Tree Manna

October 2017

Pickaway to Garden

 

Tree Manna

By Paul J. Hang

 

 

Now that fall has arrived we can anticipate the annual avalanche of falling leaves. Some of my crabapples have already lost most of their leaves as they are want to do. My river birch has been dropping its leaves, and a mist of goo, for the last couple weeks. After the coming, and hoped for, display of fall color, the maples, oaks, and other deciduous trees will sever the leaves that enabled them to make their own food and send them fluttering to the ground. The discarded leaves are waste that in the natural world are left on the forest floor as fertilizer and mulch for the trees that grew them. Thus, I could have titled this column Tree Manure. But on the advice of others more discreet, sensitive and less iconoclastic than I, I have demurred.

 

Tree Manna sounds more elegant. Manna, sustenance, miraculous, a gift, falling leaves fulfill every definition of manna except unexpected. Falling leaves in October are certainly not unexpected, but perhaps their worth is. Manna does capture another way of viewing the autumnal gift of trees. Tree Manna is dropping, such as fruits (persimmons and paw paws), acorns and other nuts (but not the political variety) and most importantly, leaves.

 

When gathering this manna by raking, mowing or blowing, it might be difficult to view them as a gift. But even a windfall must be collected. Leaves are organic; they contain valuable attributes and nutrients. As mulch or soil amendment they can’t be beat. Leaves can be collected and heaped up to rot or placed in a compost pile. Shredding them will speed up decomposition. They can also be shredded and left on the lawn, or put directly onto the garden and incorporated into the soil. The best thing you can do for clay or sandy soils is to add organic matter.

 

Leaves also sequester carbon. In the old days we released the carbon back into the atmosphere by burning them. Gathering them for other uses keeps that carbon tied up and does not contribute to climate change. Of course the smell of burning leaves is one of the triggers of nostalgia. As Hal Borland said in his Twelve Moons of the Year, “If you are middle aged, don’t allow yourself to smell it or you will wonder what happened to those years.”

 

Finally, fall is the best time to plant trees. Think ahead and plan for future manure, I mean manna, from your trees. Make the hole wide and shallow. Plant the tree with the trunk flare at or slightly above the ground level. Plant trees well away from buildings, no tall growing trees under power lines and not too close to each other. And water your trees, even during the winter.

 

Things to do in the garden:

 

Hot caps and covers should be made handy in case a frost or freeze is forecast. Remember that the coldest temperature usually comes a little after sunrise. The earth radiates heat away and the sun hasn’t climbed high enough to begin heating us. You might still save some plants even if you slept in after it became light. If you can protect your plants a couple more weeks of warmth is likely to follow. Average first frost for central Ohio is October 15.

 

Consider bringing in the houseplants that you put outside this summer if you haven’t already. Make sure you don’t bring in any bugs with them; a good blast of water from your hose can wash most of them off. Bring the pots into a sheltered spot for a week or so to help the plants acclimate before shocking them with the warmer temperatures of your home.

 

In October, and even into early November, plant garlic and shallots. Cloves from store bought garlic may not work as some are treated to delay sprouting. You can also order favorite varieties from seed catalogs. Separate the cloves and plant 4 inches apart. Harvest garlic around the 4^th of July.

 

Dig up your tender corms and bulbs as soon as they are frostbitten. Dahlias, glads, tuberous begonias and cannas should be dug and stored in a cool dry place. Most basements are too warm. Caladiums, on the other hand, should be stored at  65 - 70 degrees. Go to ohioline.osu.edu and bring up Factsheet HYG-1244-92 to get specific information on storing Summer Flowering Bulbs.

 

You can still divide day lilies and iris. Cut back the iris leaves to four-inch fans. Stop feeding your roses but don’t stop giving them water. Consider cutting back your roses halfway if they stop blooming. If you have dormant roses you can still plant them. Spring bulbs can be planted as soon as you get them. Plant them at a depth three times their length; place some bulb food in the hole with them. For a better display plant them in groups, not single file.

 

If you planted trees this year protect the trunks from gnawing rabbits and other varmints with hardware cloth or the plastic wrap made for this purpose. Even older trees can benefit from this if you’ve experienced this damage in the past.

If you don’t accumulate a lot of leaves consider just shredding them with the mower and leave them scattered on the lawn. Otherwise, compost them. It is still the best time to fertilize your lawn. Use a high nitrogen soluble product. You can still sow grass seed.

 

Leave seed heads for the birds. Also leave stems for overwintering good insects. You can put off most cleanup (but not in the vegetable garden) until next spring! Add mulch around perennials after the ground freezes.