0 2009-10-28T23:54:50-05:00 false 9.10pm It felt much colder again today, perhaps it is the humidity that makes it feel colder. Even with a shirt, sweater, hoody and my old rain jacket, I felt cold and actually wore handyman gloves to do a lot of the jobs. Wrapped jute cloth around the azalea and Mandarin honeysuckle. I used O's trestles and runs that he uses to build bike jumps, with permission of course, to protect the roses. In Road put a trestle with a lid over R. Night Owl because the snowplow forgets where the fence is and sometimes tips a load of snow over onto the garden. I didn't tie Rosa glauca branches up, the stems are straight and sturdy and it is tall enough that the snowplow operator can see it for most of the winter. It's such a wrestling match to try to tie it up now it is getting so tall so the small twigs will have to take their chance. In East, R. Henry Kelsey was already tied loosely to the fence so I think that is sufficient. In House, R. Crazy for You got a big bag of leaves trapping it against the house, and R. Alta got another bike jump construction which will direct the snow off the plant; the white carpet rose 'Starry Night' got the contents of a planter dumped on it including the acidanthera bulbs, the branches are very flexible and being covered with earth seemed to protect it last year. East 2, R. Emily Carr got a trestle which should break any snow wave or big clump flying off the roof. And in Porch, R. Winnipeg Parks has bulb planters in leaf bags and leaf bags behind it, a trestle in front and a big leaf bag beside it. I am not sure whether this is sufficient protection but it will have to do for the moment. I could put a big board with the top end on the porch sill sloping down to the path. All the other shrubs are tied up, and most of the perennials have been cut back and large stalks were left on the garden as a deterent to cats using patches of bare soil as a public lavatory. The Shade garden has got most of the contents of this year's planters which looked like mulch, and most of the soppy peatmoss, plus some spade fulls of spruce needles over a thin layer of maple leaves. The spring plants will grow up through this and once I see where the plants are I can work it into the soil a little. I am hoping the worms will be busy for the next few weeks and drag some of this good stuff down into the earth. Porch also got a bit of planter mulch, and maple leaves which land there off the tree. I raked together a few more bags of leaves and some leaves just got piled around plants that need some protection. Now the garden is ready for winter. The porch is a mess again and the spreading juniper in a pot needs wrapping, however the worst of the winter preparation is done. The sun came out after lunch, and several Black-capped Chickadees keep me company, rustling around in the spruce tree, calling and whispering, lovely to see them back. Photos: Michaelmas Daisies providing almost the only flowers now, Prof. Kippenburg; the ghost of a hosta; sempervirens; flower buds on Azalea 'Lemon Lights' and one flower toasted by frost; Pyrocantha 3 false 70237 false false false Entry 2009-10-28T19:00:00-05:00 DMY 85793 Public 2009-10-31T23:30:14-05:00 1175 Overcast 1 C