August 15, 2025

 So far, this has been quite the year. I've been doing more work at the office, looking after Oliver part time, going places and weeding and putting up garden stuff. That stopped after we got back just before August and corn needed to be done up. So we did, five batches of it, three by ourselves and one each with Lorene's family and Aaron. In total we put up 36 and a half dozen ears which produced 94 quarts of corn to freeze. 

I've put some onions in the freezer, we've dug a few potatoes, I've made some pickles, mostly dill and beet. I made one batch of Bread and Butter Pickles that are mostly onions and we've frozen about 3 gallons of beans, and the rest we are just letting go to pot. We are too tired and too busy to care much. The garden didn't do very well anyway and we were gone too much. I put my swiss chard stems in the freezer for smoothies and we are starting to get a few tomatoes, but they are overtaken by water hemp or whatever that hugely tall weed is with the sticky seed heads.

I like photos with my blogs, but I accidently deleted the one I wanted, which was a annual about the color of this darker sweet potato vine that is doing well. There is some yellow thing growing nicely. I guess I better take photos of the plants to remember that way. I want them again next year. 

September 30, 2023

 Summer if over, and I haven't blogged much about gardening this year.

We had a prolific year. I had more cucumbers than I needed. We ate them as salad every day. I use equal parts of mayo and sour cream and sprinkle in a little sugar and a little more garlic powder. I have a lot of pickles left over from last year, so I only made as many as I though we would need besides those, and we pulled up most of the vines. Our tomatoes, too, did really well. I made 60 pints of tomato soup and 50 quarts of juice. I canned and froze two lugs of peaches. We also put away 101 quarts of corn in three sessions. I am out of jars. Usually, I put tomatoes in the freezer and when I want juice I take out an ice cream bucket of frozen tomatoes and make some. The freezer this year is full of chickens, beef and deer. We need to be having some company to help us eat it. Both of us eat less than we used to. 

In the flower garden realm, I am feeling a real lack of interest in doing any more weeding or cleaning up, so I haven't. I'm also very disappointed in the petunias I planted in my big flower garden. I don't know whether it's the soil or the shade. I think pinks do better. 

Next year I want to budget enough to go hog-wild on bedding plants and crowd them in, since they don't seem to spread, just hang on. 

I'm glad Jim likes to do the gardening. I don't do very much picking, but as the tomatoes and beans come on, I usually help. 

Our peppers are all in the freezer, and so is the okra. Jim forgot about planting beans until the summer was half over, so when he planted them, they took forever to get going and we picked a few now and then and then ignored them. A week ago, those bean plants were burgeoning with beans. We picked them and it was such a tiring job, that we pulled up 2/3 of them, intending to pick the ones left to eat. We haven't. I put 7 quarts in the freezer. 

Next Year

and wrapping up 2021

 I'm cleaning up the flower gardens since I haven't weeded for a couple of weeks.  I see that there aren't very many weeds, but I can get a start on the end of the year clean up.  This year we are having a warm fall and things are still nice. 

I have some ideas for next year based on successes and failures of this year.

Moss rose does very well by the mailbox.  

I think the petunias get too wet under the flag pole. They didn't do well this year, but I can't think what else to do there. There is a morning glory growing there this year. I hope a seed takes root and I can train it up the flag pole.

I want to plan alyssum again in the place where the mock almond bush is and a little farther back from the sidewalk.  The snapdragons did very well there, so I want those again.  I have a few forget-me-nots come up there.  I don't really want them there, but they are such a pretty blue. I need to watch for the "horrible weed" that grew up in the candytuft because we accidently transplanted it with it.  Something needs to go in the point where the forget-me-nots are.  This year the gloxinia seed I planted did NOT grow. Zinnias? 

The strip by the gas meter needs petunias across the whole thing even if the bulb leaves haven't quite died down. I have a corner that I'm trying to get a nice stand of forget-me-nots there, and it isn't going well.

My zinnia seed from last year did really well by the pond, but it blocked out my barrel.  I'm thinking next year some of the bare places in the rock garden would be good. I cut down the peony bushes. They were dry. 

November 26, 2016

These sound like they would do well is our sticky clay soil, but would they spread too quickly?

November 8, 2013

The growing season is over for this year. We had frost in October.  We didn't get the flower gardens cleaned up like I hoped.  There is always next year!!  I am hoping my strength and energy are such that next year I can tackle it early, before the weeds get a good hold, and keep it up a little at a time.  If I do just 15 minutes a day five days a week, I can keep up. I just have to keep at it.
I bought some late pansies, but they didn't do much, I have them inside.  If I keep a little water in a jug in the basement next to my plants, they boys keep them watered.

Goals for next year:
Keep the flower gardens clean a little at a time.
Take down the fence and arch, and make that area into grass.
Finish the landscaping north of the shop and plant with pansies.
Kill the grass in the flagpole spot and start over.
Find a new place for the pink sprawling mini rose. (need help with this one)
Get rid of the mint.
Dig a trench to insert the long box of green annual viney stuff I like under the deck steps.
Clean the patio, and keep it clean.
Pour a teakettle of boiling water on weeds once a day.  (driveway, sidewalk, steps and patio)

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.