In and Around the Garden

Silver maple leaves litter my driveway with golden hues and playful piles, a pretty sight this time of year. The leaves in the perennial garden aren’t as appealing. Brown, dull oak and yellow locust leaves are caught in every inch of every shrub, vine, groundcover, annual, and the soil.

The trees are undressing faster than I have time to gather their discarded clothing. Until last weekend, my rake hadn’t slipped across the beds in weeks. The landscape (and my life) felt unmanageable. I couldn’t stand the unkempt grounds any longer. Another week and the garden would be such a mess a crew would have to be hired. That’s not in my budget. Therefore, I shifted priorities and spent some time in the garden. First on the agenda was the entrance. 

It’s been several years since I first bought my first flat of Chrysanthemums (paludosum) for cool season color. Every year since, when summer’s heat skyrockets, the chrysanthemums dry up and spill seeds like sugar. Then when fall returns the seeds germinate between the flagstones. Once they reach transplanting size, I relocate them. This year there was enough to fill the beds edging the entrance and three areas in the garden. FREE seasonal flowers. I call that nature’s blessings.

Second on the garden agenda, were the leaves, millions-and-millions of leaves. The job of raking (and some trimming) turned into a two-day effort. Fortunately, my husband helped with the bagging. He’s amazing. Then, at the end of the day, wind dispensed its humor across the grounds. Soft laughter blew through the branches and tilting shadows as millions-and-millions of leaves fluttered downward onto my clean garden floor.

The landscape still feels unmanageable. But I feel better for the effort.