“Japanese Garden Waterfall Hillside”
Heatherwood Autumn
This week Heatherwood seems to be at its peak in color. The temperatures are dropping below freezing at night. Leaves are rapidly falling. Small patches of ice have formed at the edges of the waterfall. Is it time to turn off the water to the main falls and prepare the pond for winter?
Nah, I think I can wait a few more days until all the leaves have dropped. It is still just too beautiful to turn off.
“Lower Lawn”
Heatherwood Autumn
Our autumn color is changing so fast. Last night the temperature dropped down into the mid-20’s. This morning, two of three of our ginkgos dropped all their leaves. We have one left that still has not turned yellow yet. For the next several days, I will need to photograph both in the morning and in the afternoon to create a record of our fall garden.
“The Path Around the House”
Heatherwood Japanese Garden
This little path leads from our back patio to the front entryway of our house. It is always a nice little diversion to walk along. In the morning, light softly filters through the trees to the path. The backlit leaves are stunning. On a summer afternoon, the area is in shade. It is one of the few areas in Heatherwood where we can grow shade plants.
This area is where I first started developing a little Japanese inspired garden. The dark purple Japanese maple in the upper left is the first tree I planted when I moved back to Selah in 2016. The next year, we started work on the surrounding area, building the path and adding a few trees along it. Each subsequent year, we have added a little more. We are now at the stage where we need to do a little transplanting to optimize the design as well as add a few more shade plants as the trees grow and provide more shade. A garden is never finished!
“Cherokee Daybreak Dogwood”
Heatherwood Autumn
Several of our flowering dogwoods have transitioned to their full autumn glory. This species is one of my favorite. Its variegated leaves are gorgeous. In the spring breaks out in light pink with white edges. It transitions to green with white edges in the summer. Then in the fall it bursts out in deep magenta with pink edges. It is a brilliant star in Heatherwood’s Japanese garden.
“Hill of Learning”
Heatherwood Japanese Garden
The reds are coming out on our Japanese maples. It will be a couple more weeks before they are in their autumn prime. Each day I notice a little more color. Tonight it is forecasted to drop down into the low 30’s. More and more color will emerge.
Paths in our Japanese garden are becoming more pronounced as the ground covers continue to mature along the path edge. This past spring we added a lot of additional ground cover in the Japanese garden. Next year we are planning on adding a couple more Japanese maples in this area. The once grass covered hillside is gradually taking shape and evolving into our vision of a Japanese garden.
“Purple Aster”
Heatherwood Meadow
The purple asters are at their peak. They are the emerging star in our Heatherwood meadow. Here they contrast with the golds and yellows of the daylilies, sedum, and yarrow. The bees have found them and are swarming all over. They are the last plants to bloom in the meadow. Soon, the bees will start their winter hibernation.
“Red Maple”
Heatherwood Woodland
This red maple is leading the charge into autumn in our Heatherwood woodland. It is one of the red maples that we planted a year ago. It is brilliant red while the other two are not showing any color change yet. Who knows why. I will record the changes in my garden notes and see if this behavior will remain the same in future years. I look forward to what next week will bring.
“Changing Colors”
Heatherwood Autumn
It is already the middle of October and the autumn colors are slowly turning. Most of the deciduous trees are still green. Day by day they are changing into their fall color. Patches of yellow, orange, and red are starting to appear throughout the garden. The color change this year seems to be about two to three weeks later than last year. We have been having a beautiful Indian Summer. We are still eating most of our meals outside to enjoy the beautiful warm weather. The lawn seems to be growing as fast or faster than it has any time of the year. I am still mowing it two times a week! From the tracks in the lawn, it looks like the guy driving the mower has had a beer or two too many.
“Woodland Garden”
Heatherwood Autumn
Bit by bit, the fall colors are emerging here in Heatherwood. They seem to be coming a little late this year. But, each day brings a little more color, bit by bit. In the woodland garden, the red buds and some Japanese maples are transitioning to yellow. The October Glory maples are starting to turn red. And, the skies are a brilliant blue. It is time to go out and enjoy the day!
“Amber Ghost Japanese Maple”
Heatherwood Hill of Learning
We planted this beautiful Japanese maple a couple of weeks ago. It has already started to change into its autumn glory. We now have 44 Japanese maples planted throughout Heatherwood. This Amber Ghost will accentuate the view out of my office window. Every morning when I write, I turn and gaze out over the “Hill of Learning” to get a little inspiration of what is to come during the emerging day.