Two More Beauts

Two Beauties

 

Two different kinds of Beauty Berry bushes.  I love the purple!

Seed Harvesting

I try every fall to gather as many seeds as I can for next year.  And I am always sharing them with friends.  Today I had to race the squirrels to the sunflowers.

 

Looks like they beat me to a few on the bigger sunflowers.  I am going to plant these again next year with some really pretty shorter red sunflowers I saw the other day.  I love them.

 

October Flowers

 

Same flowers, different backgrounds

Canning With Ms. Renee

 I forgot about posting these until tonight when I was looking at Ms Renee" tomatoes.  We had lots and then the CSA box had even more.  We were overrun with tomatoes.  This is a lot of tomatoes for us.  So now we have tomatoes for chili and soups, tomato sauce and hot salsa in the pantry.  I'm pretty excited about it!

 

This afternoon I helped Ms. Renee can her tomatoes from her first ever garden.  We are both so proud!

Two More Beds Finished

 Everything looks so naked.

 

But I keep telling myself that I don't want to get in the same mess as last year.  A good fall clean up makes spring clean up a little more enjoyable.

Fall Clean-Up Begins

I have a love-hate relationship with this time of year.  I love that the yard has given all it has all spring and summer long.  I have enjoyed the flowers and the vegetables.  But now comes the hard part.  The never ending part.  And just when I think it is all finished, the leaves on the big oak and all my neighbors leaves (JK Mr John) start falling...and that my friends is a never-ending battle.  But this year I will have help.  The chickens are getting a layer of leaves in their coops for coverage in the winter.  They say that we are going to have a really bad winter.  Hopefully the leaves will give them bugs to eat and insulation on the cold hard ground.

 

I started in the right front corner by Mr. John's and Ms. Renee's fence.  Also rearranging 'yard art' as I go.  I'll make my way slowly but surly around the perimeter of the yard first.  Then flower bed by flower bed.

Tomorrow I will gather seeds from the Cardinal vine to use for next year.  If you'd like me to send you some just leave me a note in the comment section.

Now to load in all into the back of the truck to take to be mulched.  Tomorrow back at it but not sure how much I will accomplish...almost all the yahoos will be here.  Little bits, little bits at a time and I'll have it all finished by December!

 

Yellow Has Always Been My Favorite Color

Doodles and I were waiting for the bus the other morning and found this little beauty hiding in the weeds down by the road.  Guess I better get to weeding that bed before I have no flowers at all.  The deer are helping me out but they are eating the flowers.  I watched three graze their way to the woods this morning.

I am so proud of these sunflowers.  I have never had any luck with them but this year they are going crazy.  Some seeds I gathered, some seeds came from Betsy and some seeds I have no idea where they came from.  So I just mixed them all together in a shovel and shoved them in the ground.  Next year I will do the same but along with seeds I save from these beauties I will as some of those red ones that are way shorter.  And behind the Little Girls coop is always going to be my sunflower bed!

I Thought I Was Too Late

I thought I had missed the window for planting my sunflower seeds. Guess not!

 

I had some saved seeds.  Then Betsy gave me some seeds.  I love them.  Hoping next year to add some different kinds.  There are so tall.  Way over the top of the fence.

Amazing What A Little Sun and Rain Can Do

Just Looking Around

Trying to do a little catch up weeding today.  The deer have eaten just about all the hosta in the front of the house so I am cutting down the stems that they left.  Those must have bee a little bitter.  Praying for rain so I don't have to drag out the big hose to water everything in the yard.  It looks like the Sahara Desert out there.  Let the chickens out to play with Dewey and Betsy (check NottaLotta Farm blog) and the rabbits got to stretch there legs in the exercise pen/chicken brooder. 

 

Noticed the Turtleheads blooming.

Black-eyed Susans everywhere!

We thought these were just weeds when they were coming up.  Nope, Phlox...really tall ones.

Is it a hummingbird or is it a moth?  It is both...a Hummingbird hawk-moth.

 

Reaching For The Sun.

It might turn cold before I see any flowers on these tall beauties.  I guess  must have gotten them in the ground a little late.  But I am proud of how tall they are.  Keeping my fingers crossed that we have lots of warm sunny weather and they just overnight develop flowers.

Don't even have to do a thing to these black-eyed Susan's.  They will grow anywhere.  Lots of seed saving in my future.  Anyone need any seeds for next year?

Now Where Did You Come From?

Looks like the birds might have been nibbling on this one.

Thursday's Flowers

Flowers with a few little insects visitors.

Thank you little watermelon for deciding to show up unannounced in my garden!

I was worried because for some reason it took the Naked Ladies a long time to come up this year.  I guess I should not expect them until August 1.

Looking Pretty Colorful Around Here