GOODNIGHT GARDEN

Well it had to come eventually. The frost that miraculously held off until after mid-November finally came, more than a month after our first frost last year.

I knew it was coming, but somehow in my gardener's brain I had blocked out how dramatically a hard frost changes the garden overnight. I woke up Saturday morning to brown foliage hanging on plants, pouty petals on the few remaining flowers and a general pallor over the landscape.

Of course the work in the garden is not finished even though if you can mark an end to the gardening season it is certainly the first hard frost. I'll dig dahlias this coming weekend, continue cleaning up the  perennials that add little to the winter landscape and continue to batten down the garden's hatches for winter.

Later Saturday, a brutally cold day with winds that whipped snowflakes around like a snow globe, the sun came out and I saw there was still a little beauty left in the garden afterwards. With the right ray of light, the amber and brown tones so prevalent in the garden now come to life and transform into gold.

This poor 'At Last' Rose was just starting to open when its time was cut short. 

It will have to be enough to hold me over until the sun brings warmth again, several calendar pages from now. Good night, garden. You did well well this year. Thanks for that.

STAYING POSITIVE ABOUT THE END OF SUMMER

The first day of autumn was this week. This depresses me more than it should, and facing winter gets more difficult with each passing year. However, I'm making a concerted effort to be a more positive person, so I give you my list of things to look forward to in fall.

Acer japonicum 'Acontifolium' at its peak color.

1. The world, especially the tiny bit I inhabit, truly is stunningly beautiful in autumn. Ablaze in gold, crimson and orange against a dark blue sky, even a true summer lover like myself can admit it might not ever be more beautiful than when the trees are at their peak color.

Give it a few months and those chopped up leaves with be garden goodness.

2. Leaf mold. Those beautiful leaves only last for a few weeks, but after that they become the key ingredient of my favorite garden amendments.

A bit of inspiration for the DIY basement project I'm hoping to take when the weather gets colder and the garden is put away.

3. It's a good excuse to come inside to work on projects and not feel guilty about missing precious outdoor time. And we can go back to seeing movies for the same reason. Here in the north, no one wastes a day doing anything inside that they don't have to from about June through October because summer weather is just too fleeting.

4. Relarning how to cook. I forget how to cook every summer because it's very easy to just throw together goodies from the garden with some olive oil and balsamic.

5. Football. I love my Badgers and my Packers but I can't really get into football until the leaves are crunching under my feet and a pot of chili is on the stove.

How do you feel about autumn?