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GARDEN CLUB NEWS: Get those flower bulbs in the ground

Photos provided Denise Erenstone and Lisa Highet are seen on the Peninsula Trail in Lake Placid. (Photo provided)

Outings by the Garden Club of Lake Placid took full advantage of the changing leaf colors as they visited two Olympic Regional Development Authority venues and walked the Peninsula Trail last month.

ORDA representative Charlie Jones shared the history of the venues and described the upgraded facilities at the Olympic Jumping Complex and Mount Van Hoevenberg. Many improvements were made in preparation for the FISU Winter World University Games in 2023, which then opened ORDA’s eligibility to again bid on high-level events.

Members learned about the jumping complex’s role in athlete development for the youngest ages as well as the for the elite athletes. Jones described the positive international response to the facility and the village when ORDA hosted their first World Cup events since the 1990s.

Jones pointed out that the attractions added to the venues draw visitors other than athletes to the area. The zipline at the jump complex and the Mountain Coaster at Mount Van Hoevenberg are very popular, particularly in the fall as another way to enjoy the color change in the mountains. Members took the elevator ride to the top of one of the jumps and enjoyed the beautiful view.

On a different outing to Peninsula Trail, the peak season leaf color was enjoyed with a late-morning walk followed by lunch at Cambria’s Haystack Bar & Bistro. The trail view was open as leaves were already dropping. The number of hikers along the way emphasized how popular the trail is.

With auger is Gwen Williams. (Photo provided)

Our September Triangle Garden work was a thorough weeding and removal of most annuals. Generations hosted the post work session social hour. October work at the Triangle Garden was one of the most ambitious of the season. Volunteers planted 720 orange eye daffodils, which were purchased with North Elba Local Enhancement and Advancement Fund grant money. Lisa G’s sponsored the final work session social hour.

Any time now before the ground freezes is the time to plant daffodils, tulips, alliums and smaller blooms such as hyacinths, crocus or other early bulbs. Planting augers powered by a battery operated drill are game changers in getting large bulbs planted quickly and deeply with little effort. There are cautions using the auger, especially if you are attempting to naturalize bulbs in a highly rooted or rocky area. Using the planting auger in an established landscape, no one should any longer need to manually force those sharp cone shaped bulb planters into heavy soil or clay. Daffodils are worth the effort because they will return year after year and be left undisturbed by deer, squirrels, rabbits and other critters.

That is not the case for tulips. As lovely as they are in single and double varieties, few tulips other than those identified as species tulips will return to bloom after the first year. Even first year tulip bulbs become the winter snacks for squirrels, chipmunks, moles and voles. Tricks of repellent sprays, companion planting with alliums or daffodils, or bulb cages are attempts to keep the bulbs intact through the winter. Even so, gardeners then can be disappointed, because deer can wipe out the whole group of budding tulips in one sweep after the foliage emerges in the spring. For these reasons gardeners more frequently treat tulips as annuals. If you are up to the challenge and can handle the risk of losing your one-year investment, tulips provide a great deal of beauty to any landscape.

In the home garden, it is also time to lift tubers or rhizomes from dahlia and cannas and tender bulbs or corms of begonia or gladiola. Many gardeners do sacrifice these rather than store them over the winter. Actually a cool, dry location is all that is needed to save some expense next year. Perennials, newly divided or nursery clearance plants, still need at least six weeks of warm soil to establish a root structure that will survive the winter. It’s risky now to transplant anything, but a larger plant might survive a mild winter. One worthwhile attempt to save your fall mums is to plant them in the ground soon after purchase. Those left in pots for porch decoration are usually headed directly to the compost pile.

Other things you may be composting will be peony, irises, and daylily foliage. Cut the plants back to 4 to 5 inches and only lightly cover the crowns with leaves. Heavy mulching promotes rot as the ground goes through several freeze and thaw cycles before next spring. Do not add diseased foliage to your compost pile.

Chop and drop is also an acceptable technique for garden cleanup. Cutting the plant foliage and allowing it to fall in the same area, you can shortcut the work of cleaning up a large garden. The decomposition of healthy plant material will return nutrients to the soil. The method transfers some of the garden cleanup to spring when you are raking and opening areas of your landscape.

Garden cleanup and falling leaves are a brutal reminder that here in the North Country fresh blooms are again months away. For sure it may be the time to turn your attention to indoor bloomers such as African violets for color. And you can indulge in the purchase of several amaryllis bulbs for a succession of flowers to take you well beyond the winter holidays.

(Patricia Hofbauer is a member of the Garden Club of Lake Placid.)

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