A Toronto Fall Front Garden Cleanup in the Palmerston Area

Wrapping up Another Successful Season!

Winter has arrived, weather-wise anyway, so I've begun my annual "hibernation" until next spring. By mid to late November, I'm more than ready to "throw in the trowel" as I'm mentally and physically drained from working, more or less, non stop from late April. And working in the November cold isn't appealing, to be honest.

This post shows a very typical, for me, fall garden cleanup during mid October into November. Perennials are entering winter dormancy, tree leaves are everywhere and certain clients want that "tidy" garden look over the winter.

I visit this garden once a year in October and cut down the herbaceous material (e.g., the Ostrich Fern fronds, the Japanese Forest Grass leaves, etc.), rake up the maple leaves from a neighbouring tree, lightly clip the wintercreeper and remove the rambunctious honeysuckle vine that always wants to engulf the poor weeping Japanese maple.

Toronto Fall Cleanup Before

Toronto Fall Cleanup Before 

Toronto Fall Cleanup Before

Toronto Fall Cleanup Before

Toronto Fall Cleanup Before

Afterwards, you can see the stone path and dry river bed that is part of the design. It's quite cute but is hidden by summer by the ferns and grasses.

Toronto Fall Cleanup After

Toronto Fall Cleanup After 

Toronto Fall Cleanup After

Toronto Fall Cleanup After 

Toronto Fall Cleanup After

So I bid adieu to this garden until next October!

A Little Italy-Palmerston Backyard Garden Cleanup

Revealing Potential for a Toronto Pollinator Garden?

It seems that with every garden cleanup ("rescue" is a better word for this post as you'll see later) I complete, that question comes to mind. It was certainly the case with this project I finished for a client in the central Toronto area of Little Italy/Palmerston. The backyard garden bed was hidden by weeds, Virginia Creeper and an overgrown rose but once I tidied up things, I easily imagined the garden full of colour and life.

But here are some "before" pictures showing the overgrown garden bed and lawn:

Little Italy Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before

Little Italy Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before

Palmerston Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before in Little Italy 

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before in Little Italy 

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before in Palmerston 

Afterwards....

And here are some "after" pictures, post weeding and pruning:

Little Italy Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After 

Little Italy Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After 

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After in Little Italy

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After in Little Italy 

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After in Little Italy 

Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After in Palmerston

The bed is quite deep in certain areas so there's potential (that word again) to fill this bed with many flower-bearing native and non-native perennials and shrubs, given it faces south and east and receives full sun for part of the day.

Alas, it's a rental property (which may explain the state of things before I was hired) and the odds that weeds will reappear and re-establish are high. But I've given the owner and tenants a blank slate so the ball is in their court, to mix metaphors.

A Cabbagetown Backyard Garden Cleanup

A Short Summer Weeding Session in Downtown Toronto

It's late August in hot and hazy Toronto: a bittersweet time when Labour Day is around the corner, school for the kids starts again and summer is unofficially over.

But in the meantime, the weeding doesn't stop!

"Darlene" (a pseudonym) is new client from the central Toronto neighbourhood called Cabbagetown and hired me to tidy up her backyard. Gardens in Cabbagetown are typically narrow but long and usually in shade given the numerous mature trees.

For various reasons, Darlene never got to weeding the back patio and surrounding beds this season as these "before" pictures suggest:

Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup Before

Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup Before

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup Before

Toronto Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup Before

Toronto Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup Before

Cabbagetown Toronto Summer Garden Cleanup Before

Afterwards....

While weeding was a big part of this short session, the longer term maintenance issue is the regular pruning of the Virginia Creeper vines spilling over all three fences from the neighbour's garden.

Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup After

Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup After

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Garden Cleanup After

Cabbagetown Toronto Summer Garden Cleanup After

Toronto Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup After

Toronto Cabbagetown Summer Garden Cleanup After

Fall cleanups are around the corner and I'm sure, dear reader, you're waiting with great anticipation hoping to see many plants entering dormancy (sarcasm!)

A Front Tiered Garden Cleanup in Parkdale

When You Can't See the Retaining Walls from the Vines

I can't believe it's the middle of summer already here in Toronto. I'm in the midst of another busy work season but vacation time is in sight! Until then, the weeding and pruning continue unabated.

I'm taking you to the west Toronto neighbourhood of Parkdale in this post to go over a recent cleanup of a two tiered front garden. At first glance, as the "before" pictures below suggest, you may not even be aware of the second upper retaining wall, given the heavy growth:

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup Before 

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup Before 

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup Before

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup Before 

Toronto Front Garden Cleanup in Parkdale Before 

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup Before 

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup Before

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup Before 

Retaining Walls Revealed!

I don't know when the shrubs were last pruned or the raised beds weeded (neither do the new homeowners when I innocently asked) but obviously things were a little out of control!

So I imposed some "control" and "discipline" by pruning the spirea shrubs hard, removing a dead juniper and weed tree saplings, cutting away the wild grape vine and Boston Ivy to expose the retaining wall faces, among other tasks.

Quite a difference, it's safe to say.

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup After

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup After 

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup After

Parkdale Toronto Front Garden Cleanup After 

Toronto Front Garden Cleanup in Parkdale After 

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup After 

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup After 

Toronto Parkdale Front Garden Cleanup After