slow beans

The beans are slowing down. I suppose it's inevitable because fall is upon us. With all this cool weather, my pumpkins are still mostly green. However, the apples are ripening well and even though I forgot (or did I procrastinate? I wanted to do it later...)to use my organic methods to keep the bugs away, they are relatively bug free this year. The wild plums look they will be juicy, though they're not ripe enough yet. Acorns fall with every breeze. Yet I thumbed my green nose at the weather by planting another batch of lettuce.

Blue Jays Grown

"Screech, screech," echoes from the bird feeder and into the room where I type. It is the loud and obnoxious call of the blue jay. These jays are the babies that have grown up, looking like their parents and mastering the art of flight. On bad days, that call drives me crazy. One early morning, the pre-dawn call outside my open bedroom window made me wonder why I like these birds at all, with their hoarding of bird seed and obnoxious noises. But I do like them, maybe because we saw them from the time they were eggs.

A Mistake Or Two

After I got home today, I took a look at the flower pots in front of the house. Why did they look so limp? Dumb me. Even though the garden has had plenty of water with our excessive rain lately, the pots had dried out in the heat. (Yes, heat. What an odd summer.) I gave them a nice long drink of water, and I set the watering can near the front door so I won't forget tomorrow. Will my plants survive? I hope so. But this is the second time I've forgotten to water the pots this summer.

So why would I, a garden writer, admit to such sad mistakes? It's because sometimes I watch the garden superstars and get discouraged. They don't make mistakes (at least that viewers are allowed to see). Since everything looks so good on tv, I feel like I could never compete, so why bother trying? The point of gardening is that I like to do it, and I will make mistakes since I am only human. My garden may never look like the cover of a magazine, but I've been eating fresh produce for months, and fresh flowers grace my kitchen table.

Cool, Cool Summer

Yep, it's a cool summer. I just picked a handful of peapods. In August! Even though I planted the early pumpkins, I am skeptical that I will get any fully ripened ones this year. I can't believe I am saying this because I prefer the cooler weather for being outdoors (I can wear long sleeves so I don't get bit by flies and skeeters): We need some heat!