Fall in the Garden

It's been in the 80's all month, and in fact, it was 92° as recently as September 30.  However, the inevitableness of the changing seasons is finally catching up with us.  While today is forecast to be 81°, tonight will see the first 40-something low since last spring.  Tomorrow may struggle to reach 70°.

Last Wednesday I cut back the summer's heavy growth in the turtleariums and cleared out the bunkers.  The very next day the boys were down in their safe winter spaces.  They haven't dug deeper in yet and later I'll be mulching the entrance tunnels for a little extra winter protection, but it's obvious that they are getting ready for their long annual snooze.  

Also a sign of the season, we put out the heated kitty mat for Fluffy, the feral cat in the backyard.  It's under a garden table that we cover with a plastic tarp for protection from rain and snow.  The first night that we turned it on (at the lowest setting), Fluffy spent the wee hours of the night on the heating pad.  

I'll put the camera trap out a couple more times to make sure the habitat isn't attracting anyone else (other cats, raccoons, skunks).  For now, here's glimpse of Fluffy waiting for breakfast. 

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS

Last night the clouds broke just right and the comet was visible after 7:00.  I got calls from Ty in Chamita who was having a great time viewing it.  We had about 6 neighbors stop by for our impromptu astronomical party.  

 

Weather forecast is for even clearer skies tonight. 

Home Again, Home Again... Jiggity-Jig

Got home after 22 hours of travel.  Did quite well until Seattle.  Then miles of walking followed by 2½ hours in a hard, non-reclining commuter aircraft seat finished me off.  Sciatica.  

Now, 2½ weeks later, I'm fairly functional for short bits and I get by with just a lumbar brace.  My quadriceps tighten up at anything more than a short walk.  

I've got a preliminary cut done on photos and a crude video created for streaming to the television.  Or the telly, as they say in Britain. 

Last night the Kp values were off the charts, so Ric and Terry joined me for a drive out to the Highway 6 exit.  Indeed, faint waves of red were visible, more so to the camera eyes.  

Looking NW through broken clouds

Jolly Old England

We made it to England and mercifully, the weather was wonderful.  I'll get back to our adventures in London later, but for a first go at some photos from the English countryside, I submit these: 

Japanese Rest House at Batsford Arboretum

Charlescote

Birch grove at Hidcote

Rock Garden at Hidcote

One of many garden rooms at Hidcote

Prepping for England

The countdown to our trip to England has less than 2 weeks left.  Packing preliminaries look like we'll get everything in our carry-on bags.  Airline reservations have been confirmed.  House-sitter arrangements have been made. 

In a related English matter, looking through Dad's old WW2 ephemera, I came across the photos of the Stucky family and the post-war thank you letter that they sent him.  Since I'll be in London soon, I took a gamble and fired off a letter to the address on the letter, 176 Mill Road, Kettering.  Today to my surprise, I received an airmail post from a Mr. Mike Groom, the current resident of that address.  Saw my first Royal Mail stamp with King Charles visage on it.  

While I'm on the subject, I plan on visiting the shop where Henry bought his ivory chess set.  I'll bring a copy of the receipt and a photo of the set on Lou's walnut and maple board.  

Plant Mindfulness

Plant awareness disparity (PAD)—which was previously known as plant blindness but renamed to avoid ableism—I would prefer to call "plant unawareness."  https://lithub.com/seeing-green-why-we-should-all-be-paying-attention-to-plants/ addresses the negative feedback loop that is PAD.  

Nature's Notebook has been a great way to focus my attention on the details of plant growth and change.  Two Mondays each month has me out in the Cottonwood Gallery (CWG) taking meticulous notes on our specimens.  With our ongoing data collection, we now have 10 years of nearly uninterrupted data.  

For the two years, the Nature's Notebook crew have had their normal access blocked by construction on the Heritage Farm expansion.  The old trail connecting the main gardens with the CWG winds through the Farm and the slow work on the upgrade to the entire area meant that our trail could not be used.  Fortunately, our Education Coordinator got the BioPark management to allow us to use the back service road and a temporary path to get to the CWG.  

Now, as the construction on the Heritage Farm is winding up (maybe by October?), they're getting around to restoring the CWG trails.  What little work has been done this summer damaged two of the plants we've been observing.  Not wanting to cause any more damage, I was asked to clearly mark the specimens with red construction tape.  

The small perennials like Penistemon, Ericameria, and Asclepias were marked with perimeter flags drapped with red tape. 

What's left of Penistemon ambigua

Larger shrubs were "gift wrapped" for high visibility.

The screwbean mesquite

Mature trees simply had their trunks wrapped. 

A Siberian elm

We're hoping that whoever resurfaces the CWG trail and clears the deadfall is paying a little attention to our bright red warning tape.  Time will tell if they ignore it and damage more of our specimens.  It's one thing to be "plant unaware" and another thing to just not care at all.  

The BioPark

It's been a long day at the BioPark Botanic Garden.  First, we made our usual Nature's Notebook observations.  We've had to add a new cottonwood after that windstorm that severely damage the tree in Site #1.   Here's a photo of Sandy taking a diameter measurement of the replacement sapling in  Site #3. 

Then after a quick bite for lunch, Sheila and I prepped for the last herbarium workshop of the summer.  We had 5 high school students plus one councilor and they all enjoyed the session.  They worked their way through 25 specimens, mounting and labeling them for us.  Sometime in the next couple days, I'll have to move the dried pages out of the Atrium and back to the herbarium.