I refuse to clean up my "mess"

My backyard will not look neatly manicured this winter.  This is not merely because I'm lazy (I may be); there are some very good reasons why I let my plants finish out their annual cycle in the way God created them.

The seeds and berries provide food for the birds and critters who live here.  If I was a more patient photographer perhaps I would be able to capture the picture of tiny birds perched on the stalks of cone flowers and zinnias, enjoying a feast of sun-dried dried seeds.

While the birds feast, they also scatter dried seeds about in the flower bed, this saves time, energy and money since I won't need to replant these beds next spring.  The birds and wind will have done it for me.

Cutting back the stems of woody perennials in the fall permits water to flow down through the cuts into the root system, which could cause them to drown if we have heavy rains or freeze if we have an exceptionally cold winter or rot if we have a warm, damp winter.  By refusing to clean up the woody perennials I am saving them from the risk of death.

And it could also be that I'm just a little bit lazy and am delighted to discover good reasons for not doing fall "chores."