November in the Northern Hemisphere

[Robert]

I have not composted the Salvia chiapenisis yet, however they have still been blooming well all autumn. Depending on the winter weather they might bloom all winter.

[Hoy]

Robert, I would not have the heart to compost a salvia (or any other plant) still in flower!

Not much to see in the garden today but as the weather was very nice (except a cold breeze from north) we went for a walk to Ådnafjell, the nearest "mountain" 126m asl!

The path was very wet due to the rain the last month.




Where cattle and sheep once grazed - The pastures are little used today and birch wood has established itself. Birch is a pioneer tree and very quick to invade any empty space.




Small lakes, tarns and bogs dot the landscape and hundred, if not thousands of small waterways connect them.




In drier places pines have started to establish. A foreign conifer, sitka spruce, is planted and spread a lot here.




Different kind of small shrubs cover the landscape where trees are still lacking. The soil here is a very shallow mineral soil as it was a big wildfire 60 years ago. The fire consumed the turf completely.

[Hoy]

A waterfall - to small to use for electricity. Trouts spawn in this creek.




The commonest "grass" is Trichophorum cespitosum.




It is the middle of the day but the sun is so low in the sky that it is more like evening.




The hills in west prevent us from seeing the ocean.




At the summit. The view to east is unhindered for several kilometers. No snow except on one mountain top a long way to the east.

[Hoy]

Erica cinerea. A common sight here and very nice when in flower. The honey from this shrub is excellent! (I know,I had bees for 20+ years).




Erica tetralix. Also common but on moister sites. Makes also a nice honey (usually mixed with the first one).




Narthesium ossifrgum. Typical on poor moist acidic soil.




Spent strobili of Lycopodium clavatum.




Potamogeton polygonifolius (and P. alpina) are common in the waterways.

[Hoy]

The common juniper (Juniperus communis) dominates the landscape. It is a very variable species, with any shape from low ground hugging to treelike. Here is a selection.

Prostrate -




columnar -




mat formed -




What do you call this forms?




or these?

[Gabriela]

Very nice Trond  Your pictures show extremely well the variability in J. communis.

[Robert]

Robert, I would not have the heart to compost a Salvia (or any other plant) still in flower!

Trond,

No composting of the Salvia!     

What I intend to do is sheet compost the open ground that I spaded and will be planting. I will cover the ground with home made compost.

I have to admit that I grow ornamental annuals and perennials like an agricultural crop. Every winter I dig the perennials and move them to the side temporarily. Then I shade the planting area, apply home made compost, greensand, kelp meal, and phosphate rock. After that I work the above ingredients into top surface of the soil - and reset the perennials that I put to the side. I know, it sounds like a lot of work! What can I say..... I was a farmer (in some ways I guess I still am a farmer), I just like doing such things.    At least everything grows well.

Trond,

I am always impressed with the beauty of Norway!    I think that it is great that you share photographs from what might be an unassuming walk for you. The photographs always give me something good to ponder.

The Sitka Spruce brought up memories of when I traveled frequently along the Oregon coast. This is prime native habitat for Stika Spruce and they grow huge. I was in my late 20's - early 30's at this time. I gathered seed, brought it home and planted it. It is hard to believe but a few of the little seedlings have grown into small trees and survive at the farm.

Trout in the Creeks reminds me of the Salmon in Deer Creek north of Chico, California. There are no dams on Deer Creek and the Salmon still run well into the mountains in Deer Creek. Ishi, the last of the Yahi, could dive into the water and catch them with his bare hands! Actually this is nothing.... our Native American friends (Concow Maidu - just south of the Yahi) are guest in our home now and they have fascinating stories!

My best friend George was a bee keeper - George RIP    .

Do some Juniperus communis grow columnar naturally in the wild? or have the columnar ones naturalized from cultivated plants?

Anyway, I enjoyed the photographs immensely!  Thank you.

[Hoy]

Very nice Trond  Your pictures show extremely well the variability in J. communis.

Thanks Gabriela  

[Hoy]

Robert,

Regarding compost I usually use composted leaves etc as potting soil mixed with recycled soil but I compost very little of the fallen leaves. I mulch my plantings with it in stead. (The downside is that the mulch also is perfect for hatching snails.)

Glad you like the pictures although the flora and landscape around here are not the most exciting for me.  I know from my own experience though that what seems to be boring and common for the locals may well be interesting for others.

Sitka spruce is much used in plantations here at the west coast. It is a faster grower than the native Picea abies but the wood of the sitka spruce has been considered inferior to the other. Now sitka spruce is black listed. Too late, it seeds itself everywhere.

The native juniper (J. communis) is used very little as an ornamental in the garden. A few selected cultivars have been for sale without great success. Other kinds of foreign conifers are preferred. So all the columnar and other forms are natural and you find them many places. In the 19th century huge quantities of fence posts made of juniper wood were exported, especially to Denmark.

Not suitable as fence pole:

[Tristan_He]

Very nice Trond! I could take a surprisingly similar series of photos here, though we don't have so many mountains or much juniper left. Sitka spruce is a problem here too. That looks like quite an acid area, has acidification been a problem in those parts?

Best, Tristan

[Hoy]

Thanks Tristan 

It is naturally very acidic here except near the sea shore and a few places with other kind of bedrock than the predominate gneiss and granite. The acidification from industrial smoke was much worse at the south coast. Now the problem is not as big as it was though.

[Gabriela]

End of November with a ray of sunshine and Crocus ochroleucus still going strong  over the past 2 weeks it’s been through days with -10C, snow, strong winds and freezing rain. Deserves a mention.

[Robert]

End of November with a ray of sunshine and Crocus ochroleucus still going strong  over the past 2 weeks it’s been through days with -10C, snow, strong winds and freezing rain. Deserves a mention.

I'll say that deserves a mention! 

That is one tough plant! Freezing rain? I did not think any flowers could withstand freezing rain!

What a lovely display, 2 week and they still look like they are going strong. I missed my autumn Crocus this year.    They did bloom and are still alive - I was just out of town when they bloomed. 

[Maggi Young]

I was just feeling a bit sorry for myself with the  weather here when I read Gabriela's note. I take it all back!

[Hoy]

End of November with a ray of sunshine and Crocus ochroleucus still going strong  over the past 2 weeks it’s been through days with -10C, snow, strong winds and freezing rain. Deserves a mention.

Very nice, Gabriela! It surely deserves a mention!

I have never dared to plant late flowering crocuses as we lack sun in November. Maybe I should give it a try!