Flowering Cabbage

Royal purples and pinks add to the autumn palette of colour.

Flowering cabbage (pictured above) and flowering kale are not really flowers. Perhaps the term "ornamental cabbage" or "ornamental kale" would be better names.

In either case, these fall classics can brighten up your fall landscape in intriguing ways. Not only do they add a bright spot in the garden, they will last long after a heavy frost has taken out most of the other annual flowers. Flowering kale and cabbage need full sun and do best in the cooler temperatures of fall.

If you have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF GREEN, the King of Lawn Care:

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Is it still Summer? Leave me Hanging.

Why do leaves turn colour in the autumn? Is it the cooler nights, the date on the calendar or what?

While some may think it is the cooler weather or just the changing seasons, it's really the "photoperiod."

The photoperiod is considered to be the environmental trigger that causes fall leaf colouring, senescence and leaf drop. The pigment phytochrome senses the photoperiod. Photoperiod is often thought to be the length of the daylight period.

In actuality it is not the length of the daylight time, but the length of the night.

 

Here in these photos, we can see a situation where a section of this tree have not received the longer nights needed to trigger fall colouring. The leaves of this maple that are near the street lamp have been fooled into believing that it is still summer. The light from the street lamp shining on these leaves has led them to think that the longer days and shorter nights of summer have not gone away.

Plants that respond to photoperiodism, do not measure the length of the daylight but rather the length of the dark period. For these maple leaves, their night has been shortened by the rays of the street lamp. I'm sure at some point they will respond as the rest of the tree has done. My speculation is that the other leaves will create enough of the hormones that trigger the autumn responses to eventually cause all the leaves to colour and fall.

If you have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF GREEN, the King of Lawn Care:

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Fall Colours

Fall colours on the landscape and lawn are a wonder to behold. The colours available take on a much larger dimension than the spring and summer colours. There are a few trees that give a mass of colourful blooms. None however, fill the eye's camera screen in the same way that the fall colours of trees can.

The sheer volume of colour in the leaves of a tree are overwhelming. And more so in the autumn. During the time the leaves are green, there is a lot more green around in the other plants, trees and lawns. In the fall, the other plants are less noticeable. Only the evergreens have a presence. The lawn is still green, but is often blanketed by the same palette of fall colours from the fallen leaves.

In some cases, the variation in the colours can create a stunning contrast- red, yellow, green.

The leaves of trees can be a detriment to the lawn in several ways. During the spring and summer, they restrict the amount of sunlight that reaches the lawn. This means we have to resort to special measure to be able to maintain a healthy lawn in the shade.

Once the leaves have decided to leave their lofty heights, they can also be a bit of a nuisance. If they are left on the lawn over the winter they will damage the lawn. That means the leaves must be dealt with somehow.  One way is to rake, rake rake.

Lawns can be an important visual component of a landscape. Maintaining their health is important to keep them looking their best and able to function as efficiently as possible.

If you have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF GREEN, the King of Lawn Care:

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Fall Colours- are Cool, so is the Weather

Driving along the 407-ETR the other day, I noticed how beautiful the fall colours were The leaves are shades of yellow, gold, red, and oranges. The maples and oaks are beautiful at this time of year. Often in our rush to get to where we are going, we fail to realize the beauty in nature that surrounds us. We need to press the "pause" button once in a while. Drink in the serenity of all that uplifts the spirit and calms the soul.

At my granddaughters home, the silver maple next door has dropped a few armful's of its leaves.

In autumn, the silver maple leaves turn reddish with a light coloured reverse. They also like to curl up into a fluffy shape.

Nestled up against the deep coloured sedum provides an interesting contrast in colour and texture. Scattered across the deep green of the lawn also gives a different visual contrast.

The weather is turning chilly. Time to go inside and light a fire in the woodstove. When the room is cool, a set of bellows is helpful in geting the warmth off to a good start. 

While a woodstove has worked for us up to now, it is getting to the point where some parts are not working properly.

Perhaps I should consider one of the many electric fireplaces available now. That would be clean, no ashes to clean up or to create dust. We will definitely have to look into the advantages of an electric fireplace.

If you have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF GREEN, the King of Lawn Care:

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Burning Bush

The cool weather of autumn brings fall colours to many plants. The burning bush by the shed has been trimmed almost every other winter by the local rabbits. Rabbits seem to have a penchant for Euonymus alata for some reason. It must taste extra scrumptious in the winter. So this poor burning bush has never gotten more than a couple of feet tall. Except this last winter, the rabbits must have been well fed or something. For whatever reason, this year, the burning bush came through the winter unscathed.

So this season, it has had a chance to grow a bit more than usual. Now that it is fall, the brilliant colours of the burning bush really stand out against the gray of the shed.

Notice the orange-red berries that dot the branches. Very few plants have the intensity of this plant.

The red leaves show especially well up against a healthy green lawn.

If you have a lawn/tree/shrub that needs some Tender Loving Care- get The KING OF GREEN, the King of Lawn Care:

Turf King Home

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or call us at 905.318.6677 or 1.888.TURFKING (887.3546)

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