Mountain Living - October 2015
Time to gt ready for Winter ... and Spring!
Having lived in Junaluska Highlands for over 7 years now, I have come to view the month of October as one of the best times of the year to be in the mountains of western North Carolina. It is a time of transition from the warm, and sometimes hot, days of summer to the cool days of autumn that suggest colder weather is just around the corner. It is also a time that the sun is lower in the sky, reducing the number of sunlit hours in the day and hastening the departure of the green chlorophyll in the leaves of the trees only to expose the pigments of red, yellow, and orange in our fall foliage, to produce a spectacular show of color. October is also a time of preparation for not only the winter months ahead but for the springtime that follows next year. Cool season grass, such as tall fescue, should be over seeded before the middle of the month. When over seeding lawns a starter fertilizer can be applied along with lime where a soil test suggests. Keep the turf moist, but do not mow the newly germinated grass until it reaches a height of between 2 and 3 inches. A final application of fertilizer should be made in November with 1 lb. of nitrogen per 1000 sq. feet. Gradually lower the cutting level on your lawnmower, but never cut more than 1/3 of the grass height at a time, until you make your final cut at the lowest level at the end of October or early November. This will make the task of leaf removable a little easier. Then in December you can take a break, unless you still have leaves to remove.
October is also the month of many fall festivals in our area. Octoberfest in downtown Asheville (October 10th) presents an opportunity to enjoy German staples like bratwurst, pretzels, and of course beer from the many local craft breweries. The Church Street Art & Craft Show is held on Main Street in historic downtown Waynesville (also October 10th) and offers arts and crafts, local food and live entertainment. Finally, the 2015 Haywood County Apple Harvest Festival is held in downtown Waynesville on October 17th and is always a huge draw for arts and crafts and locally grown apples.
Lastly, our Junaluska Highlands Community Association Annual Membership Meeting will be held on Saturday, October 17th at 2:00pm at the Bethea Welcome Center of the Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center and is open to all lot owners and homeowners in our community. Lots of information will be shared and officers and directors to our Board will be elected. Immediately following the meeting a social will be held as a relaxing end to an event filled day.
That’s all for now, I hope everyone has a great time in the mountains in October.
Mac
