have that talent, fear is erased. The bears that have been about for several weeks are onto a different food source I guess, as it's been bearless here for some time but they will return to surprise me.

All gardeners have different pursuits, some by interest, some without choice. Gail and I have an interest in autism because our son Alex is on the spectrum so we live it every day. Autism research is a moving target and every day new information comes forth. We read all we can and attend as many events as possible to learn what others have to say. Last night was such an evening.

Sterling College, located in Craftsbury Commons, Vermont, is a small college with an enrollment just over 100. But small often means talented and in Vermont it's ever so true that little schools, little organizations, small groups sharing single interests are very organized and very, very talented. Last night the school hosted Dr. Temple Grandin and if you know autism or you are interested in animal behavior or animal management, then you know this very interesting professional. As we ended the lecture, we were grateful to Sterling College for bringing her to speak.

Time is getting short here like the hours of daylight. Much to do before the snow starts to challenge my desire to work in the gardens. There's still work to do but Alex is feeling better and Gail is ready to pitch in. Saturday the sun is supposed to shine in the afternoon so I will have helpers by then. At noon our local volunteer fire department celebrates 100 years with a parade and other events. Locals support local events and we'll be there.

As I get the motor running here this morning, I want to suggest that if you do not have anemones in your garden, give them some fine consideration. They are a great fall perennial and when they get established you'll enjoy large masses of a very nice flower. They make a great cut for fall arrangements and keep the butterflies in the garden until hard frosts and seriously cold weather stops all flight. They are difficult for us to sell because people don't seem to know about them yet and since they don't bloom until after we close for the season, it's only by Internet sales that they move along. We love them!!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where more and more maples are naked but still surrounded by colorful ground floor blankets of reds, yellows, oranges, greens and browns.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm: One of Vermont's nicest little nurseries

That's another shot of Osmore Pond up top.

Heavy Rain, Beautiful Foliage Continues

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

47 degrees here on the mountain at almost 8 PM. My new toy, an inexpensive anemometer, is spinning at 3 mph with gusts to 5 mph as the front moves in. The rain continues on and off and the "on" part this afternoon disrupted my wood splitting. I coaxed Gail to ride with me for a few minutes while I took some quick pictures, knowing that more rain and wind would influence what is by far the best foliage color in recent years. My ulterior motive was I wanted help picking out some more flat and colorful leaves to add to a collection and a book going to my grandsons out Seattle way. Gail agreed with getting out but had a brief self-debate about taking Karl the Wonder Dog along..... until I let out an impatient "Let's go!" Karl stayed home to snooze on.

During the past few weeks I have probably told a hundred people about the back road to Osmore Pond in the Groton State Forest. The road is almost two miles from our house and the state park people always open it up the day after Labor Day. Since 1989 I have been telling people this as it means not having to pay to get in to see and paddle on a nice little pond. There's also some unusual feeling about a secretive entrance to something so beautiful as Osmore Pond....kind of like an explorer finding something new and exciting.

Gail and I arrived at the road and the gate was locked tight. I muttered some anti budget cut comments and we turned around and headed to New Discovery, the main entrance to Osmore. Karen, one of the rangers, was in the contact station and she explained that they closed the road due to the bad behavior of a few. Just the same the pond was accessible and entrance was free but access is through this entrance. Down the road through a nice maple forest we went.


Osmore Pond has a history I will study some day but I know there was a time when logging around it was an important thing. Several people have told me about two different sawmills on the pond but I have never received good accounts of where the milled lumber went from there.

Osmore has three primitive lean-tos for rent and one newer one on the side close to the parking lot. "Primitive" means you walk in or paddle across the pond. No shower and you share the outhouse with the porcupines. This pond always has had loons but today they were either underwater and out of sight or just not there. The pond is beautiful this time of year so I took a couple shots. Click to enlarge.

We turned around and headed for Owls Head. This is a great granite dome and on a clear day you can see for a hundred miles each way. In late August you might witness raptors moving along as you sit up top eating wild blueberries. In contrast, in late May around Memorial Day you will certainly find other raptors gliding around feeding in the company of slow flying-coasting turkey vultures.

Today the rain was coming down stronger as we made it to the Owls Head parking area. We walked over to the picnic area and I took pictures of Kettle Pond down below. I wish they'd get the work crew to clean out the brush so the view for aging picture takers like me was easier. Typically Camel's Hump is easy to see but from this grown over vantage point, it was missing today.
During the Civilian Conservation Corp days the workers build a set of steps to the top of the mountain. If you have visited here before you know that they are high steps but just the same a fifteen minute walk to the top is nothing in trade for such a beautiful panorama. We want to get back there this weekend as the park staff close Owls Head right after Columbus Day.

