October Ramble: Each Fall Is Unique

While fall comes at the same time each year it’s still a year since the last one, and that makes it difficult to tell the subtle differences between one fall and the previous one, unless you have a photographic memory, take copious notes or have some other great way of tracking the seasonal changes from one year to the next.

For me, and I presume for many of you, we rely on memory, and we all know what happens to that as we age. And yet I’m struck with this same feeling this year that I know I had last year and maybe even the fall before that. The feeling is that the fall is longer, there’s more work to do and a season that once meant a slow and steady end to gardening no longer ends. It just ever so slowly fades.Yes, out here on the East End the maritime influence keeps things pretty mild even as we approach winter, but I’ve noticed this change in my gardening in Westchester and even up in the mountains, where we had one only frost by the middle of October. Indeed, the effects of climate change are no longer subtle. We know statistically that our gardening season begins earlier in the spring and lasts later into the fall, with some areas of the east having two full weeks of additional gardening time than we had just a half a century ago based on frost-free days.

But I’m seeing some changes and I can’t tell if they portend of disasters to come or if Mother Nature will somehow even things out. Granted, in another 50 to 100 years or so, portions of Long Island may be inundated by the rising sea, but what will be going on in those areas where sea rise is not an issue?

Of more immediacy for me are the changes in the patterns of a range of butterfly species that seem to show up weeks ahead of when they did years ago. The yellow and black swallowtails used to cover my bed of purple coneflowers, but for the past three summers that schedule has just been—oh how can I put this—screwed up. But the cabbage butterflies seem unaffected. They show up with the first warm spring breezes out of the south, and some hang around well into October, so there is something keeping them regular while the swallowtails seem disrupted.

And every year we see some kind of anomaly that we write off to last winter" or "that drought last summer," but this year I noticed that a horse chestnut that throws out beautiful scented spikes of white flowers late each May is now in full bloom. Not a bloom here or there as some magnolias or forsythias will do in the fall, but the entire tree is in bloom. In the back of my mind I keep on hearing the muffled voice of an arborist explaining that it’s a sign of stress, as we know that flowering off season is something that many trees will do when under stress. And yes, that may be the reason, but there are no obvious stressors. That is, unless you consider climate change the ultimate stressor. It’s so very strange seeing this tree covered with the summer's spiny seed capsules that are bursting open and dropping these large nuts while just inches above the tree is again in full bloom.

But it is fall, and no matter how screwed up the climate is, the leaves are falling. Enjoy the color but don’t let these leaves get wet and mat down on your lawn, as that can cause problems. If you’re lucky enough to have maple leaves or a mix of maples and other deciduous leaves, rake them up and stockpile them in discreet spots. In a month or so you can move them around the property in buckets, baskets or tarps and use them for winter mulch—so please don’t let the landscaper take them. They can be composted, put through a shredder or "banked" in a stockpile for use later on, and they’re way too valuable to be carted away.

Collecting the leaves, on the other hand, can be a chore. If you’ve just got a small lot, a bamboo or large fan rake is all you need. For a slightly larger property there are some great electric leaf blowers, and some can also be used as shredders. As the property and task gets larger, you may want to consider a two-cycle leaf blower. These come in hand-held and backpack models, and while I’ve tried and used them all for the past three years, I’ve been using an Echo PB-265LN, which weighs only 13 pounds and isn’t as obnoxiously loud as the larger models. It’s not a back killer and it’s been perfect for my 1-acre mix of oak, maple and ash leaves.

And while we’re on the subject of leaves, it’s a perfect segue to the other end of the tree … the wood. If you’ve got a larger property, one of the tools you may consider at some point (or reconsider) is a chain saw. These are great tools to have but inherently very, very dangerous. You can buy a lightweight chain saw that can handle limbs and branches 3 to 10 inches thick and that weigh little more than 6 to 10 pounds. These come in electric-, gas- and battery-powered models, but don’t be fooled by the way it’s powered … they are all very dangerous. So, first rule for these is to know how to use them safely. Some units come with safety DVDs, and there is plenty to read online and to learn online. Do that first and refresh yourself every year.

Always wear eye and ear protection and also consider chaps for your legs. Chaps come either as pants or wrap-arounds and they offer some protection against inadvertent contact between you and the moving chain. The newer chaps are made of a material that gets bound up in the chain to the point where it binds and stops the saw. There’s no guarantee that wearing chaps will stop you from being injured, but they will certainly lessen any potential injury and could save your leg.

The last reminder for this week is to have your soil pH tested. It’s a simple test that you can do with an inexpensive kit for a few bucks. The results will tell you what the acidity of your soil is like and from there you can determine if it needs to be adjusted. Acidity changes out here are pretty easily taken care of with the addition of limestone to the lawn and/or garden (test both), and the least expensive way to do this is with granular limestone. This product is applied now with a spreader and works into the soil during the winter. Only with a pH test can you determine how much dolomitic lime you need … if any. Keep growing.

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