Instead of leaves I see houses in the distance, the last of the blazing orange Japanese maples were stripped in the wind and rain earlier in the week. Wet leaves are ankle-deep in the garden, and I bemoan the drab winter ahead with the red berries of hollies (below) and nandinas the only bright colors….

Don’t bother me, I’m busy! There’s no time to visit, no guests permitted. Not until the leaves are raked, chopped, hauled, and piled in the compost heap. The dahlias, cannas, and elephant ears have been dug, cleaned, dried, and now must be bagged with dry leaves and set on shelves in the garage nearest the…

A blast of sub-freezing temperatures late last week ruined the flowers of toad lilies, Encore Fall blooming azaleas, and roses. The azaleas and roses have numerous unopened buds that were tightly wrapped, and thus insulated from the freeze. If the weather stays mild, if nighttime lows don’t drop too far into the low-thirties, then we’ll…

I didn’t plant Japanese maples in my garden for their Autumn foliage color, but many are notable for their brilliant and varied hues. In fact, I believe that the most spectacular leaves in the garden are from the Full Moon, or Fern Leaf maple (Acer japonicum ‘Aconitifolium’, two photos below). From every angle you walk around Fern Leaf…

Fall color

Perhaps it’s too early to be late in the month, but that’s really not the point. There are flowers in the garden, lots of them, and this is Virginia in October, northern Virginia, closer to the mountains than the shelter of the city. Nighttime lows have fallen into the mid thirties, and there are not…

… I end up sitting on a rainbow. Lack of planning, reliance on hindsight rather than foresight, failure to learn from one’s mistakes. Guilty, guilty, and guilty again. Perhaps on a frosty evening in January,  or with the first inkling of Spring when the snowdrops are blooming, then we’ll delve into the commission of these…