My project was to take out the grass. Did some, and will carry on with it over the fall and next spring.
Planting bulbs now for spring. And doing some fall seeding.
Ordering seeds for wintersowing and next spring.
Pruning and downright logging off the overgrown shrubs and trees.
Would like to add a greenhouse, but need more sun into yard.

Making a raised grow box out of an old stand alone closet.

Caroline (Calgary Zone 3)

Plant more bulbs!

Also, now that the front gardens are in tip top shape, shift focus to the backyard.

Try some more new perennials, e.g. Astilbe 'Delft Lace', Campanula 'Viking', Geum Totally Tangerine, Hemerocallis 'Just Plum Happy', Heuchera 'Fire Chief', Hosta 'First Frost', Leucanthemum 'Banana Cream', and Phlox 'Lord Clayton', to name just a few -- it helps when you work in the industry. ;)

Coolplantsguy, just looked up Banana Cream, doesn't fade to white like some others. Another Shasta Daisy that's now on my want list :o).

Annette

I have planned to finish my hosta garden. I'd like to put a bird bath in it for my feathered friends, the Jays. I've started digging 2 new beds and will plant them up next spring. Now to decide what to put in them! Marg

must put some grass seeds,i have already purchesed.Must plant Tulips bulbs,But first of all I must somehow distroy garden bugs.Got two bites last evening and I brought that creature home on my blouse,today found it on the window.It is a wosp.I have them now a lot and lots of bees and bumblebees Japanese bettles and other insects.I is impossible to find their nests.What we are home-gardeners going to do without effective garden bug killing products? I cant head out,cannot start some cleaning Is impossible for me to approach my plants.

cool guy, where would you source your plants?

Well, as I said, I work in the industry, so I'll be growing a crop of all that I mentioned -- and usually get to take some home for my garden -- that's one of the my "perks". ;)

We would source our plants from the usual suppliers, e.g. Terra Nova, Walters Gardens, etc. A mail order company like Great Garden Plants or Plant Delights is likely offering some of these already, although I'm not sure of their ability to ship to us here in Canada.

Nice job. Wish I had such perks. I'd be willing to play guinea pig for any plant trials (kidding)

I don't know about the other plants that "ccolplantsguy" mentioned, but Hemerocallis Just Plum Happy is available for sale in southern Ontario. I bought one last year. So far I am not impressed with the colour, but will try it in a different location next year to see if the colour is better. It does have a long bloom time.
After a so-so attempt at wintersowing last year, I have more seeds and am going to try again, this time planting a little earlier than I was able to last winter. I am mainly interested in starting native perennials, and many of these need a definite 6-12 week cold period in order to germinate.

I have decided to change my strategy a bit. I usually clean the gardens in the spring but they've become to extensive and a new job is taking too many hours during the week. Hurricane Bill and Tropical Storm Dan also helped me form my decision to start cleaning now and into the fall after they pummeled the gardens in the last two weekends.

Can't really buy anything in the next while but I still have lots of new plants started from seed this year that have to go into the ground, two of them being Azaleas from a breeder here in NS. Lots of perennials too.

One thing I'd like to do is start culling some of the Hosta gardens and replacing with Brunneras. Bought Jack Frost a couple of years ago and have discovered the value of this plant. There are several more on the market, so come the spring hopefully some of the local nurseries will start carrying this beautiful and no-worry plant. The deers don't like them and the slugs are not partial to them. The foliage is just as beautiful if not more so than the hostas.

We've decided to plant an ornamental grass garden. Plus, there's a long, wide slope leading to a new pond and we've finally agreed it's just the right place for sumacs, ninebarks and more grasses.
We were lucky enough to be able to finish overhauls of many of our gardens this summer, so I'm hoping to get enough mulch in to tuck them away nicely for the winter, and stop weeding so often.
There will be more, though. There always is.

Tiffy, I'm sorry to hear about what the storms have done to your yard however, what an opportunity to start anew. Are you excited about this?

Ninamarie- I like ornamental grass gardens too. I don't know where you are in Ontario but just wish to point out that the Lowes in Vaughan started selling off fountain grass, miscanthus and other perennial grasses for only $1 each. You might find similar bargains in other garden centres.

This fall, starting now, I'm going to
- bring up to date the maps of three gardens: a scree in which some of the original plants are gone with more added this year and two beds totally renovated in 2008 planted this spring with some overwintered perennials from original beds plus shrubs. New acquisitions have been placed also. I will wonÂt remember what they are next spring if I don't write them down on paper!
- I've ordered bulbs for the renovated beds based on Rosemary Verey's Making of a garden designs and colour schemes.
- Dig out perennials and shrubs from another grass infested 40'x6' strip and use RU now and again in spring. Rhodos and Azaleas grown from seed for this space next year!
- and do as Tiffy suggests clean up by cutting back spent perennials and take out dead annuals.
- Plant three year shrubs and trees grown from seed before the snow flies!
- Look into timing of an application corn gluten(?) to crab grass in the lawn area around the scree bed.

Yep, updating maps is on my list as well.
I'm waiting for fall weather to start expanding a couple areas, taking out some grass, and ammending so it will be ready for next Spring.
Move some large roses around, which will be quite the task!

coolplantsguy - I've seen photos of Heuchera "Fire Chief" and it was on my list to get. I wonder if it stays true to the colour on the internet. If so, it looks lovely :)

The photographs in the catalogues (print and on-line) can certainly be deceiving sometimes! I often equate the plant business to the fashion business in this regard. ;)

Terra Nova's description of "wine red" also leaves them with a little wiggle-room. In any case, it looks like a good one.

Ianna,

I am most definitely excited about even just working in the gardens. This summer we only had one weekend when the sun came out. All others were rainy and windy and so a gardener's nightmare began when the weeds started taking over. I must admit though that the rain can bring on great foliage and colours. My Buddleia blooms are huge this year and everything has remained green and lush all season. Even though the Phlox Paniculatas are acting like creeping phlox on my rock walls, they still are beautiful!!

Since the sun has come to visit, can someone lengthen the days again by about 2 hours???

I sure wish I could add 2 more hours to our day. Hate waking up when it's still dark. On my way to work,I spotted to a few trees with it's leaves turning red and yellow. Yipes... If it was this rainy during summer, what do we look forward to in winter? The thought is frightening.. Better get that snowblower