With Kelly Holdbrooks
Fall carries similar energy felt in spring, creating a sense of urgency. As conditions change in the environment, we humans shift just like the plants and animals in wild spaces. Cold nights, first freeze, and fall color signal winter is coming. Fall fosters time and space for all living beings to adjust and prepare. Fall is a magical time in the Southern Blue Ridge and hosts an incredible display of foliage transformation, which draws millions to the area. Three factors are involved in leaves changing color in autumn: length of darkness increasing, weather, and leaf pigments. As chlorophyll production slows down due to longer nights, a biochemical process creates the fall color show. I think of this as the swan song from the forests as they bid us farewell until next spring. Each fall is uniquely different and yet stunning to witness an entire region’s forests signing off together. We take time each day in the gardens to experience fall from a high elevation and looking out and down to land far away.
In between our fall color breaks, we scurry around gathering leaves, cutting back perennials, cleaning up beds. Work for a gardener is a 12-month task list colliding with the natural world — wind, storm events, wildlife, and temperature. Fall days are a roller coaster for most gardeners involving fortitude and layers. They often begin cold even freezing then arc out around noon to late afternoon with a very warm spell (one that can cause a quick sunburn at high elevation if not careful). Finally, the afternoon gives way to a cool evening before sunset. Rinse and repeat until winter.
As a woodland garden, leaf management is a large task extending into months of work. We carefully collect leaves in formal garden beds so we can compost them and redistribute back into the beds. Leaves are left to fall as they may in wilder areas in the Core Park. Preparing beds for their winter slumber involves cutting back perennials, adding soil to low spots, taking soil samples, and topdressing beds that need extra nutrients for their roots.
Fall and spring are ideal planting seasons due to milder temperatures, and seasonal showers. On the mountain, we are planting rhododendron, kalmia, ferns, leucothoe, and viburnum. New plantings should receive about an inch of rain a week, and during dry periods weekly watering is essential for the roots to establish.
The greenhouse area is still an active construction site; however, we planned from last November to be in the space this fall so we would not lose another growing season of native plants. We are learning about the new facility and preparing for winter as we bring plants into the greenhouse for the first time. We are potting up red spruce and preparing for the next batch that will be germinated this winter.
Lastly, most of our staff and volunteer time has been focused on the cleanup post-Helene. We are troubleshooting downed trees, truckloads of debris, and some road damage. We are addressing the stormwater damage by applying new design techniques.