Down by the Muskoka lakeside

Another beautiful Canadian Thanksgiving at the Lake Muskoka cottage

A crisp fall morning walk is rewarded by this view

Autumn has descended all too quickly for us in southern Ontario and while our summer annuals (those that haven't been chucked out for mums and kale) on on their last legs, the fall colours of our native deciduous trees and shrubs are peaking. Here are some reminders why I love our four seasons taken over our Thanksgiving weekend visit to my sister and my brother-in-law's cottage near Gravenhurst, ON:

Windy and cool but no water skiers to disrupt the peace

Vibrant orange autumn maple and sumac leaves

Isn't it amazing how the chlorophyll is drawn out randomly?

A final reminder of a wonderful season

By Paul Jung, author of "garden muses: a Toronto gardening blog"Google Google Find us on Google+ Find us on Google+

Booking Toronto fall cleanups now!

Book now for 2012 fall cleanups, bulb planting, pruning and weeding 

Call me at 416-515-2780 or e-mail me at info (at) pauljungardening.com

Make the most of your time this autumn with Paul Jung Gardening Services!

Fall Ginkgo biloba tree in Toronto

Fall "Bloodgood" Japanese Maple 

(Acer palmatum "Bloodgood")

A rose (of sharon) by any other name...

The Hibiscus family in late summer Toronto

Quite a few readers who stumble upon this blog through a post from last year titled "Freaking floriferous! (Yes, I admit, Rose of Sharons look nice right now)" are really in love with the Rose of Sharon and perennial hibiscus blooming profusely for about 2 months in Toronto. I kind of see why the love is shown but Hibiscus syriacus hybrids aren't on my top ten list for shrubs. The blooms don't have a scent and turn to mush when they drop, there's no fruit, bazillion seedlings often appear, the shrub doesn't have a strong structure or interesting bark, etc. The H. moscheutos perennials normally bloom late in the year and often need some babying with extra mulching to get it through a harsh winter in our city. And the tropical hibiscus many buy in the spring as standards are doomed by November.

No matter. People still whisk these guys off the garden centre shelves,  like anything else blooming. 


So to satisfy those with Hibiscus fever, here are some shots I took around the 'hood.

Hibiscus syriacus "Red Heart"

Hibiscus syriacus "Lavender Chiffon"

Hibiscus syriacus "Lavender Chiffon" backlit

Hibiscus syriacus "China Chiffon"

Hibiscus syriacus "China Chiffon"

Hibiscus moscheutos "Luna Rose"

Hibiscus moscheutos "Kopper King"

 Hibiscus moscheutos "Luna White"

"High Voltage"  tropical hibiscus at
the Allan Gardens Conservatory 

By Paul Jung, author of "garden muses: a Toronto gardening blog"Google Google Find us on Google+ Find us on Google+

An informal hedge...

When Edward Scissorhands met Henry Moore

Making a statement with topiary!

I pass by this house every month on the way to visit a client and simply marvel at the artist's vision/chutzpah. What's going through his mind as he clips away, transforming a fugly and ancient siberian elm hedge into...well, its hard to describe.

Free-form? Post-modern? Conceptual?

Would a wall of boxwood trimmed compulsively elicit anything close a response? Unlikely.

You bump into people like this everyday. Outwardly seemingly normal but given some sharp hedge clippers and a lot of time, fantastic ideas and forms spring forward. Perhaps not the words this guy's neighbour uses but anyway...

Concave or convex? Depends on where you're standing

How can a shrub trigger a memory? When I first saw this:

It takes a steady hand...

I was reminded of  Henry Moore's commissioned work installed in 1966 in Toronto's new city hall. Officially, it's called "Three-Way Piece No.  2" but most people know it as "the Archer"  located in Nathan Phillips Square. I remember playing in and around the structure as a very small and young child, the metal hot to the touch with the sunlight drenching the square.

Funny how this association occurred....

By Paul Jung, author of "garden muses: a Toronto gardening blog"Google Google Find us on Google+ Find us on Google+

Toronto's James Gardens, in Technicolor

Why do people love bedding plants so much?

Every summer visit I make to my client D.'s house in the western part of Toronto called Etobicoke, I  spend a few minutes at James Gardens nearby. Why? I can be assured that the flower beds will assault my retinas with electric blasts of yellow, pink, and orange foliage and petals. A little masochistic, I admit, but after tending a few "white and green only!" gardens, a little colour therapy is helpful to jolt the creative juices. So, if you are blessed/cursed with a ton of space, full sun and deep pockets,  follow the lead of the Gardens' planners and go Victorian with these bedding annuals I seen used (the list is not comprehensive, I'm sure I missed some): catharanthus, celosia, angelonia, zinnia, canna, salvia, gerbera daisies, gloriosa daisies, gazania, ricinus.

The castor bean plants are always impressive with their foliage

Same feeling with the dark cannas!

Coleus in full sun, with the requisite irrigation system in place

Pink and yellow, pink and yellow....

Why I love lantana!

Softer pastels with the Russian sage and pink hibiscus

Late summer means Perovskia, Hydrangea paniculata, Echinacea, Hibiscus

By Paul Jung, author of "garden muses: a Toronto gardening blog"Google Google Find us on Google+ Find us on Google+