Fallout

Camera in hand I headed out to take a few last photos of the fall garden.  I was pleasantly surprised to still see such color and interest even as we enter the month of November.

My Accolade Elm has turned a beautiful golden color.  This is the tree that lost over a third of its root system in the spring with the gas company digging to repair a pipe, hope it survives.

My neighbor's Red Maple stands out among the other still green leaved trees in the background.

Home Run Pink continues to bloom without clipping off the spent buds.

Rose hips have formed on Pink Meidiland rose.

Knockout Rainbow is stunning this time of year!

Home Run Red

Cinco De Mayo

Eupatorium Chocolate is always a pleasant surprise at the end of the summer.

The black potato vine has held up much better than the green ones, not as trailing but much hardier.

The display of seedheads on Panicum Northwind

Sedum Autum Fire in the alley garden

Sedum Vera Jameson in the alley garden

Echinacea Meadowbrite Mango

We harvested this lettuce for our Halloween dinner and it was delicious.

Solomon's Seal is a delicate beauty even in the fall.

I call them my Dinosaur Ferns but I know they have a Latin name?

These are the Autumn Ferns that I planted this summer in the bed under the Chanticleer Pear.  I have cut back the Lirope to plant bulbs.  The ferns must like it because they have doubled in size.

Hydrangea Unique

This specimen does not weather as well as Limelight but is certainly worth growing for its long panicles which can be cut at various stages of color and dried.  I think I will cut the rest of the flowers off for spraying with color for the holidays, maybe gold!

The plumes of Miscanthus Udine

Pansies by the veggie garden

Heuchera Southern Comfort
They will keep their color all winter.

Heuchera Carmel

The front resin planter has done well with the swiss chard in the background.

I have not done the mustard before but I like it for its dark coloring and height.

Rudbeckia Tiger Eye

I think Rudbeckia is my new favorite, blooms for an extended time into the fall and can take a light frost.

Plumbago is a great fall groudcover with blue flowers and leaves that turn a deep red.

I have lots of allysum that still looks great.  I will leave it until spring, shake it out and it will reseed all over.

Let The Show Begin!

I took a trip into Chicago with friends for a theatre tour.  I thought to myself what could be so interesting about theatres that I went to as a child, young adult and older adult that I had never noticed before as special.  Oh well, I figured the lunch would be worth the trip.

This is the entrance to the Oriental Theatre, built in 1926 by the Rapp brothers and run by Babalan and Katz.  It began as a vaudeville theatre went on to movies and stage shows to its present day of Broadway shows.

It is now known as the Oriental Ford Theatre.  After falling into disrepair it was completely restored in the late nineties and saved from becoming a shopping mall.

The Oriental is heavily adorned with an Asian feel, but also incorporates Africa and East Indian artwork.

Marble, brass and mosaic abound on the ornate staircases.  Ushers were even dressed as if they stepped out of history as Aladdin seeing people to their fifty cent seats.

An original sconce on the staircase

This is one of two large chandeliers hanging in the lobby.  One was auctioned off when the theatre went through bad times and later found in a farmer's barn in Kenosha, Wisconsin and restored to its original position.

The original vintage lighting was spectacular, note the monkeys supposedly the Rapp brothers depiction of Babalan and Katz.

In the main part of the theatre statues loom over the audience where we may have seen July Garland (then known as part of the Gum sisters) Fanny Brice, Al Jolson, George Burns and Gracie Allen, the Three Stooges and many more.

The new mayor has kept the city beautiful, one of the many planters that line the streets of Chicago.

A little sculptural interest along the way.  I know I have seen this artist's work before, I think at the Art Institute.

A couple of blocks later we arrived at the Palace Theatre now known as the Cadillac Palace also designed by the Rapp brothers and opened in 1926.

This theatre lobby is constructed of marble but does not have the same over the top ornamentation as the Oriental.

The Palace Theatre has also been restored to its original glory and is now host to many Broadway Shows.  It was the previous home to Jack Benny, Jimmy Durante, Mae West and Bob Hope.

On to lunch at Lawry's Prime Rib which is also housed in a Historic building.

This is the four story McCormick Mansion built before the turn of the century.  It had twenty-five rooms including a ballroom on the fourth floor.  It was leased in 1935 to a casino which during prohibition did not last long.

Through the years the McCormick Mansion changed, lost two upper stories due to a construction accident and the front was redone to become the Kungsholm, a Swedish smorgasbord, with can you believe an Opera puppet show.

The puppets were about thirteen inches tall and operated from underneath to phonograph music and later tape tracks.  The Kungsholm was in existence from about 1940 to 1971.

It is now Lawry's Prime Rib (Lawry's Seasoned Salt) and it was one of the best lunches I have ever had!

