October 22, 2011

I think I will be adding more things to this blog.  I was reading the paper this morning and realizing this is a good place to keep tips.

Next year I want to plant spinach and lettuce to harvest in the fall.  Our freeze date is Oct. 5, so I need to count backwards from the maturity date on the seed packet to know when to plant.  Water deeply, mulch, and cover on freezing nights.  Harvest early and often.

For best fall blooming mums.  At 4-6 inches tall, prune back, leaving two to three leaves, every 3-4 weeks until July 15.  They should be divided every 3 to 5 years.

October 21, 2011

This growing season is about over.  We had our first freeze, with no warning frosts on the 19th.  We had 24 degrees. Not everything froze.  The marigolds did, and the volunteer cantelope.  And of course, anything left in the garden, which wasn't much. I gave up on the tomatoes weeks ago.  There was a couple more zucchinis, so we ate one in zucchini scramble and the other one is still sitting on my counter waiting to be grated and frozen for zucchini bread. So, I still have flowers to look at, my pansies, and mums, and my petunias in the planters on the west side of the house.

I've been wanting to clean the leaves and cornshucks off the deck and patio, so I did that today.  It was gorgeous, and 70 with no wind.  I brought in all the deck flowers and cleaned up some extra things that live on the deck in the summer so it looks bare out there.  I want to bring the the deck cushions, but I'm going to wait until this very nice fall is over.  We've had some very nice weeks, 40ish nights and 60 and 70ish days. It has been a beautiful fall.

Finally, the mums are in bloom, just in time to freeze, thank goodness they do well in cold temps. 

A few pansies are still hanging in there.  

And finally the mum by the front walk.  Blooming at last.

And it very likely will be goodbye until next spring.

Oh, wait. I picked some mint and dried it to use for tea.  It took just a little bit in the dehydrator, and then I stripped the leaves.

And I planted some nasturtium seeds in my window box in the kitchen, where a basil plant has died.   

October 10, 2011

I haven't done anything else in the flower garden since the last weeding, which was late enough, that there isn't much weed activity going on.  The corn shuck blowing event missed us this year. 

 This is what it looked like last year. 

I guess the wind was in a little different direction.

Anyway, there are bright spots of color around this time of year, and STILL my mum by the front walk isn't blooming.  I better remember to get a photo.

October 6, 2011

I've been busy and it hasn't been with gardening.  We haven't had frost yet, we've had beautiful, sunny, 70-ish days, and they have been lovely.  Today however, is a different story.  We've had 30-35mph winds with gusts to 60 mph.  They corn shucks are blowing off the field south of us and piling up everywhere.  Last year we had a big mess of them on the patio.  We are getting some little tomatoes from our pots.  We get more plant that tomato off those.  I'm not picking tomatoes anymore. They were about done anyway, and Lynette and I went to Wisconsin.  Jim brought in the rest of the peppers tonight, two cucumbers, and three big zucchini.  I was supposed to write down when I planted them, but I think it was the last week in July.  Next year I would like to try middle July.  Our patio flowers are limping along. We've been forgetting to water them.  My big flower garden has been looking nice, but it won't anymore after the wind and corn shucks.  I still have a big mum out there that hasn't bloomed yet!! It is the one by the front walk.  My terrace flower garden has been over taken by volunteer cantelope.  There is one that might be ripe before frost.  I need to check it.