So Many Leaves, So Little Time Left: A Cabbagetown Fall Cleanup

There's always a sense of urgency for me every November since the weather can turn nasty quickly while my work calendar is usually booked with fall cleanups. It wasn't different last month from previous Novembers: a full month's worth of bookings disrupted by a mid-month snow blizzard! 

I had good luck though as temperatures rose back to seasonal (i.e., above freezing) which melted most of the snow. So for a week and a half, it was non stop work trying to catch up and close out the season.

After being postponed once, I was able to tidy up this backyard area for a client in Toronto's downtown "Cabbagetown" neighbourhood. 

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup Before

Typical for properties in this neighbourhood, the backyard is quite small, often surrounded by mature trees and "lawn-less". In this specific backyard, the homeowners' two very large Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) trees shed their leaves and seeds every autumn so a nice thick mat of wet leaves greeted me!

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup After 

Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup Before 

Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup After 

I left the yellowing Japanese Forest Grass (Hakonechloa macra) clumps alone, as shown above. They give the client something to look at as they "catch the snow", not an unimportant point given winter here lasts at least 4 months!

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup Before 

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup After 

Cabbagetown Toronto  Fall Backyard Cleanup Before

Cabbagetown Toronto  Fall Backyard Cleanup After

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup Before 

Cabbagetown Toronto Backyard Fall Cleanup After

Toronto Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup Before

Toronto Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup After 

Toronto Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup Before 

Toronto Cabbagetown Backyard Fall Cleanup After