Maple Hill Hop 57

Welcome to 

The Maple Hill Hop.

This is a hop for folks who love the outdoors.

Feel free to post about anything that's going on

OUTSIDE

in your neck of the woods,
no matter the season.

(Please share only outdoor posts.)
Thanks for linking back to Maple Hill 101.

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It's been a while since we talked about the fall garden,
so I thought an update was in order.

The saltbush has been in bloom for the last week or so.
It attracts moths, bees, wasps and butterflies like crazy.
It's wonderful to stand underneath and just hear all that low buzzing.

My friends Faye and Lynn had given me quite a few eggplants to transplant.
They're all doing well and this one that was planted into a pot has really taken off.
Ooooh, we might have homegrown eggplant for our Christmas  lasagna!

Since learning that I can eat broccoli without any problem,
it is consumed with relish whenever possible.
There are a few crops popping up throughout our back bed.

The radishes have been slow growers,
but with our temps now reflecting a more favorable range,
they should come right along.

Several varieties of lettuce are being harvested a couple of times a week
to supplement the bunch I buy from Faye and Lynn.
A few new types have been tried, including Red Sails, New Red Fire
and Amaize, a red Romaine variety.

The tomato plant is flowering,
so that can only mean that juicy Celebrity tomatoes are on their way.
We do occasionally get a frost here,
but for the most part, fall is a great time to raise tomatoes in Central Florida.

The marigolds under the oak have come back like gangbusters.
It's so nice to have that pop of color.

The rattlebox is in full bloom.
With the windows open during the day,
we can hear the seed pods popping open to self-seed in the back bed.

There are two pots of mums that are rotated from the front porch
to the back bed. When one gets to looking like it needs more sun,
it gets placed in the backyard to recover.

This butterfly vine blooms almost year-round,
but does especially well in the cooler months.

Its leaves turn chartreuse and then brown as they age on the plant.
See the butterfly shape?
This Florida native needs absolutely no special care.

A few rudbeckia are still showing us some glorious color.
These beauties have been blooming for months.
We're enjoying the sparks of color before our weather turns.

What's it look like where you are?
HOP on!

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