How Do You Know It's REALLY Fall?

Seasonal signs, Pennsylvania olive groves and more Rootbound Clippings

Oct 17, 2025

The trees in our yard are still covered in leaves. The neighbors’ giant zinnia patch is blooming. There are plenty of tomatoes to be harvested in our veggie patch. But I know it’s fall. That’s because the sign went up in the cemetery. I forgot to take a photo of it but it says something about how all graveside decorations must be cleaned up by early October.

The leaves can change color early or late. Pittsburgh might get its first frost sometime in September or it might not happen till November. But that sign always goes up around the same time and I know we’re at a transition point. I see that seasonal landmark appear in the cemetery and I know that there’s no going back.

How do you know that it’s fall? What are your signs of the season?

This is an installment of Rootbound Clippings, a round-up of plant-related things I’ve seen and thought about recently.

Your Favorite Part of the Garden

I’m always sharing photos of my garden but now I want to see yours! Will you send me a couple photos of your garden so that I can share them with the whole Rootbound community?

Here’s a photo of a collapsing planter box in our front yard.

You can send a wide shot of your raised beds, a close-up of a pollinator visiting your milkweed or anything else that delights you. Email those photos, along with a brief description, to boaz.frankel@gmail.com (or you can just reply to this email).

A Tiny Huge Estate

Alex and Andrew are Pittsburgh gardeners who were inspired by Dumbarton Oaks, a historic Washington DC estate, with an impressive garden by noted landscape architect Beatrix Farrand. They were struck by the landscape and wanted to recreate some of the garden’s features but instead of having a dozen acres, they only had about 1/7th of an acre.

I took a tour of their small but mighty garden this past summer as part of Talk Pittsburgh’s Summer Garden Series. These two certainly had ambitious plans and it’s impressive to see how they brought them to life.

The Olive Grove in the Middle of Pennsylvania

I’ve only been to Longwood Gardens once but I often think about the epic green wall that lines the hallway to the restrooms. Since my last visit, they’ve built a new 32,000 square foot glasshouse that recreates a Mediterranean environment complete with a grove of 100-year-old olive trees (that they trucked cross-country from California). The space looks incredible and I’m excited to see it in person one day but until then I’ve been enjoying this documentary about the creation of the project.

Mums the Word

Phipps Conservatory has the longest running Fall Flower Show in the country. They staged their first show in 1894 and this year’s theme is “Visions of Japan.” Phipps’ various display rooms are full of colorful lanterns, fans, gates and a pagoda covered in cascading mums.

Mums have a very short and specific flowering period and it takes a lot of careful planning to ensure that their blooming period coincides with the three week show. Depending on the weather leading up to the show, the horticulture team might have to cool the mum greenhouses or shade them to ensure they don’t bloom too early or too late. You can see the blooms for yourself through Sunday, October 26th.

Are there mums blooming in your yard? What are your signs of the season? I’d love to hear about them.