or am I just imaging that the leaves are falling earlier this year? In years past it always seemed that the leaves dropped the first week of December. I say “seemed” because we are relying on my faulty memory and not entries in my non-existant journal. Which brings me to journaling (which is actually a word now even though spellcheck disagrees). Keeping a garden journal is a good way to build knowledge of the microclimate (I’m getting another argument from spellcheck on microclimate, sigh!) of your garden. The orientation of your home, the placement of windows and other structures all factor in plants survival. For example, I have a bank of windows on the South side of my house where I’ve been able to grow tropical plants that would normally not survive a winter here. The sun always shines on the South side of a home in the winter and with the heat escaping from my windows I’ve created a microclimate. Look around your home and see if you can spot microclimates where you can challenge the boundaries of nature and then make (do as I say and not as I do) and start a garden journal!