Potting up

Now is the season of raking leaves and forcing bulbs. I took out the amaryllis bulb I bought at Roxbury Mills last month and discovered that it had creepily and desperately started growing inside the dark bag. 
I hate when that happens. However, a few days in filtered light and it's starting to look less like a mushroom plant.

Started a bowl of paperwhites last weekend, too. Maybe this year I will do it right, and start a new batch every week?

November colors

It took a while, but we finally got some great fall color in November. It started at the Homestead, where we came over the mountains and saw brilliantly colored trees.
 

 
Closer to home, the maple tree in the front yard was awash in shades of peach, yellow and red.
By the time I came home from Thanksgiving, half the leaves were on the ground.

 
These pictures of maple leaves were taken on a walk around Kennedy's Pond.
 

What happened to the blog?

Fall happened, plus I've been away a lot. The fall color is finally here, though a bit muted, the bulbs are almost all planted, and it's time to pot up some paperwhites and keep an eye on the amaryllis for signs of life.

Here's a look at color changes in the garden just now:


 
Ballooon flower leaves turn this sulphurous yellow in fall, set off by the steely blue of the seed pods.

 
I forgot I had planted these fall crocuses.

 

Garlic chives have gone to seed. I've given Becky a bag of seeds and need to cut back the rest before the whole front garden is overtaken by garlic chives.