Garden Revolution

Since my garden is asleep for the winter, I thought I'd add a book review. Garden Revolution puts into words what I think a lot of us organic gardeners already do.  We find the best plant for the space we have since we're not using chemical sprays. But this book goes further. I like how the authors suggest embracing a philosophy of ecological gardening. This means avoiding tilling, weeding, and fertilizing in favor of letting nature do what it will. However, they don't suggest letting invasive species take over. Instead they have a thoughtful plan for moving out the invasive by encouraging the native. One example of enhancing nature is Weaner's own home. Over the years one stalk of cardinal flower seeds created a sea of color in his yard. The photo on page 313 proves his theory well. While this book gets pretty technical in parts, it's worth a look. 

Some bunny wishes you...

Some bunny wishes you a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, a Joyous Kwanzaa, a Happy Solstice, and a beautiful new moon.  Whatever your holiday, I hope it's filled with love and light. This photo is our annual cookie making on Christmas Eve. We like to be creative, so you'll notice non-traditional shapes and colors. That's how we roll (the cookie dough)! 

Bonfire Night

My anglophile husband and I celebrated Bonfire Night.  We have plenty of fallen branches and cleared brush for fuel. The Fifth of November is marked with fireworks in England. Sometimes it's gets a little out of hand across the pond, but our bonfire was completely legal with our burn permit.

On this clear night, with light from the stars and moon, we sat together gazing at the fire.

A Walk on a Foggy Morning

The fog enshrouded my morning walk. It's a beautiful time of year. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.  Above is a the road that leads to my house. Below are oak leaves.

Above is a maple leaf. Below are the zinnias that survived the frost with a little alyssum (left)  and raspberry leaves (right). 

And below is a glimpse at my lettuce before the bitter cold arrives.

Salad in the Autumn

We've been lucky weather-wise, so I can still get some good veggies from the garden. This is my taco salad before I added ground turkey cooked with fresh garlic. I know I'm not the only one who does this, but I find myself harvesting, cleaning, chopping, and storing the different veggies so they're ready when I need them. I also made a pasta salad with the last of the green beans along with pesto chicken. And I forgot to take a photo. The photo below shows two gifts--the cucumber from a friend and the salsa from a neighbor. I'll miss my garden as we head into cooler temperatures, though I'll do my best to keep the lettuce growing as long as possible!

Melon in Minnesota

Yes, this is a cantaloupe grown in Minnesota. Yes, it's small compared to the ones in the grocery stores. For size, that's a quarter next to the melon. This variety is "Minnesota Midget" from Pinetree Garden Seeds. It's just as delicious as a full-sized variety but matures more quickly, sixty days according to the seed packet. They mature more slowly in my flirts-with-shade garden, but they're worth the wait! 

Harvest Season and Joe Pye

The Joe Pye Weed loves all the rain we've had this year and looks tall and lush (below). The bees love it (above).

After my mild neglect and the critters' voracious appetites, my vegetable harvest will be smaller than usual this year. That's okay. I know now that next year I've got to protect every stage--from seed to fruit. I did before, of course, but I'd get lazy and skip a day. Or three. With such an influx of wildlife, I know I have to be vigilant next spring. At least nothing seems to eat Joe Pye Weed plants. (Did I just jinx them?)