Kettle Pond (last 3 shots) is down Route 232 a little further than the Owls Head turn and it's en route to Route 302 that heads to Groton or Orange. There's a prominent parking lot and a portage that's longer than I like if you want to paddle. There is a private youth group area of multiple lean-tos for rent by families, groups like scouts, even an organization of knitters makes a go of it--all who can enjoy a beautiful pond and a rural setting for a few bucks.

We've come to learn this area as it's really part of the big backyard we share. My favorite time is around Memorial Day when wildflowers abound. Trillium and orchids are favorites for me but there are dozens of flowers and shrubs to enjoy. Any time I walk here, I recall ever flower I have found, every place I have taken pictures. Gardeners should think broadly about their gardens and their state as they visit natural areas preserved for our use. Before we decided to move our nursery, I was just starting to lay out some woodland gardens intended to link nature, cultivated wildflowers and domestic hybrids. Maybe sometime I'll get back to that project. For now I can look back at these pictures and be thankful it was such a colorful day. Come visit soon if you can!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the wind speed is up to a constant 7 mph and I can hear the trees rustling from my office.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener

Autumn Colors

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The rain is pounding the roof again tonight as I think back about yesterday afternoon's trip with Alex and Karl the Wonder Dog, looking at foliage from some of our favorite vantage points. Foliage this year has been about a week earlier than usual but as spectacular as I can ever remember. The colors have been so vivid that you don't want to leave one point of view for the next.

Alex and I had dedicated a couple hours to be with Karl and travel around but I was late getting back from work and we had to modify our schedule a little. We headed down to Osmore Pond in hopes of spotting a moose along the way but the trip was mooseless. The pond was as beautiful as ever but quiet this time with no loons to be seen or heard.

We back tracked to the village for some gas and a soda and headed up past the waterfalls and onto the Lanesboro Road. This is a favorite with us--the old Montpelier to Wells River, Vermont Railroad, thrown up in the early 50's and now an excellent place to drive, enjoy the scenery and the wildlife which abounds. We stopped at Marshfield Pond which I photograph several times a

year. This is a small kettle pond surrounded by some great wildflowers in spring and lots of life the rest of the year. The granite head wall on the back is still on my list of things to hike to but I still haven't made it.

We exited the road at the corner of Lanesboro and Ethan Allen Corner and then drove part way up Owl's Head and then home. The foliage was something we didn't want to leave but evening chores beckoned.

The predominant tree in these photos is the maple. There are red maples, sugar maples and some Norway maples but all are colorful. As the leaves of these trees fall around our house, I use the leaf vac to pick them up and shred them for next year's gardens. Maples have a very long root system and they store important minerals in the leaves. In the spring I'll spread an inch or so on all the new gardens at our nursery and begin the process of improving our garden beds, a little at a time.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where day time visitors from around the world will stop and click photos of fall foliage so they can talk about it forever. Vermont is a great state and it always looks better on the return trip. Come visit!

Best autumn wishes,

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener

Vermont Flower Farm
Vermont Gardens

The Fogs of Fall

Friday, October 5, 2007

When September ends in northern Vermont, evening temperatures of 40 degrees or below encourage morning fogs which drift as the sun rises. Travel on the roads can be tricky but a visit to nearby ponds is a pleasant sight as banks of fog float in waves across the waters and adjacent swamps.

We are lucky to live so close to so many bodies of water. The Marshfield Reservoir, Peacham Pond, Bailey, Goslant, Kettle, Osmore and Groton Ponds are all somehow connected by swampy areas and meandering brooks. It's fun to get out early and witness the changing visions as the fog burns off and the autumn colors offer such enjoyment.

In a few minutes Karl the wonder dog and I will walk out back to the White Spring. There are some Lilium canadense seed pods which should be ripe by now. I want to harvest them and spread the seed along the swamp banks to encourage a colony. This picture was from last

year when there were slightly more buds. This year this particular plant put forth another stem but fewer buds. About half the flowers set seed and the bulb maintained a 7 foot scape again.

If you have some time to get out and about today, the colors are very good where there is a good maple concentration. Areas with ash and oaks already have changed to dull browns but from mountain tops like Owls Head, the views are spectacular. The Forest and Parks staff open the gate to Owls Head about 9:30 and it closes at 8. Give it a try!

From the mountain above Peacham Pond where Karl whines "Take me out" and two mourning doves discuss the day's news which pecking cracked corn.

Fall garden wishes,

George Africa

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