I Could Tell You ...

Agnes rules the garden and loves fall asters.

That I've been spending these gorgeous golden afternoons on the deck, glass of wine in hand, watching the last of the summer birds visit the garden.
Or, I could tell you that I've been spending a lot of time sitting on the [actual] garden bench reading.

Or, I could tell you that work has been grinding me down for the past month and taking all my attention.

Or. I could tell you that I've been working nearly afternoon in the new cutting garden weeding or in the "old" garden deadheading for the winter.

None of those would be true.

A "red" chrysanthemum.  I planted lots.

I could tell you that we just spent a week at the Outer Banks recharging our internal batteries, visiting with friends and eating good seafood.

Or, I could tell you that I've been shopping ... shopping!  I hate to shop; have to be dragged kicking and screaming to a mall - preferably outlet or deep discount - and forced to buy for myself, greatly preferring to buy for others.  Christmas is coming, you know.

Or, I could tell you that I have gotten so far behind in reading my blog list that I just haven't written in a while.

All of those are actually true.

I hacked the phlox back in August, and surprise! new blooms.

I could even tell you that I got my flu shot yesterday and the pharmacist really did "hit" something - like a tendon, maybe - and it hurt like hell.... and still does... so that I can't use my arm to type.  Well, that's only half true - the first part.

But what is also true is that I just haven't felt like writing - no ideas, no energy, no interest, nothing catching my attention.  Hadn't even taken a photo in nearly three weeks!  It's ennui.  I love that word and probably haven't ever written it before, but it describes the lump-on-a-pickle existence that I have led for the past month.

I have tons of pink fall anemones, but suddenly a white one, too.

 

The county library has finally worked out the kinks so that I can download to my Kindle ... for free!  I have read a lot in the last few weeks, but in doing that have wasted so much of this lovely fall.  I just don't care.  Hope this blue funk goes away soon.  October is one of my favorite months and the garden is still full of color.   I have lots to do before putting it to bed for the winter, and the weather is perfect right now.

So, I'm reading, just not writing, and am sure the enthusiasm will kick in soon.  

Flowers in the House

Jane's challenge is getting more difficult, since most of the summer flowers are going fast, and the fall flowers, aka chrysanthemums and asters, are just starting to bloom.

,I was able to pull together sedum ('Madrona'), the last of the fall anemones (most of the petals are gone), and lady's mantle, with some greenery from "pacific daisies", Solomon's seal, and the seed heads of my vitex tree.  The latter was inspired by Belinda at Wild Acres who uses all sorts of non-flowers in her arrangements.  The heavy rains we got this week didn't help either, since they beat down all of the tall flowers and damaged so many things - like the lady's mantle.

I had picked one stem of a different sedum - this one is 'Neon', I think - and had a couple pieces of lady's mantle left over, so I [literally] stuck them into this little vase to keep next to my reading chair.  (It looks like we live in a dungeon, but that's just the heavy cloud cover today.  It's really a bright cheery room most of the time!)  Imagine a glass of wine on that coaster, and my Kindle or a real book near by and you have my favorite reading spot!

Hope you've had a great weekend -well, at least a restful one!  And, go see what everyone else has blooming inside today.  Start at Jane's.

Pop ... pop ..

... pop!  It's become my favorite sound this summer.  The sound of jars sealing on the kitchen counter. 

The bounty of our fruit CSA this summer has just overwhelmed us.  We've eaten peaches, nectarines and plums daily for weeks, but from the middle of July until now we have just not been able to keep up.  It broke my heart to throw away fruit that was over-ripe  to make room for each week's new batch.  So, in August I learned to can.

I'm a mini-canner.  I only make two or three jars (half-pints, at that!) at the time; my largest batch just six jars.  But it feels so good to "put something away" for the winter.  [I hear my grandmother saying, "waste not, want not" in my ear.]  Mind you, I am not sure I will actually let anyone eat any of it.

Yesterday we had a rainy afternoon, so I finished up the week's canning with two jars of plum preserves, four jars of tomato jam, and then in the crock pot overnight six jars of apple butter.  I hope to do some pear butter tonight.

So far we have peach, plum, Damson plum, fig and nectarine jams, plus Ginger Plum and Balsamic Plum jams, tomato jam, a sweet red pepper jam, and apple butter.  Am planning on pear butter next and then I will have run out of space in my cabinet.  Will have to give some away before I can make more!

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Nectarines mixed with sugar (and Splenda).  Let it sit for 15 minutes and then cook it down.

Plum preserves going into the jar.  I bought a "canning set" that included this handy dandy funnel, a pair of tongs for getting the jars out of the canning bath, and a magnet to lift the jar tops out of hot water.  If you get a canning set, you can be a canner, too.

Tomatoes starting to cook down.  The tomato jam is wonderful - tomatoes, cinnamon, red pepper, sugar - and hits most of the bases, taste-wise.  It's our favorite find.

Damson plums cooking down.  Altho they took a lot of sugar, they are just wonderful.  It was my grandmother's favorite jam, but I had only had the commercial variety until now.

Apple butter after a night in the slow cooker.  Making butters this way is so easy!

If you will drop by for a cup of tea on the garden bench, now I can promise you a biscuit and jam, too.  You're always invited and welcome.

Bloom Day - September

Can it be the middle of September already?  The skies are bluer, the humidity has dropped, and the summer blooming plants have started to perk up. Even the fall plants are starting to look promising.  Yes, it must be mid-September.

Obedient Plant has opened like a field of lilac  [Physostygia virginiana].  It can be invasive, but in this shady spot I can control it by pulling up handfuls as needed.

And several spring friends have decided to give me a few bonus blossoms... like the Pink Pizzaz [Loropetalum 'Pizazz' TM].  All of its outer branch tips have opened again.  The Lady's Mantle nestled at its feet decided to follow suit and bloom, too.  Thanks, guys!

The clematis [Clematis hybrid 'H.F. Young'] that is supposed to grow up the mailbox post, but which instead puddled on the ground around it, has suddenly out a handful of blooms.

Out of nowhere one of the azaleas has one lone bloom - right at the top and just a pretty as can be.  In a way, it's nice to have just one to look at.  In the spring it's the mass of color that we love, but a single bloom has its own beauty now.

The last of some of our summer friends have perked up, too.  You've got to love portulaca!  What other plant do you know that has blossoms that really are different colors?  It's not that they fade from one color to another (like Rosa mutabilis, for example)... they really are different colors.

And the mandevilla is still attracting hummingbirds as they head south for the real winter to come.  I've seen two today, but my photo skills are not up to even trying to get a picture of them.

But, it's the fall flowers that are starting to bloom that are really catching one's  eye.  First, the sedums - both Madronna and Autumn Joy.   

 The plumbago is bluer than ever and the fall anemones have just started dancing on their slender stems.

And finally the lovely Alma [Aster novae angliae 'Alma Potschke'].  In really good years she is just covered in these tiny coral blooms.  This year it was so dry (and apparently her mama did not make up for that with watering!) that she is only blooming around the edges.  I hope that with the rain we are getting now, she will keep blooming and fill out more. 

It's like the garden has taken a deep breath and decided to keep on going, too.  With more to come when the mums start arriving at the party.

Hope you have a lovely bloom day and thanks to Carol for hosting us at May Bloom Gardens.  If you haven't already been over there, please go and check out some new blogs.