4 THINGS TO DO NOW FOR A GREAT GARDEN NEXT YEAR

The garden is looking remarkably good for this time of year, but things will change quickly, so now is the time to take care of a few jobs to prepare for next year. Here are four things you can do right now to have a great garden next year.

I cleared out the half of the patio garden that I will be redoing. I incorporated a good amount of compost and raked it out and now the area is ready for planting either this fall or, more likely, next spring. Photos of the area from a variety of angles will help me plan this winter. 

1. TAKE PICTURES
They don't have to be pretty, but if you haven't been taking photos of your garden all summer, now is the time to whip out your camera or your phone and take a lot of pictures from different angles. Trust me. You think you're going remember what your garden looks like, but come February you'll be wondering what plants are lurking out there. And knowing what's out there will make it that much easier and that much more fun to do a little mid-winter garden planning.

2. TAKE NOTES
If you have a memory better than mine, mental notes should do just fine, but otherwise write down a few notes about what you want to change or reassess next year. I've printed out pictures in the past and written right on them, but even a list in the "Notes" app on my phone has come through in a pinch.

3. KEEP UP ON THE WATERING
Personal experience (and common sense) has taught me that plants that go into their winter hibernation happy instead of stressed fair much better through whatever winter can throw at them. The only thing that's less fun than dragging a hose around the garden is dragging a hose around the garden while you're wearing a parka, but it will be so worth it come spring.

4. PLANT A FEW BULBS
Even if you don't go hog wild on the bulbs, at least plant a few. The joy they bring after a long, gray winter is immeasurable. I've gone years without planting any new bulbs and have regretted it every time. 

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL

I spent most of Sunday in the garden, which was a real treat. It's fun to garden at this time of year, because most jobs fall under the "pottering" category. I spent a lot of time with my compost, sifting five wheelbarrows full and top-dressing parts of the garden with it. I still have about half a bin of finished compost to do and I couldn't be more thrilled. The sifting part is hard, but my whole composting operation was a real success this year.

This is the time of year when I naturally take stock of the garden. Most plants have peaked by now and it's easy to see where things have worked and where they haven't worked. I started taking some photos for a post on analyzing this year's garden and I realized that is a difficult thing to do. I don't like showing photos of the less attractive parts of the garden.

So I stopped and took a bunch of close up shots. These are a complete cop-out. Any gardener can find a few flowers that look great at any given time. But they are still interesting. So, while I work up the mental fortitude to show some of the less successful parts of my garden, I thought I'd just show some pretty pictures of pretty flowers.

Castor bean 'Impala'

Dahlia 'Gonzo Grape' (I think)

Arisaema triphyllum (Jack-in-the-pulpit)

Clematis 'Silver Moon' (grows in shade)

Gingko biloba 'Gnome'

Verbena bonareinsis

Echinops ritro (globe thistle)

Hydrangea 'Limelight'

Anemone robustissima 

Nasella tenuissima (Mexican feather grass)

Angelica gigas

Dahlia 'David Howard'

Photo project: The Way Home

About a year ago I started a little photo project on Instagram. I would stop in the same spot on the way home and take a quick picture with my cell phone. I picked the spot for the photo because it's one of my favorite views in the world. There is only one way to get to our house. You have to drive past this spot to get there. It comes after driving past a couple miles of rolling farm fields and a few cows: probably what most people think of when they think of Wisconsin (if they don't know the state from personal experience).

But once you go over a little hill, it is literally all downhill to our house. The nearby farm has his house, barn and a field to the right, and the state park is to the left. And the second you get over that hill, after your eyes have become accustomed to the green and gold pallet of farm fields, Lake Michigan is dead ahead. Depending on the day, it will be sapphire blue, or deep green or perfectly gray, but it gradually fills your view, perfectly framed by the trees at the end of the road, and that's when I know I'm home. Being near the lake was the single criteria in our home search and for me, I can't imagine a home away from the water.

Here's what came out of a year of that photo project, which is ongoing. You can follow along on Instagram, or search for the photos with the hashtag #thewayhome.

You'll notice that some months have more photos than others. One problem I hadn't anticipated was that by winter, I'm always driving home in the dark, so it's hard to grab a photo and I often only get the chance on weekends.

It makes me a little sad to look at last year's October and know that it will soon look like that again here.

I hope you enjoy this little cruise through my year.