Garden Friday

milkweed and salvia

 

 Greetings on this Garden Friday!

Autumn has arrived in all of Her splendor!

A few remnants of summer remain,

gracing us with beautiful blooms.

 

 

The garlic we planted last week was up in a matter of days.

We planted out almost this entire bed

with one of the easiest crops to grow.

We use garlic for almost every savory dish,

so it is a staple in our fall/winter garden.

It will grow a bit more before becoming dormant for the winter.

In early spring, it begins to fill out and soar!

 

The cover crops are slowly making progress.

This is a special "raised bed" mix 

that I'm trying for the first time.

We were blessed with some rain this past week,

and nothing helps crops along like Mother Nature's gift.

 

I ended up purchasing lettuce and broccoli starts,

something that felt very strange to me.

With poor germination to blame,

I decided that it was necessary if I want to eat homegrown this winter.

 

There is abundant color popping up all over the area.

Our neighborhood has some glorious trees

peppering the sky with golds, oranges and reds.

It's one of the best things about my daily walk.

 

A bit of clean up was in order,

so I tidied up a few of the flower beds.

I'm amazed that we still have some blooms 

looking untouched by the cooler temperatures.

 

Our local Extension Center gifted some of the Master Gardeners

with free bulbs for planting this fall.

I hope to get these in over the weekend.

It's time for pansy planting!

The cooler temps don't bother these sweet things one bit,

and some were added to the mailbox bed,

as well as the pots on the front porch.

I look forward to many months of color.

 

I'm trying an experiment after watching a few videos

about trapping yellow jackets.

We have some near in our yard waste pile,

and I don't wish to use chemicals to eradicate the problem.

I'll share the results of this homemade trap next week.

 

 

We had a bit of a crisis this week,

when our rooster was attacked by a dog

who roams our neighborhood.

He was injured pretty badly, and shaking like a leaf when we finally found him,

but he survived the night and we hope is on the mend.

 

We now have a trap in our yard

so that the dog can be caught.

It has no collar and is quite skittish,

so it's difficult to get close enough to nab him.

The neighbors I've asked do not know where he lives,

but we're hoping the trap does the trick.

For now, Gandolf is in the garage mending

and the girls are on house arrest in the coop.

 

This life isn't always easy,

but we try to find the silver linings where we can.

 

Enjoy your weekend,

wherever you are!