One Last Fall Cleanup Post This Season, I Promise!
For the half dozen readers who still read my blog, I want to say "Thank You" for enduring the recent deluge of fall cleanup "before and after" posts. So without further delay, today I'll cover one more!
I've mentioned this in the past and will continue to state that a "fall cleanup" more often than not isn't necessary from a purely horticultural perspective.
(Now before you slam me for being hypocritical for taking on such work in autumn, please kindly remember that I operate a business and fall cleanups make up about a third of my income. There's nothing unethical or illegal about cutting down old perennial stalks and flowers, removing leaves from beds and pruning shrubs for dead, diseased or interfering branches; instead, there are "pros" and "cons" you may consider for doing such work now or next spring as a homeowner with a garden.
Which is a roundabout way of saying that it's your garden and you can do or not do whatever you want.)
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| Fall Clean up Toronto Bedford Park Front Garden before |
Cynthia, a new client, hired me to tidy up the front and back gardens before winter slams into Toronto. The front raised bed has an assortment of typical perennials like irises, daylilies and hostas with some broadleaved evergreens thrown in for winter interest like Euonymus and Holly. From a purely non-scientific survey in my head, it seems 90% of the gardens I've seen across this fair city have one or a combination of these five landscape plants. If you add "Annabelle" Smooth Hydrangea (or any hydrangea), spireae, and "Emerald" cedar into the mix, that figure will go to 99%.
I've always been a bit of a contrarian and question why these plants are so popular. Oh, I know some of the likely reasons: they're relatively inexpensive (because they're easy and quick to propagate), hardy to our zone, and can be readily found wherever you (or your contractor) pick up your lumber or plumbing.
Anyway, I'm digressing again so back to the cleanup:
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| Fall Cleanup Toronto Bedford Park Front Garden before |
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| Toronto Fall Clean up Bedford Park Front Garden before |
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| Toronto Fall Cleanup Bedford Park Front Garden before |
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| Fall Clean up Toronto Bedford Park Backyard Garden before |
In the narrow backyard bed, there was a herbaceous peony and many more daylilies to cut down. You can also see the neighbour's Virginia Creeper not respecting the property line below.
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| Toronto Fall Cleanup Bedford Park Backyard Garden before |
Afterwards....
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| Fall Clean up Toronto Bedford Park Front Garden after |
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| Fall Cleanup Toronto Bedford Park Front Garden after |
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| Toronto Fall Clean up Bedford Park Front Garden after |
The white rocks scattered in the bed as shown above may be a mystery to you. It's the client's idea to have a pea gravel path winding through the bed. Obviously, we need more gravel!
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| Toronto Fall Cleanup Bedford Park Front Garden after |
I think we can do so much better than having three "Emerald Gaiety" wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei 'Emerald Gaiety') at the front. Overused and prone to pests and diseases like scale, Anthracnose, and crown gall so I wouldn't mind seeing these shovel pruned in the future.
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| Fall Clean up Toronto Bedford Park Backyard Garden after |
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| Toronto Fall Cleanup Bedford Park Backyard Garden after |
My work season officially ended yesterday (in other words, I haven't received any new calls) and I'm looking forward to my annual 4 month hiatus or, as my wife describes it, hibernation. Actually, that latter description is accurate since, by next April, I'll have gained weight and be a little grouchy about not working outside! It's been another wonderful work season. I've met some wonderful new clients (and some not so wonderful ones) and continue to work with my old customers. While there were some terribly hot, humid, wet and frigid days which made working outside dangerous or tough, I've never complained. The alternative of working in an office full time is too horrible a scenario to fathom!
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