Fall is that exhilarating season that walks hand in hand with the dread of winter. We cherish each shirtsleeve day as it postpones the inevitable. We bask in the wonderful colors of the landscape.

By early November I must abandon my rural hills and head for the towns and more suburban areas if I am in search of the best foliage display. This comes from two reasons. Generally, the residential landscape is planted with plants selected for their ornamental value, including fall color.

Secondly, in more residential areas it is warmer, a fact which extends the season slightly.

If you wish, you can say that buildings, asphalt and man's activity creates a microclimate that is warmer. In reality, every garden site regardless of its size has microclimates. Recognizing these as you design and plant your gardens will improve your efforts.

Winter is the best time to identify the microclimates in your landscape. Do it by watching the snowmelt. Given a fairly even snow cover, it quickly becomes obvious that snow lingers in certain spots. Remember those spots for plants that like cooler soil.

Meanwhile in the November landscape, clip you lawn rather short. I got mine a week ago and am hoping that is it, but am willing to take the mower for another ride if necessary.

Remember those trees in your yard that you could not see through in the summer. November is rendering them into skeletons. If the leaves you couldn't see through make it impossible to see your grass now, you need to find the grass or you will have bare ground next spring.

The past two months have been gracious with rainfall, which will position new plantings, and shallow rooted leaf holding plants to survive the winter well. On new plantings it is a great idea to wait until the ground freezes and then mulch. That will minimize fluctuations in soil temperature and keep the roots from moving in the soil.

Another question to soon address is winter plant protection. First, make sure you are not building a home for rodents. Second, ask yourself "why?" Third, maybe do it on a limited basis. Wind, with its ability to suck more moisture from the plants' leaves than the roots can supply, is the issue.

In other words protect newly planted conifers, broadleaf evergreens and plants that are a bit north of their normal range. A spray or two of something like wilt-proof will benefit the first two. Larger plants will have the most problems because of the ratio of leaf areas to root areas. Barriers will help break the wind and its bad effects for all three.

One final winter problem occurs with newly planted trees. It is most noticeable on soft-barked trees, like flowering cherries, but is not uncommon on trees in the landscape less than maybe five years old.

Let me paint the picture. It's February. There is snow on the ground. The bright sun is low in the southwest sky. It's a hot day for February with the temperatures set to fall rapidly during the night. This combination against the brown bark of a young tree generates a significant buildup of heat in the tree trunk. With a cold night to follow you can often get a change of 80 degrees in the tree trunk. That's capable of cracking the growing tissue on the southwest side of the tree. That may not be fatal, but it is close. A light colored loose wrap of the trunk is a good idea for young trees during the winter. White latex paint also works. It's another shirtsleeve day. I'm not counting the days till spring yet, but it won't be long till I start I fear.