Page 14 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – WEDnESDAy, nOVEmbEr 27, 2024 Saugus Gardens in the Fall Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener A s we advance quickly toward winter, attention begins to turn toward evergreens in the garden. While many people expect all needle-leaved trees to keep their foliage year-round, there are several species that lose their leaves in fall. Among these are the larches, with widely available species including European larch (Larix decidua), American larch – also known as tamarack – (Larix laricina) and Japanese larch (Larix kaempferi). Both the Stanley Egan memorial garden and the rotary in Cliftondale Square have weeping European larches (Larix decidua pendula). Both trees are quite colorful right now, as their foliage is golden, a contrast to the bright green they have been all summer. The winter silhouette after the leaves have fallen is interesting, and the new growth in the spring is a soft, tender green. Larch needles are about an inch long and grow in clusters alternating along the stems. The larch genus (Larix) is a member of the pine family (Pinaceae), as are spruces (Picea Some varieties of flint corn ears produce kernels in a kaleidoscope of colors. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) spp.) and firs (Abies spp.). The bluish needled evergreen tree beside it in the photo above is probably a ‘Montgomery’ Colorado spruce (Picea pungens ‘R. H. Montgomery’). Among the popular ThanksNorway maples often keep their golden fall foliage into December – this one also has retained a pair of winged seeds. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) A chickadee perches on the weathervane looking for its Thanksgiving dinner. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) giving and harvest decorations are colorful ears of corn and the tan stems and foliage of cornstalks. We used to hang a bunch of three ears of corn on our door around Thanksgiving time, until the night my mother and I were awakened at 3 a.m. by a loud and insistent banging on the door. Terrified, we made our way to a window that overlooked the front steps, and I climbed on some furniture to see who might be at the door making such a racket at that hour. At first, I saw no one, but then I suddenly focused on a blue jay gripping the corn and biting off kernels – the noise was the ears of corn attached to the knocker falling back against the door. Of course, when we looked out in the morning, there were some big gaps in the ears where kernels had been. I think of this memory every year around this time when I bring out the ornamental corn to decorate our fireplace ledge or hang from wreath hangers inside the house. Flint corn (Zea mays indurata) includes variants within the same species as the soft kernelled corn eaten on the cob in late summer, but with harder, often multicolored kernels. With a lower moisture content, it is able to stand up to more extreme changes in temperature, and if kept away from the hungry birds and other wildlife can be stored for years and brought out to enliven the fall decorations year after year. Kernel colors range from occasional yellow through many shades of red, purplish, gray, white, black and occasionally even turquoise. Some of these were bred originally to grind for corn flour, but ears may as often be sold as ornamental varieties. ‘Mandan Bride’ is an heirloom variety grown by the Mandan Tribe of South Dakota, which is very popular for the many kernel colors in the ears. A more recently produced variety with jewel toned kernels is known as “Glass Gem.” Sometimes these corn cultivars are referred to as “calico corn” to emphasize their colorfulness and distinguish them from corn bred for food rather than decorative purposes. Some of these are still usable for making cornmeal or for popping, if you are growing your own from seed. Some of our summer birds have migrated to regions farther south than Saugus, while others have left northerly locations and are content to spend the winter here. The blackcapped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus, state bird of Massachusetts) is one of many species we can expect to see all year round. A dwarf Colorado spruce and weeping larch are two interesting conifers at the Stanley Egan memorial garden at the intersection of Howard and Main Streets. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) This Japanese maple at the Stanley Egan memorial garden has a distinctive shape because of its pruning style, which makes the branch structure stand out, especially in winter. (Photo courtesy of Laura Eisener) I only saw one or two at my birdfeeder during most of this summer, but several seem to be regular visitors now. While these birds are quite small and tend to stop by only when the larger birds like mourning doves and bluejays are not flocking to the feeders, chickadees seem to be among the most tolerant of the presence of people. They only fly a short distance away when I go out into the garden. The town has been readying the trees in Saugus Center for our annual tree lighting on Friday, December 6, so the lights are already in place on the rotary, Town Hall grounds and elsewhere. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! There are leaves clinging to some trees, notably many of the Norway maples (Acer platanoides), which still have plenty of golden leaves even after this past weekend’s wind and rain. There are also quite a few deciduous shrubs and perennials that still have not shed their foliage. Here and there in warm spots, there are still flowers blooming this year even as we get ready to turn the calendar page to December. 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.
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