Report on the Last Flowers of Fall

It may be a week overdue (we've been very busy with fall plantings around here!) But I thought I'd send a quick report regarding our fall wildflower walk on the weekend of Oct. 9th.

We began our trip by looking at some of the fall blooming asters in the "dry prairie" portion of the UW Arboretums native plant gardens, this area is right at the front of the building. There we saw silky aster, flax leaved aster and sky blue aster all showing off a bit. Most of the goldenrods were starting to go to seed, but a few showy asters still had some bright yellow color for us. Last but not least we looked at several species of grass which are good for ornamental purposes such as dropseed, side-oats gramma, bottlebrush grass and little bluestem as the latter species began to take on the characteristic bronze coloration which it will maintain all winter.

Because some of the young plants that were planted this year are blooming out of sequence, the UW Arboretum's native wildflower garden is an interesting place to visit where we can see a number of species blooming that should have gone to seed months ago. Species like butterfly weed and early sunflower were doing their best to attract pollinators a good two months after their wild counterparts have finished blooming. I'm sure they'll get the timing right net year.

As we moved around the back of the visitors center we were delighted to find a flock of cedar wax wings dining on the berries of a grouping of elderberry bushes.

Storms were threatening to move in, so we called it a day after about an hour and a half at the gardens. It was an enjoyable morning there, but really, any time you get out in a natural setting is a good time.

Stay tuned here, for next year we will be planning bi-monthly field trips in the Madison area and around southern Wisconsin. If you would like to be put on the email list for these trips please contact Frank.

Last Flowers of Fall wildflower walk this Sunday, 9 am.

This Sunday at 9am Frank will be leading a Last Flowers of Fall wildflower walk at the UW Arboretum. We'll start the walk taking a look at the native landscaping garden at the Arboretum visitor center. Then after an hour (or a little more) we'll head over to the Grady Tract, the portion of the Arboretum south of the Beltline to enjoy the natural areas there. Through-out the walk we'll take a look at flowering asters, late-blooming goldenrods, gentians, and if we are really lucky maybe an orchid or two. We'll also enjoy the bronzing prairie grasses and some of the early fall colors from the likes of sumac and aspen. We'll undoubtedly have some encounters with wildlife as well.

This walk is open to the public so contact Frank if you are interested. This single walk for 2008 will be forerunner of a series of twice-monthly walks starting in late April next year, so it should be a lot of fun!

See Us at the Willy Street Fair

Good Oak will have a booth at a local community event here in Madison this Sunday September 21st. Frank will be staffing a booth at the Willy Street Fair from 11am to 7pm. Our booth will be between Paterson and Livingston streets, near the street address of 824 Williamson St. Stop by and say hello to talk about native plants!

Fall Planting Season is Here!

With cooler and wetter weather, and several months to go until the ground freezes, it is again a great time of year to plant. Fall planted perennials will have a big head start on plants put in the ground next spring, meaning more vigorous growth and more flowers. If you contact us soon we can help you get some new native perennials and ornamental grasses on your property. Shrubs and trees on the other hand need to wait a bit longer until they go dormant for the year. But come mid-October we can install some of them for you too. There are a lot of great options for hardy native plants that will beautify your property and provide benefits to wildlife too, so give us a call or send us an email so we can get you started.

Native by Design: a "How-to" Conference for Gardeners"

On September 14th the UW Arboretum will be hosting a native landscaping conference called "Native by Design" This all-day seminar will have several workshops and a guided tour of the native gardens at the arboretum. The cost is $50 for the general public and $43 for Friends of the Arboretum members (lunch included), a small price to pay for the information and inspiration this conference offers. And look for Frank there, he will be volunteering at the check-in table and ushering tour groups around the gardens.