In fact, it was one of the best days I have ever had.

The Haircut

I went to get my hair cut and somehow the conversation gravitated towards landscaping and cleaning up the garden.  She has no idea what I do in regard to writing a blog or just being obsessed with gardening.

Panicum Ruby Ribbons

This is a smaller Panicum which will layer in front of my Lythrum Morden's Pink, especially when it is cut down.  I am very pleased to see this color early in the summer without it being an annual grass.  This is a grass that can be left up for the winter.

Penstemon Hamelin

This is a totally carefree grass and can be left up over the winter.

Miscanthus Udine

I have a difficult time cutting this down when it is so beautiful.  It does flop, so I may neaten it up a bit and leave it up.  I know it will be extra work in the spring!

Miscanthus Little Kitten

It is recommended that this grass not be cut down in the fall.

Panicum Northwind

This is the flagship grass in my garden, left up over the winter and pops back up after the snow melts.

Being a working mother of three she said she just doesn't have the time to cut down everything before the snow flies.  So, she is hiring a landscaping company to cut down all the perennials, trim all of the boxwood, shrubs and some limbs off the trees!

Boxwood Green Velvet

I trimmed my boxwood in July and you can see that the growth since then is a lighter green.  In my zone five area it is not recommended that you prune boxwood after August 1st.  I did last year and had a lot of burn on the newer growth. 

I almost jumped out of the chair saying don't trim the boxwood, evergreens or trees now.  Also, be careful which shrubs you prune now or you won't have flowers next spring.

Viburnum Carlesi Compactum

As you can see the buds are fully formed to bloom next spring.  Prune right after flowering.

PJM Rhododendron

The Rhodies all have their buds for bloom next spring.  They should be pruned right after flowering.

Azalea Karen

Prune after flowering in late spring, keeps leaves all winter

The Lilies should not be cut down until they yellow or the bulbs will not have enough stored food to bloom the following year.

I am sure my landscaper knows what to do!  This is a very common reaction, we assume that people who cut grass know what to do with everything on our property.

My neighbor has a landscaper that trims everything in late July. thus the Viburnum does not bloom the following spring, or the Amelanchier (which is cropped down to hedge size) or the Rhodies which are topped off.  This is not an unusual occurrence if you do not know the timeline of the various flowering shrubs.

Neighbor's Viburnum

Not a bud in sight

Amelanchier (Serviceberry)

Cut into a ball, no flowers this year, no berries

All spring flowering shrubs need to be pruned immediately after flowering, early summer flowering shrubs before the end of July and fall flowering shrubs in the spring.  Certain hydrangeas grow on old and new wood so it doesn't matter when you prune them, but some only grow on old wood. 

Forsythia Greenstem

Low growing, blooms in spring, prune right after flowering

Weigela Dark Horse

Blooms late spring, prune right after blooming

Ninebark Summer Wine

This is a summer blooming shrub and can be pruned and trimmed back until August 1st.  Beyond that you take a chance that there will not be any flowers the next year.

Limelight Hydrangea

This hydrangea grows on old or new wood, can be pruned in spring or fall, but why would I prune it now?  The flowers will slowly turn to a pleasing tan and stay on all winter.

Hydrangea Unique

Blooms on old and new wood, can be pruned in spring and fall, however the blooms do not age well past the rosy pink stage.

I am going to experiment with Endless Summer Hydrangeas this year and not cut them back at all along with my Starlight Hydrangeas, no cut back for either.  We will see if this makes any difference in regard to the amount of blooms.  I am also going to feed all of my acid loving plants before the end of the month (I read this on the Internet last year and it seemed to work with tons of blooms, except for Endless Summer because they are very nitrogen reactive).

Hydrangea Let's Dance Starlight

Certain plants benefit from being left standing for the winter, like Agastache, Centranthus and Lavender need to have the stems left up in the colder climates.

Aster Monte Casino in the middle will be transplanted into the raised bed on the south side where I pulled out Purple Dome Aster.  Monte Casino is a florist aster used in arrangements but it is also hardy in my area and if pinched back to keep it full is a beautiful plant and not attractive to rabbits.

I had great success with cutting down my Autumn Clematis in the fall because I don't want it sitting up on the wood pergola all winter with the snow and ice.  It bloomed just great this year not caring at all, in fact I believe most type 3's could be cut down in the fall if late enough with no problem.

Autumn Clematis

February is a recommended time of year to prune most tree limbs (in the colder zones) because the sap is not running.  The time of trimming is also dependent upon the species of tree.  Of course if a limb is dead or diseased it needs to be cut off.  Tree trimming is a year round occurence but winter or early spring is the ideal.  Check out your local university extension recommendations for specific zones.

I can't believe that a haircut prompted a blog on pruning!