If Your Dog Had a Word, What Would That Word Be?

This fall in our corner of the world has been so magnificent you just want to grab it and give it a great big kiss.  There's been rain, but not too much.  Just enough wind to make you understand that fall is really here, but not too much to knock all the leaves off.   And the sunshine has been absolutely golden.  Below are an amalgamation of photos from several walks I took over the last week:

From this pathway, I was able to see

this lovely pair of swans.  The day before, we'd counted 18 bobbing away in the waves.

Canada postcard time:

In the garden, I've done some raking and some cutting back.  The Persicaria polymorpha is a magnificent plant during spring summer and fall - however, it really looks like an unfortunate mess in the winter.  So, it's one of the few plants I cut back.  I was so surprised, when I was about 2/3's through the plant to discover the last monarch of the season.  I left several branches standing and checked back the next day to see if it had been able to move.  Finally on the third day, it must have warmed up enough and was gone.

What a good plant this Hamamelis is.  Any plant that blooms around St. Paddy's day with the snow at its feet and is still cheerful enough to put on a show like this at the end of October deserves to be in your garden.

Underused and hard to find - this one is over 50 years old I suspect and was planted when the house was built is Calycanthus florida.  It's not too tall, has bizarre blood red blooms that last for 6 weeks and is a most pleasant yellow in the fall.

More yellow and blue of fall.

Here's something that should also be planted more often - Liriodendron tulipifera.  This one is growing down the street from me on an old property.  Native to North America, it is fairly rare on this side of Lake Ontario - but look at the colour - it's beyond gorgeous!

Simple mums seem to have gone out of fashion.  Instead we're buying those enormous fluff-ball plants that look like the Hulk just before he springs into action.  These were in a garden around the block.  You know sometimes I think some of the older varieties have a little more charm - and the fact that they come back year after year, just makes me think that I should find this variety and a space in my own garden.

It was very damp and misty down by the lake this a.m.  As the mist started to list, everything took on a reddish hue.

Which brings me to the question of the day.  If your dog had a word, what would that word be?  Bart's word today is "Why?"

p.s.  Remember, the Canadian Dental Association says it's far better to eat all your candies at once rather than spread them out.  So, eat up!