The front yard in October.

We've been having some beautiful fall weather here.  Bright blue skies and sun, very cool in the mornings but warming into the low 60's during the day.  Yesterday I thought I'd better get the grass cut since it's growing so quickly right now and is always wet with a heavy dew, it's not going to dry out until next spring and will only get longer.  It seems like the lawn (weeds and moss) always grows the most in the fall.  This year we didn't get to the projects we'd hoped to accomplish in the front, but are hoping next year to remove a good amount of grass and reconfigure the front border bed some.  I'm sure I'll be asking for some ideas then.  We'll need to make a path through the bed somewhere and that's what I'm trying to decide when I look at it from the street side.

I don't usually include the front grass when taking pictures of the front of the house, but it looks so green and lush right now.  The Dogwood leaves are turning red now, and it won't be long before we're raking them up.

From the other end of the yard.  The tall back lit plant are Verbena bonariensis which are covered in flowers.  I will leave lots up for the birds to snack on this winter.

I haven't really shown this bed to the left much this year.  It used to be all Hellebores.  It would look great for the time they bloomed, but once they were done they would be covered in aphids and not the most attractive thing to see as you came to our front door.  I've left some Hellebores in, but have also added a variety of other shade plants which are all pretty tiny still.  Hopefully in spring it'll fill in more.  As you can see on the right the Japanese Maple looks as though it did die, and if it doesn't leaf out in spring we'll take it out.  I found some great ideas in a new garden magazine which involves a fountain rather than another tree.  I've accepted that trees just don't like this spot.

Black-eyed Susans still looking pretty.

I love how this Zinnia looks in front of the Black-eyed Susans.  This was about the only Zinnia to bloom this year.

This looks like a flower bud on the Magnolia 'Vulcan'.  Since it's never bloomed in the year it's been here I'm just guessing it's a bud.  It should bloom in spring.

The Coneflowers have gone to seed and are ready for the birds to enjoy.  They've already been eating the seeds from the ones in the back yard.

This morning is very foggy, but is supposed to clear up for another nice day.  I'm hoping to get to a nursery sometime this week.  I haven't been in so long I feel like I'm going through withdrawal, especially after seeing what finds others have been making at nurseries near them.  Hope you are having some nice fall days where you are, although I know that some gardeners have already seen their first snow of the year.