3 video highlights of birds in the garden

Each year I try to set up the camera to record the hummingbirds or wrens that visit the garden.

Three short video clips are shown below — you can find even more videos over at my YouTube channel.

Gardening with Raynaud

I remember being in seventh grade and hanging out with the first boy I really liked. Out of no where, he asked me if I ate a lot of red pistachios.

"No," I said, confused. "Why?"

"Because your fingers are so red."

Cue the adolescent embarrassment. My hands were redder than everyone else's.

While I luckily did not rely on a future as a hand model — and later met a man who did not care what color my hands were — it's only in the last two years that I was diagnosed with Raynaud's disease. This also explained my extreme sensitivity to the cold, especially when going outside to shovel snow. (Often the warming up part was even worse, when I felt like my hands were being sliced apart as they warmed.)

Raynaud's is when your blood flow is decreased to your hands and feet. While symptoms can vary, the most common is that fingers can turn pale or white and then blue when exposed to the cold, and then very red when the hands are warmed. Hands can become swollen and painful — throbbing and tingling — when they start to warm up. And in severe cases, you can develop sores on your fingers.

As I've aged, my cold sensitivity has increased. While I've adapted to winter conditions as best as I've can, I've figured out a few tricks to keep me outside when the temperature is in the low 40s (Fahrenheit) or below so I can keep gardening. These might seem commonsense, but they make a world of difference  in the garden in late fall and early spring.

Insulated gloves and scarves help ward off the cold.

Insulated gloves

In the warmer months, I prefer using thin gardening gloves to improve my dexterity. However, in colder temperatures, I now use insulated gardening gloves that help my hands stay warm as I plant bulbs and complete other gardening tasks. They are thicker and my hands remain a constant temperature.

Use hand and feet warmers

While I usually opt for these when I'm outside for photography sessions for longer periods of time, they can also come in handy if you are not using insulated gloves. Open indoors before heading outside, shake to activate, and soon they will start generating heat.

Don the layers

At this time of year I definitely dress in layers, including a hat (to keep body heat from escaping) and on windy days, a scarf. I'll also opt for thicker socks to keep my feet warm. If it is very cold out, I'll wear compression tights (think cold weather running gear) to keep my legs warm.

Bandage cuts

My hands dry out quickly and the skin can crack. To keep cuts from becoming infected I have to be really good about making sure I have band-aids on before I put the gardening gloves on. Hand lotion helps, too.

Take breaks

I have to step inside and warm up between tasks. Sometimes I even have tea to warm up as well (turmeric tea is a great anti-inflammatory option).

Complete tasks indoors if possible

If I need to refill a birdfeeder, I'll try to do it in the garage. Same goes for sorting bulbs, cleaning tools, etc.

Plant lust: 'Black Gold Philodendron'

The Black Gold Philodendron in my living room. This is not its permanent location -
I have it on the other side of the room with my other philodendrons. It gets late day
sun. 

What was I thinking? I let houseplant lust take over during a recent visit to Logee's and I came home with Black Gold Philodendron (Philodendron melanochrysum).

When I saw it the first time, I was struck by the color of its leaves: iridescent black-green with pale green veins. Then I circled back to admire it again and before I knew it I was on my way to the register.

I didn't realize it was a rare plant. (Surely the price should have tipped me off.) I was told at checkout that it is difficult to propagate, which increases its rarity status.

I've been carefully watching it, and trying to decide which place it will be happiest in my home. (It developed that yellow lower leaf when it was too close to my growlights. Now in its new spot, it gets indirect sun in the living room.)

I've been doing some planty research via Google, and it turns out this will become a fairly large plant, and will eventually need a pole to grow on for support. It's poisonous, too, so I need to keep it away from my house rabbits. (I had suspected this when I brought it home.) Eventually, when it's no longer in 'juvenile form' (which mine is now), it will produce 2 foot long leaves. (Whoa.)

See what happens when you let plant lust take over? 😂 It should be interesting to see how this future mammoth plant will fit in my compact home.

Have you ever brought home a plant that was a major splurge? Let me know in the comments below!

Plan for autumn beauty in your garden

One of the images that immediately comes to my mind when I hear the word "garden" is an area that is green, lush and colorful at the height of the summer. 

I think this might be why I haven't fully appreciated the autumn garden for its full splendor in the past. As the daylight wanes and the cooler temperatures rush in, it's difficult to find anything green and lush. 

But it can be colorful in different ways.

Inspired by The High Line

In October and November I always feel rushed to wrap up the season. I usually focus on all the things I need to still complete in the garden, and often miss the decorative show.

But over the past two years I have found myself drawn to Piet Oudolf's garden designs, and as a result, I believe I am developing an appreciation for the seasons that I used to overlook. 

I've made two visits to the High Line (one of Oudolf's designs) — once in in late September 2017 and the second time in July 2018 (I still need to visit this year!) — and I was surprised to find how much I enjoyed the plants in fall. 

It was great timing that the film screening of Five Seasons with Piet Oudolf was shown in Hartford, Connecticut in 2018, which further inspired me. "Beauty is in so many things you wouldn't think of," Oudolf says during the film. 

I think many gardeners, especially those starting out, focus on the "pretty" factor of plants — such as showy annuals with brilliant flowers — which means we can sometimes miss the other beautiful parts of the seasons. 

Asters bloom in late September at the High Line in New York in 2017.

High Line in late September 2017.

Make room for autumn beauty in your garden

I'm beginning to have a new appreciation for autumn. Perhaps it is because the season seems to extend a bit longer each year. (For example, we are just starting nights with frost, which is late since my growing season warns that can occur as early as Oct. 14 most years.)

Because the season is lasting longer, I'm noticing the plants that are left and add interest this late in the season. There are plants that produce berries (that also feed birds). There are grasses that add movement to the garden. 

'Gatsby Moon' Oakleaf Hydrangea has a gorgeous maroon color for fall. In the background are red berries on the winterberry and yellow leaves on the witch hazel.

There are late-blooming mums that feed pollinators.

'Purple Mist' Global Warming Mum blooming in the front garden. 

'Coraligraphy’ mum.

It can be in the promise of spring for next year, with seeds on display.

 Butterfly weed seeds in the setting sunlight.

In the photos above you can see some examples of the plants that stand out in my garden now — in November! You may have different plants that look good where you garden.

Now is the time to take note of what looks good now in your area.  Keep that list handy when you are planning your garden out next year. You can begin to incorporate those autumn-friendly plants and shrubs in your garden over time.