The last leaves of Japanese maples cover the front walk. All other trees are bare, curiously with the exception of a Korean Sweetheart tree (Euscaphis japonica) that also held its leaves into December a year ago. I was concerned then, but less so now, though the tree struggled a bit in spring. Since the Sweetheart…

The white flowered dogwood (Cornus florida) in the front garden has suffered various maladies over recent decades, but none threaten its survival, it seems. While a number of galls are concerning, most disappointing is the annual leaf spotting and powdery mildew by mid-summer that deforms leaves and diminishes autumn leaf coloring. Spring flowering is not…

There are two questions pertinent to this twenty-four degree morning. What effect will there be on the garden? And, why was I headed to work on a chilly Saturday morning? At least I’m home early. The heavy frost has melted in a sunny morning, which has now turned to a cloudy afternoon. Today is far…

Sadly, locating the garden’s newest acquisition, the evergreen ‘Empress of China’ dogwood (Cornus elliptica ‘Elsbry’, below), was not difficult. The tree was purchased assuming that it would be shoehorned into some marginally acceptable spot, which is perfectly acceptable practice in this garden. Two Pagoda dogwoods planted earlier in the year were fit perfectly to stand…

A week of overnight temperatures below thirty degrees has ended flowering of toad lilies (Tricyrtis) and most of the reblooming Encore azaleas. The lone azalea holdout, ‘Autumn Amethyst’ (below), will often flower into December, and of course I have no idea why this flower tolerates the cold while others fade overnight. Outdoor thermometers stuck to…

Five nights below freezing have started the foliage decline of the garden’s paperbushes (Edgeworthia chrysantha, below). Wilted leaves will be followed closely by yellowing, and then foliage will drop to expose the large flower buds that should begin showing color in early to late February. Several paperbushes have grown to twenty feet in width, much…

Tender mangaves and questionably cold hardy, orange flowered osmanthus have been dug and banished to the basement for the winter, but several maybe and perhaps cold hardy shrubs will be left outdoors for the winter. ‘Spider’s Web’ fatsia has been outdoors for three winters, the first when it was protected by a basket of shredded…

Oakleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia, below) flower dependably in part sun and shade, though the large blooms are more scattered in the deeply shaded canopy beneath maples and tulip poplars along the edge of the garden. With any degree of filtered sunlight they are wide spreading and colorful hydrangeas, highlighted as much by their autumn foliage…

The first of several nights forecast to drop several degrees below freezing did surprisingly little damage to the garden. Unsurprisingly, annual coleus and pelargonium are nearly gone, and a few fading azalea blooms faded more quickly, but otherwise the slow descent of the garden into winter dormancy was not accelerated as expected. Toad lily (Tricyrtis)…

Today is the dreaded day when tropicals must be brought indoors, into the dark basement for most, or for ones slightly more cold hardy, into the small greenhouse. Both areas have limited space, and with a few additions this year I’m hopeful that all will fit. I’ve added sheets of greenhouse plastic to the roof…

The garden is rapidly descending into its winter dormancy. Make no mistake, this is not ascending, no matter how the gardener views the more scattered highlights of late autumn and winter. Flowers are fading, leaves are turning, and on a breezy afternoon the stone paths are littered with fallen leaves. Soon, paths will be covered…