Leaves of maples in the forest bordering the garden have been the first to fall. With every gust of wind another layer of fluffy leaf cover is added. This will settle following a few daylong rains or the first light snow. Already, hellebores and green and golds (Chrysogonum virginianum) are buried, most until late winter when I stir from hibernation to resume work in the garden.

Paths will be cleared and hellebores exposed so their winter flowers can be enjoyed, but most leaves will remain in place to decay. This morning, I stumbled on a leaf covered, irregular stone in the path as a reminder that these should be cleared sooner than later.

The falling leaves are mostly yellow with a few deep red leaves of dogwoods (Cornus florida) in the mix. Burgundy colored leaves of Oakleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia, above) will not drop until December with some holding into the new year.

Following several frosty nights that dropped near freezing, nighttime temperatures have been milder. A number of plants continue to flower. The common witch hazels (Hamamelis virginiana, above) are at their peak, and rarely are temperatures cold enough to interrupt their flowering that should soon fade. The autumn flowering camellias continue at their peak though blooms can be damaged if temperatures should dip into the mid-twenties (Fahrenheit). That’s unlikely through November, so there could be another several weeks of camellia blooms.

Oddly, several toad lilies (Tricyrtis spp., below) are flowering on stems of browned leaves. The blooms should not last long, and of course, most have faded in recent weeks.

The clematis that scrambles up the ‘Butterfly’ Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Butterfly’) has added several blooms to the unexpected few that followed our chilly nights. Its leaves have been brown for weeks, so the flowering was a surprise (below).