My Fall Plans for the Garden

Once fall arrives (September here in southeast Texas) I have a lot of plans.  Not only is fall prime planting weather since we have two growing seasons in Texas, it will also cool off a bit and become a more tolerable situation in which to work. 

I will transplant a lot of the Turk's Cap seedlings that sprouted this spring along the Boardwalk.  They are pretty good size now, and I want to move a bunch of them to the Shade Garden.  The bright red flowers will look really good in the Shade Garden.  I will do this in late fall when the weather is cooler.

I'm going to dig up the Blueberries in the Orchard and put them in pots.  The soil is simply too alkaline for Blueberries to prosper here.  Hopefully if I have them in pots I can control the water they receive (rain water) and I can put them on a fertilization schedule that will make them thrive.  There are only two Blueberries left of the 6 I had planted.  Lack of water currently and the drought last year has left them either dead or depleted.  I'll plant something else their spot, either Mayhaws or plums.  I haven't decided.  I have also considered putting in an arbor in that bed (because it's very big) and growing hops, at least for a season or two. 

I'm going to dig up all the perennial sunflowers that are growing in the Wave Garden and move them someplace where they can be supported by a fence.  I like them, but they are awkward looking, and they are not in the right spot.

I'm going to complete my bottle tree allee.  My husband just finished putting 4 cedar poles into cement forming an allee that connects the yard to the Rose Garden.  I'm going to get green bottles for the poles.  It should look kind of neat.  I like to have some structures in the yard, some sort of hard scaping for visual interest.  Bottle trees are very southern. 

I'm going to finally landscape the Circle within the driveway by creating some beds and paths.  My husband wants to fill the whole thing with white rocks like the driveway, in other words, everything that is not a flowerbed will be covered over with white rock.  I can agree to that, it might look pretty good.  We'll also put in some sort of sculpture, my husband will build something. 

I'm going to build several more beds in the yard.  One bed will be situated in such a way that the allee will be obscured by a chain link gate we found.  I will use the gate as a structure on which a Lady Banks rose can climb.  I'm also going to build a bed around a tall metal conveyor belt we found.  My husband stood it up like an art piece.  I'm going to train a pillar rose on it.

I plan to dig up my Sombrueil rose that is down by the Orchard.  It has never thrived where it is planted.  I'm going to move it and train it on the arbor next to the house.  I currently have morning glories growing on the arbor.  The rose will be more permanent.  This will be a winter event, after the hot weather is totally gone.

Also when winter is firmly in place I'm going to move the Fringe Tree.  It has never thrived in its current spot.  Too much shade.

I also want to work on the paths in the yard.  In various places I'm going to lay down some brick or rock or pavers, not for long distances, just three or four steps, probably at turns and intersections.  This will be just for something interesting to look at.