Fall provides a wonderful opportunity for homeowners to get creative with their outdoor spaces without committing to permanent plantings or precise garden designs. Potted plants and portable props make it easy to create interesting garden or yard displays and to border walkways, driveways and doorways in bold inviting colors. (Bonus: no weeding!)

Some suggested fall display items are:

• Potted mums in crisp red, orange, bronze, yellow, burgundy or cream
• Fall-friendly plants such as ivy garland, cattails, zinnia and berry bushes
• Pumpkins and gourdes
• Cornstalks
• Ears of field or Indian corn
• Hay bales
• Wheelbarrows, baskets, crates and barrels
• Lights and lanterns

Coordinating potted mums with other props makes for fun fall displays that can be arranged and rearranged with ease. A single mum set atop a step or low wall, beside a bench or inside a wheelbarrow with a pumpkin or two is very simple yet eye-catching. Another idea is to spread loose hay, a pumpkin and ears of Indian corn beneath a quaint metal wheelbarrow filled with mums. Several mums can also be clustered together to send dramatic blasts of color from a porch or a corner of your yard, or mums can be lined up on either side of a driveway or entry path in uniform or alternating colors.

Have fun mixing and matching your fall props. Wooden crates, barrels and hay bales are perfect settings for your flowers, ears of corn, pumpkins, baskets with gourdes, and even a good old-fashioned scarecrow, because they give you the freedom to adjust your stage with different angles and multiple heights through stacking.

Pumpkins themselves make terrific seasonal planters: simply carve them out, fit them with planter foam and insert outdoor fall floral arrangements of ivy garland, cattails, and zinnia and berry bushes. Consider painting your pumpkins white or cream to neutralize your color scheme or to provide background support while allowing the colors in the display's flowers or Indian corn kernels to pop.

Strategic lighting such as hanging lanterns can cast just the right spell on your autumn lawn and gardens. Strings of tiny lights can also be threaded through wreaths or corn stalks framing your entryway and spotlights can showcase your favorite displays after the sun sets. Don't be afraid to experiment with colored lights in pale orange, yellow or even green.

Clothing Drive to Benefit Our Neighbors in Need 

We will be holding our annual clothing drive from Monday, October 3 through Friday, October 21, 2011, at Borst headquarters, 260 West Crescent Avenue in Allendale. Area residents are asked to bring new or gently used clothing for men, women and children, including outerwear, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. A truck will be parked outside our office where donors may deposit their clothing donations.

The donations will benefit patrons of the Star of Hope Thrift Shop in Paterson and also recipients reached by Solid Foundation, a Midland Park skateboarding club that organizes charitable community projects in our area and makes regular visits to New York City to pass out coats, blankets and food.

Project Pride Honors Ridgewood Garden Designed and Maintained by Borst Landscape & Design  

Ridgewood's Project Pride, a volunteer town beautification committee, has awarded its Sunflower Award to the Ridgewood home of Jeffrey and Martha Deutsch. The award recognizes the Deutsches' property for its contribution to beautifying the town.  

This marks the fifth time that a Borst-maintained home has been awarded this coveted honor. 

Borst Landscape & Design Teams Up With Bergen Health & Life magazine for the Gardens of Bergen Tour

In June, participants toured some of the most interesting private home gardens in Bergen County! They were able to get expert tips from Borst's own Gail Tunis on how to create beautiful landscaping for their own homes. Gail also discussed what she has created for two premier properties including a Wyckoff residence's simple, attractive and well-manicured front yard that offers visitors just a taste of what lies through the gate and behind the house. Guests were delightfully surprised by the family's very own Secret Garden, as we have come to call it.