Some gardeners believe in doing a meticulous fall cleanup, cutting all perennials to the ground and discarding every last leaf, stem and flower that hasn’t yet been blown away by the wind. These folks want a pristine landscape seeing them through the winter.

Other gardeners leave it all standing, turn a blind eye, let Mother Nature do her work and then deal with the dregs in the spring.

Then there are those like me who fall somewhere in between doing those chores in fall that I’ve found make spring cleanup a breeze ... almost.

1. Thoroughly clean and put garden tools and pots away neatly.

2. Cut back any perennials that don’t have winter interest to about 8 to 10 inches.

3. Remove and discard any diseased foliage from around roses, shrubs and perennials.

4. Hill up roses and tender perennials with fresh garden soil and shredded leaves after the ground has frozen.

5. Dig up, dry and store dahlia and canna corms.

6. Mulch beds with chipped leaves and compost.

7. Give the grass one last cut and trim the edges of the beds.

8. Weed the garden.

9. Plant garlic in compost enriched soil.

10. Remember that it’s still not too late to put the spring bulbs in the ground that you bought a month ago and forgot about.

Growing Green is prepared by Mount Hamilton Horticultural Society and appears biweekly. This week’s column was written by Helen MacPherson, aone of the society's directors. She also serves as their Outreach Chair.