Page 14 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, NOVEmbEr 22, 2024 Saugus Gardens in the Fall Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener N ovember’s full moon was last Friday, and the supermoon caused a “king tide.” Despite there having been so little rain this month, a good-sized puddle formed across Hamilton Street Friday and Saturday, and a small lake in the parking lot of the little mall on Hamilton Street where Dunkin’ recently reopened, as a result of overflow from the Saugus River at the “king tide.” It didn’t help most of our plants, as the water there is still a bit salty from the ocean. Gardeners still need to be watering until we get a hard freeze or several good soakings, especially if there are any new plants put in this year that are just getting their roots established. Thanksgiving is the latest day in November it can be, since the first of November fell on a Friday. One of the most recognizable symbols of Thanksgiving is the cornucopia or horn of plenty, symbolizing abundance. It may originally have been actuA bouquet of three different chrysanthemums and some red peonies show off their colors. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) ally a goat’s horn filled with seasonal fruits, such as corn, apples, gourds, grapes and other edibles harvested from the farm or garden, but now it is more often a horn-shaped woven basket. It was first used in Greek mythology and by the 16th century it was used both literally and figuratively to mean an abundant supply of something. Woven basket cornucopias are a familiar sight as a tabletop decoration almost always associated with Thanksgiving and the gratitude for this abundance. Japanese maThanksgiving is welcomed on the front lawn at the Chadwick home near Saugus Center, not only by a turkey display but a horn of plenty overflowing with big eyed vegetables, some scarecrows and Mickey and Minnie Mouse. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) Japanese maples are among the last of the maples to shed their leaves, and they usually develop bright foliage colors before falling. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) ple (Acer palmatum) trees are getting some chance to show their stuff this fall. This species is a very popular tree in town, because there are so many different varieties and most of the popular ones have a dark reddish leaf color through the growing season which gives a good contrast to the green leaves of most tree species. In the forests of Japan, most of the Japanese maples are actually greenleaved in summer, especially if they are shaded by taller tree species, buildings or simply the crowding that often occurs in a dense forest. Some of the many varieties in this species are the result of careful breeding, while others are discoveries of chance mutations. Regardless of the leaf color in summer, Japanese maples are known also for their vivid red, yellow or orange fall foliage. The tree in the picture above is almost certainly the variety ‘Bloodgood,’ which grows 20-30 feet tall at maturity and is known for keeping the burgundy red leaf color all summer, rarely fading from heat as some varieties do. This cultivar was probably named for the Bloodgood nursery – originally located in New York about 200 years ago – and it has remained one of the most popular and readily available varieties throughout the U.S. Horticulturists consider Japanese maples to include both tree and shrub varieties, since some cultivars are less than 15 feet tall at maturity and may have multiple stems rather than a single trunk. An example of one of these cultivars would be ‘Rhode Island Red,’ which was first discovered at Rhode Island Nurseries in Middletown, Rhode Island. Its mature height is about six feet tall. Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium), called mum for short, is the flower of November. This extremely variable species has many possible shapes to its flower heads. Like other members of the aster family (Asteraceae), these flower heads very often have a daisy shape, with fertile disk florets in the middle and ray flowers around the edges that have petals radiating outward. Some cultivated varieties may be made up entirely of sterile ray florets. Of course, this means that the flower cannot make seeds, so propagation would have to be through cuttings or tissue culture. In the bouquet pictured above, there are three different chrysanthemums and some peonies. We would not expect them to bloom at the same season in any garden, but thanks to the possibilities of greenhouse growing, which can simulate the light and temperatures of different seasons, and rapid transportation, which can bring blossoms from other climates around the world before An outdoor table displays a range of colorful pumpkins, a straw cornucopia full of gourds and glass grapes, a pot of daisy mums, and a turkey figure made of pinecones and shredded wood. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) they fade, it is possible to have late spring peonies and fall chrysanthemums together in the same arrangement. Two of the chrysanthemums in this bouquet are “button” chrysanthemums, which have small flower heads with multiple ray florets. There are yellow and dark purple button mums in this bouquet. Button mums have dense heads usually only an inch or two across and can be found in a wide range of colors: yellow, bronze, orange, purples, pink, red and white. There are also daisy-like mums with longer rays and visible white disk florets in the center. The peonies, like the button mums, are considered double because the multiple petals hide or have completely replaced the center of the flower. Editor’s Note: Laura Eisener is a landscape design consultant who helps homeowners with landscape design, plant selection and placement of trees and shrubs, as well as perennials. She is a member of the Saugus Garden Club and offered to write a series of articles about “what’s blooming in town” shortly after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was inspired after seeing so many people taking up walking A white acorn squash provides the background for two “kissing” swans, which are really some dark green gourds, in a Lynnhurst kitchen. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) The full beaver moon appeared last Friday, visible through the newly leafless trees. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener)
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