Turkey Day Prelude.

11-24-21 SHORT HILLS: We’ve been back here for a few days. It’s warmer than VT, and the color is still impressive. The burning bushes are bright red, and the chokecherry is orange as is the redwood. Most of the trees are bare except the oaks, but, here and there, maples and others are still in color. We had one rainy day here and a scattering of branches in the yard.  

Tomorrow is the big day, T-day, and we are getting eight guests from Brooklyn, Boston, Long Island and NYC. Judy has out-done herself, if that’s possible, prepping for the meal. I helped out, mostly doing indoor clean up, and I made my usual pecan-maple-bourbon pie. 

Have fun everybody!

We have had a few bird visits. This White-throated Sparrow was busy under the feeders.

Chokecherry in orange and burning bush in red make a pair.

Burning bush along the road mixed with junipers.

Barberry near the house next to Asian holly.

Japanese maple on the other side of the house.

Our towering Dawn Redwood showing orange turning to brown.

Judy had the highest bid on this tea house sign that will hang somewhere in the VT house.

First Ice.

11-18-21 VERMONT: Yesterday morning was 20° with frost on the grass and ice on the ponds. Both ponds were about 80% iced over and the brook was frozen as well. I broke out the big parka for the walk around. The first very cold day is always a shocker, but by January that will feel like a warm day. Today is a warm day. It’s in the fifties, foggy and drizzly, and all the ice is gone.

The garden beds are clean, thanks to Addie, all the outside stuff is inside and put away, the outside water is off. We’re ready, Mr. Winter.

We had dinner last night with Diana and Steve at Candela in Hanover. A great meal as always. 

The outside work is all finished until Spring—except for snow shoveling, spreading snow melt, spreading sand on icy snow and filling the bird feeders.

Happy Thanksgiving. 

The upper pond with ice.

The lower pond with ice at the far end and water at the near end. The sun rises over the ridge and lights up the ice.

When the beds have been cleaned, the rock foundations of the garden appear.

Snowy Moosilauke under an interesting, layered sky.

Mt. Lafayette snow covered.

Uphill above the upper pond. This view is only available when the leaves are down, but before the snow. When it's snow covered, it's just a white blanket.

First Snow.

11-15-21 VERMONT: First snow of the year yesterday, up to a half inch in the deepest spots, all gone by afternoon. We have been here for a few days after an easy trip up. The lowest temps have only been as low as the upper 20’s and some perennials are still green near the house. 

The ponds are full and draining, the waterfall is splashing, all due to an rain storm on our first night here. 

The chickadees and nuthatches have been busy at the feeder, with a occasional bluejay. There were several thrushes of some kind in the apple trees a few mornings ago.

I started the garden clean up, but now I have a new assistant, Addie, who I hope will become the garden manager. 

We had dinner at Dave and Shari’s Saturday night.

New blooms: witch hazel.  

Sunrise after over-night dusting of snow, but no ice, yet.

The morning sun reaches the back of the pasture before the house and yard.

Deer eating the apples a few weeks ago before all the leaves came down.

The bed below the deck full of the fall tangle.

The same bed after clearing the debris, two tarp loads hauled away.

Judy and friends in the pasture.

Burning bush color, not as vivid as in NJ.

Witch hazel flowers still in bloom.

Mild November.

11-10-21 SHORT HILLS: We had no takers for Halloween, disappointing, now we have to eat all the candy. The weather has been beautiful. The sun lights up the autumn foliage, especially the burning bushes. We have just had a couple of morning temps below 30° for the first time this fall.

I forgot to post pix from our visit to Seaside Park, so I’ll put up a couple today. 

We had dinner with Bob and Chris last week. I had a lunch with Bill this week, and over the weekend we went to Alan’s 80^th at the Gladstone Tavern.

We are getting occasional birds now, but the mobs we expect at the feeders are not here. I have to assume the bird population is in decline. 

We go to VT tomorrow for fall clean up and to meet some people who have expressed interest in garden maintenance for the future.  

Ring billed Gulls enjoying the breeze.

Looking north on the beach. That's Seaside Heights amusements in the distance.

A bunch of mallards at a rest stop on the trip south.

A lone Chickadee at the feeder.

Bluejay at toilette.

Burning bushes have cornered the market for red. That's Bally and Blanca at the gate waiting for Judy to come back from the market.

More Fruits and Berries.

10-31-21 SHORT HILLS: Happy Halloween. The treats are already out on the porch. Because we’re a bit farther from the road than most houses and down a hill, we get few customers. It finally cleared up, we got another 0.75 inches of rain before the sun returned.

We had dinner at Lynn and Bill’s Friday, went down the shore to Seaside Park to visit Chris and Bob on Saturday. They threw a seafood lunch that I will remember for a long time. It was nice to see the sand, surf, gulls, ocean after a long spell. Today we dog walk with Bebe and Ronnie and Sonny. 

I have lots more berries and fruit to show. It has occurred to me that the point of the colors of the ripe fruit is to attract birds and other pollinators. The fruit is eaten and then pooped out with a drop of fertilizer some place else. The run through the GI tract is sometimes necessary to activate the seeds. Most fruits are green before they’re ripe so that they blend in with the leaves of the tree or shrub and don’t get eaten too soon.  

1. Introduced shrub from Asia.

2. Pods are the hallmark of legumes.

3. A showy late bloomer.

4. Also comes in larger size for people.

5. Dramatic color.

6. Not dramatic color.

7. Should be an easy ID.

8. Also available in red, A as in....

9. A shrub with yellow flowers.

10. Not much to attract the eye here.

11. Almost apple sized.

1. Asian Holly. 2. Catalpa tree. 3. Crape Myrtle. 4. Pear. 5. Beauty Berry. 6. Andromeda. 7. Juniper. 8. Apple. 9. St. Johns Wort. 10. Spirea. 11. Quince.

Berries and Fruit.

10-28-21 SHORT HILLS: The sun is back and it’s a little cooler. We ended up with five inches of rain from the last storm, and another one is in the Mid-West. Enough weather news. 

I try to do an end of the season post of the fruits and berries on the trees and shrubs here and in VT. This year there seem to be a lot of pix, so I’ll do all the red ones first. To make it a quiz, I’ll number the pix and list the names at the end. 

1. Well known tree.

2. A tree-sized shrub.

3. The leaves might be a clue.

4. the leaves might be a clue.

5. The leaves will turn orange soon.

6. Often sold for seasonal decorations.

7. Notice the stickers.

8. An evergreen with needle/leaves.

9. Another evergreen, but with broad leaves.

10. A small tree, widely planted ornamental.

11. Same family as 10.

Answers: 1-Apple, 2-Siebold viburnum, 3-Holly, 4-Burning bush, 5-Chokecherry, 6-Winterberry holly, 7-Barberry, 8-Yew, 9-Southern Magnolia, 10-Dogwood, 11-Kousa dogwood.