Almost Ready for Winter?

If you live here in Michigan, you may be thinking that claims of global warming are right.  Yesterday it was 75 degrees at my home.  I checked a site online that said temperatures at this time of year rarely exceed 68 degrees.

It was the nicest day this year!  Well, except for the fact that I was working outside and after one hour my clothes were soaked with perspiration.  I don't think this is supposed to happen in late October.

Today promises to be another nice day.  But, today I went out early and I am already done working.  I have the greenest lawn in the neighborhood.  Fall fertilizer, cool night temps, and rain nearly every other day has done the trick.

My yard clean-up is done, for the most part.  Some plants will not turn color until we get a hard frost and they can get cleaned up in the spring.  And I leave the grasses tall during the winter for some nice contrast with the snow.  The roses will be covered with burlap once we reach late November.

I'll still have leaves to clean up one more time in the front.  The sweet gum tree next to my deck is still dropping leaves, so I left the push-broom back there so I can keep moving them off the decking and under the bushes.  I try to make use of the leaves as free compost.

I was going to sit outside and read a book, but remembered that I need to go to the library and pick one up.  Maybe I'll just sit out there and vegetate.

Here is a pic of the sweet gum and a Kousa Dogwood, still hanging onto their leaves.