Hallelujah!

It worked!

My rain dance worked!

I have been longing for a good and proper rainy day.  It's started raining yesterday and it's still going strong!    I'm watching the news right now and it's predicted to go on for one or two more days.   

Much needed relief!  For me it's about balance.  Relentless hot and dry weather makes me feel out of whack.  My garden has repeated this sentiment.  As a matter of fact, I just peaked out the window down to the veggie garden and I think I saw the tomatoes smiling!

A Splendid Day - Experimenting for Fall

 

It never ceases to amaze me how affected we are by the weather.    I love the outdoors but I would be the first to say that on stifling hot day, my garden is mostly neglected.  Containers get watered and that’s about it.   We all grumble and groan when it’s too hot, or too cold.  Myself included.  But today…..was picture perfect.  Beautiful 80 degree weather with NO humidity!    So my thoughts turned to Fall veggies.    I have pondered planting cool weather crops for the past couple of years but a combination of weather and life in general have stopped me.  Until today!  Time to experiment.

 

The task involved pulling some veggies that were done for the year and turning the soil.    It was fun playing in the dirt again!

 

So, for the 1st time ever I have planted cool weather crops!  (It sounds so silly to say “crops” but…..)  SO this is what was planted:

 

Beets and, um, black eyed peas maybe??

 

   

 

Peas and Spinach

 

 

It will be fun to see if this experiment works.  Nothing like hands on experience to learn something new. 

 

Oops….I took a while to put this post together so I actually planted on Saturday but posted on Sunday.

Veggie Garden Update

Time to track the backyard garden happenings.   It’s been an odd summer – relentless heat and high humidity yet very little rain.  I thrive on balance and the garden agrees.  Not nearly enough rain.

Ok so…let’s talk tomatoes.

TOMATOES
Last year they were a complete bust because Late Blight kicked them to the curb but things are better this year.

Love these!  Thankfully they are plentiful!

Now for the other veggie garden inhabitants…..

Will it or won’t it?  We shall see.

Dunno about this.  Seems like it’s all male flowers.

Strawberry is making a second attempt.  I don’t even know where I got these so I don’t know what type they are but I’m guessing '”Everlasting”.

It was looking good and then the squash bugs made an appearance.  To the right in the pic is a decimated zucchini.  I have gotten two nice zucchinis.  Fingers are crossed.

Blooms are abundant but color is fading.

The white Datura is happily blooming but I am still waiting on the purple.

I am just growing these for the 1st time this year and can see that the white and purple can easily be identified by the color of their stems.  See?

A favorite in it’s waning state.

Today I noticed activity in a tree by the creek.  It looks like nesting is going on!  About 20 feet from my deck.  I hope I get to observe them for a while.

And that is today’s garden report!

That Darn Cat!

I have had dogs all of my life.   Then 5 or 6 years ago when my dachshund died I knew a dog wasn’t a good fit for our lifestyle so I got cats.   Two of them.  A sister (Cally) and brother (Smudgie)  who were found huddled together with another sibling in a snow bank.  It has been quite a learning experience to say the least.   Cally is pretty much a slug – sleeping her days away.  Smudgie is the cat about town.  My intention was to have indoor cats but he would hear nothing of that.  Once the windows are open in the springtime, he is relentless in his quest to get outside.  I have had to replace window blinds countless times due to his escape efforts.  And he pops up everywhere!  Rumor has it he visits all of our neighbor's pets by peering in their basement windows.



At least he’s self sufficient….
That darn cat!