November!  What happened to October??!  From our Canadian Thanksgiving and Hallowe’en celebrations to those amazing Fall colours – what a fast and furious and glorious month it has been!

Our cool, rainy summer resulted in our trees growing large, lush, healthy leaves that, combined with a fairly rainy, overcast mild autumn has given us the most beautiful, long lasting Fall display of colour that we have seen in years!
 
Here it is, the first week in November and, in our neighbourhood, some of the leaves are still on the trees -- although their colours have mellowed from crimsons and bright oranges to softer yellows and golds.  What makes the leaves change from rich, bright greens in the first place? Weather.com www.esf.edu/pubprog/brochure/leaves/leaves.htm gives an easy-to read explanation!
 
Over the past two or three weeks, I have been outside in the garden for an hour or two at a time pulling out the annuals and pruning back the flowering perennials. Today, I have taken some of our fallen leaves and packed them around the base of our smaller trees and bushes – especially the not-quite-as-hardy rhododendrons and azaleas. This will give them a nice warm blanket to help insulate their roots from the snow and ice this winter.
 
(I made sure that the leaves are healthy and don’t show signs of fungus or pests which could easily transfer to my plants.)
 
Next, my plan is to empty the mums and pumpkins out of the pots at our front door and by the back gate. Then I’m off to the country to gather up red twigs from Canada’s native red dogwood. They are the first cutting I’ll put in my pots to get them ready for their winter display.

But before I head out, I’m heading inside for a cup of hot green tea and pecan shortbread. www.barefootcontessa.com/recipes/tbcc-1.shtml
 
Note to Self: Now is the time to jot down what worked and what didn’t in this year’s garden – ie., that lobelia looked lovely at the nursery, but it really didn’t do too well along my back wall (too little sun??) and my bearded irises really grew this year and look jammed in the perennial bed.  Next June I must divide the roots (rhizomes) about two weeks after they flower to give them a chance to spread out and breathe again! And those viburnums will need a good prune…
 
Next week, we’ll be filling our planter at McBlooms with green dogwood twigs as we start to get ready for our 9th Annual Open House on December 3 and 4. If you live in the Toronto area and would like to come – please put it on your calendar -- we’d love to see you! Just give us a call at 877 792 5666 or email jacalyn@mcblooms.com for more information.