Week 3
The first full week of September threw full-on fall weather at us: wind, rain, a significant temperature drop. The kind of weather that makes you want to sit inside your house, under a blanket, with hot chocolate and a good book. All of which I did, but, because I promised myself to write about the garden each week here, I made it out there yesterday, with Bart (having someone else to go with helps!).
And we stayed for a good 2 hours. In the sunshine. Because it's always sunny in the garden. Even when it rains. :-)
But before I go into what we did yesterday I want to highlight a wonderful app for novice gardeners like myself (and after a decade I still feel like I know nothing): Pl@ntNet. Don't know what that plant is? Upload a picture and find out! Which is how I now know these gorgeous yellow things that make me happy are Rudbeckias:
I'm hoping to catch them come seeding time. I've been quite good at collecting seeds this year, and I would love to see these back again next year - I just need to give them a head start at home because I don't know what they look like as babies in the wild.
So. Back to the garden and our unexpected 2-hour sojourn there. First of all, there were approximately 248 tomatoes to collect.
They are just keeping it going, even though I topped them all off a few weeks ago. Apparently 'topping off' is Tomato for 'produce even more side shoots, preferably with blossoms'. I was ruthless this time, though - they were topped off once more and all the side shoots removed, and I gave them a stern warning to stop playing around because the cold is on its way and they need to pour all their energy into their fruits/vegetables. Fat chance they'll listen but at least I tried...
All the rain also produced some courgette monsters. And I harvested our lone paprika, even though it's still green (I planted it out too early and in a spot with not enough sun, I think). And the intermittent sun also gave some late-summer strawberries! They went straight into a crumble with the not-quite-a-kilo of plums gifted from the garden of my sister or dad. Nomnomnom...
Besides some serious harvesting I also moved 2 baby lavender plants from their accidental nursery in between the cabbages to the border between the middle flower patch and Lila's garden, where the lavender has gotten somewhat large, wooded, and patchy. The packet had 'red onion seeds' in handwriting on it so I thought I was sowing that, but instead I got two lavenders! Very chuffed to get them, though, since they are notoriously picky growers from seed.
And I cleared the hazels in the bird yard of their upstart undergrowth. At least, I think they're hazels... Will check with PlantNet when I'm in the garden next because I've already cleared all the pictures off my phone! :-)
Things that are blooming at the moment: rudbeckia, nepeta, both anemones, cosmo, dahlia, a campanula of some kind, and this beautiful lemon thyme is having A Real Moment:
She really likes to be kept neat and clean of weeds by her feet, I think. And she's really spread herself out this year, possibly because I moved a neighbor plant about 2 meters away, possibly because I kept the rose beside her somewhat in check. Whatever the reason, she's gorgeous and smells divine.
Finally, when I was on the hunt for some herbs to make yet another batch of tomato puree-sauce with I startled this little frog, who was then kind enough to stay for her portrait. Until next week!
And we stayed for a good 2 hours. In the sunshine. Because it's always sunny in the garden. Even when it rains. :-)
But before I go into what we did yesterday I want to highlight a wonderful app for novice gardeners like myself (and after a decade I still feel like I know nothing): Pl@ntNet. Don't know what that plant is? Upload a picture and find out! Which is how I now know these gorgeous yellow things that make me happy are Rudbeckias:
I'm hoping to catch them come seeding time. I've been quite good at collecting seeds this year, and I would love to see these back again next year - I just need to give them a head start at home because I don't know what they look like as babies in the wild.
So. Back to the garden and our unexpected 2-hour sojourn there. First of all, there were approximately 248 tomatoes to collect.
They are just keeping it going, even though I topped them all off a few weeks ago. Apparently 'topping off' is Tomato for 'produce even more side shoots, preferably with blossoms'. I was ruthless this time, though - they were topped off once more and all the side shoots removed, and I gave them a stern warning to stop playing around because the cold is on its way and they need to pour all their energy into their fruits/vegetables. Fat chance they'll listen but at least I tried...
All the rain also produced some courgette monsters. And I harvested our lone paprika, even though it's still green (I planted it out too early and in a spot with not enough sun, I think). And the intermittent sun also gave some late-summer strawberries! They went straight into a crumble with the not-quite-a-kilo of plums gifted from the garden of my sister or dad. Nomnomnom...
Besides some serious harvesting I also moved 2 baby lavender plants from their accidental nursery in between the cabbages to the border between the middle flower patch and Lila's garden, where the lavender has gotten somewhat large, wooded, and patchy. The packet had 'red onion seeds' in handwriting on it so I thought I was sowing that, but instead I got two lavenders! Very chuffed to get them, though, since they are notoriously picky growers from seed.
And I cleared the hazels in the bird yard of their upstart undergrowth. At least, I think they're hazels... Will check with PlantNet when I'm in the garden next because I've already cleared all the pictures off my phone! :-)
Things that are blooming at the moment: rudbeckia, nepeta, both anemones, cosmo, dahlia, a campanula of some kind, and this beautiful lemon thyme is having A Real Moment:
She really likes to be kept neat and clean of weeds by her feet, I think. And she's really spread herself out this year, possibly because I moved a neighbor plant about 2 meters away, possibly because I kept the rose beside her somewhat in check. Whatever the reason, she's gorgeous and smells divine.
Finally, when I was on the hunt for some herbs to make yet another batch of tomato puree-sauce with I startled this little frog, who was then kind enough to stay for her portrait. Until next week!
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