The End?

The last 3 days were in the 60's & 70's. A front moved in bringing rain as I type. Temps are suppose to drop 25 degrees and tomorrow is predicted to be in the 40's with the possibility of a killing frost Monday night. The tomatoes were done. I picked the few large green ones I had missed, tore down the tomato frames and canvassed the garden for last harvests. Looks like the last Maple leaves are coming down with the pelting rain.

I prepped the last Mustard Habanero for winter culture. I postponed it a week as a Garden Spider, which we rarely have, had taken up residence in it.

Step 1: Pull up the plant. Have a suitable pot and compost handy.

Step 2: Trim the plant WAY back. 

Step 3: Label and water. I use paint stirrers for labels.

Step 4: Harvest any fruit from the cut stems and place the pot in the basement under shop lights for the winter.

beautiful, albeit unripe, Mustard Habs

I bought 3 Peruvian Daffodil bulbs this spring. I hadn't grown them before. They made a nice, white, aromatic flower. The foliage didn't do much but sag the rest of the summer, but it was incredibly tolerant of my lack of attention to it whilst making it through the miserable summer of heat and drought. I'm bringing it in. The plan is to treat it much like an Amaryllis and ignore it for the winter. 

Peruvian Daffodil

I found that my sedum had produced clones at the nodes of the stem. I snipped the stems off and cut it in segments, separating 2 or 3 nodes. I placed each segment on top of soil and sprinkled some sand around it. Most of them had small roots already emerging. I'm hoping to have a lot more sedum from this technique next year. I placed them in the cold frame on the back porch.

New sedum propagation method

Who knows how this winter will go, but if it is anything like last year the cannas should make it. I'm taking a risk by protecting them in pots outdoors this year. Experimentation. The chickens promptly found my little tent of plants alluring and Rosa laid an egg in one of the pots.

Overwintering Cannas in pots under plastic outdoors. 

Experiment.

Last of the scallop squash.

Casserole fixings from the garden: chard, dill, onions, peach habaneros, scallop squash

Protecting tender Black & Blue Salvia

Protecting Salvia leucantha- Mexican Bush Sage. 

Not sure if this is going to work

Last of the Eggplant

Last of the maters

about 12lbs

Pickled 6 1/2 Quarts of Peach Habaneros

from my brother's garden

The chard is doing very well.

le jardin in November

Pears, hazelnuts & lettuce from the garden

Rest well Garden 2012.

Patchy Frost

We saw our first patchy frost this weekend on Saturday and Sunday mornings, although my thermometer near the house read around 38 when I got up. We are definitely in Fall.

Tithonia at their peak

The Tithonia, Bright Lights Cosmos, Red Salvia and Black & Blue Salvia are in their glory. It is sad to know their brilliant colors could end in one night. I have at least 2 female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds still feeding at them and the feeder. 

Still Producing: Tomatoes (although slower now), Thai, Holy, Hairy Lemon and Italian Basils, Mexican Sour Gherkins, Onions, Peppers, Winter Squash, Pumpkin, Eggplant (slowly now).

Unknown Winter Squash variety

Frost-nipped Basil meant pesto for dinner last night

My only remaining pumpkin. The chickens discovered the other one in reach. Not sure if this one will be ripe by Halloween or before a killing frost.

My favorite tomato. White Currant. 

Mixed peppers- 2.25lbs here

This just in: Lettuces. I think we will have our first salad tonight. Hazelnuts and Grapes.

I had the most grapes produced this year than ever- harvested September 30th.

Mixed lettuces almost ready for harvest.

Stagger planting lettuces. Planted some today. Some ready for harvest and more to be planted.

About 7lbs of grapes. 

Became: 6 jars of no-added sugar jelly. 

I added a little grape juice where it called for water. 

Hazelnuts! 

Bowl of Hazelnuts ready for shelling. 

Things to come:

Pak Choi, Tatsoi, Arugula, Kale, onions- green & white, shallots, lettuces, spinach, parsnips, carrots, Jen Mei Fun, Collards, Corn Salad, Chard, Tronchuda cabbage

Evidence of Autumn:

Prairie Dock

Rose Hips

Red Salvia & Peppers

Tithonia, Cosmos, Milkweed, Red Salvia

Devil's Walking Stick (Bald Cypress- background)

Aronia fruit (chokeberry)

The orchard/chicken yard and future mini-high tunnel in the back.

Again, because I want to enjoy them while they last.

I'm determined to be a 4-season gardener. I planted another bed of greens today where the unproductive squashes were in the orchard. It was hard to pull out those gorgeous and succulent plants, but there were no blooms on them. Had to make room for winter crops. I also started more pac choi and bought some collard seeds from Dintelmann's this weekend. 

Happy Autumn.