Kids are back in school already in our area. My pumpkins and squash are growing and producing. Beets are all picked. Tomatoes are getting ripe. My eggplants are ready to pick and potato plants are doing well. The gooseberries have all been picked or eaten by the birds.
Bird nests are falling all apart in the wind. Little ones have learned to fly and are practicing for the annual migration.
How can it be already, that fall is in the air? It seems just yesterday the tulips were blooming. I must have been having fun, because time sure has flown by.
I remember visiting a family in Florida and I was asked if we had a dormant season, like they did? I said more like a “dead season”; there is nothing dormant about it. This is a big country and we have so many different climates, it is hard to talk about gardening without understanding that the area I am in may not be anything like the area you are in.
That is why gardening is so interesting to me. Plants are different in each climate. One of the things that frustrates me is, if a supplier gets their stock plants from South Carolina, they get many plants that do not do well in my area. Our growing season is too short for the plant to bloom or vegetables to ripen. The plants are shipped too early in the season, and many of them get frozen in shipping or frozen at the destination. Plants labeled perennials are only annuals in this area, because our winters are so harsh. Keep this in mind when you are shopping next spring. Where does my supplier get their stock? Do they grow them in house or do they get shipped from some place out of state?
I am looking forward to harvest time. That is when all the hard labor and worry about the garden comes to an end. Now is the time to prep the produce for winter storage. The link above is equipment to transport the produce from the garden to your prep area and storage area. Whether you can freeze, dry freeze, or have an underground cave area for storage, there is some pride in knowing that your garden is productive. Especially with the price of food at the market these days.
Shop here for canning supplies, how-to books and recipes.
Fall is my favorite season. Fall is warm in the days and cool at nights. This is the time of year I save my outdoor painting projects. Since you are not supposed to paint once the temperature reaches 90 degrees; that leaves out much of the summer months. This is one of the reasons that professional painters start early and quit about noon. They have to guarantee their work and cannot afford to risk painting in the extreme heat. The heat changes the fluidity of paint and it will do weird things as it dries. (That is another subject we will touch on in another blog.)
In fall the geese, cranes, ducks and pelicans, to mention a few, are flying south in their migration paths. I love hearing them overhead. The leaves are turning. Some trees are giving off their fruit for animal and human consumption. The taste of a freshly harvested nut or apple is delicious. Everything smells crisp and wholesome. I don’t mind working hard outside in the fall. I enjoy it much better than sweating your way through a summer day, when your clothes stick to you with the slightest exertion.
For many, fall is hunting season. Hunting supplies can be found here:
I know many people are against guns, but in this area the animals are used to fill freezers. This is an annual tradition, just like picking your tomatoes as they become ripe. Food is an important part of human consumption. You will hear about the hunter who downed a trophy winner, long before you will hear most hunters are family men trying to feed their family, nothing more. It is a sign that winter is ahead and trime to get your larders full.
Fall is also the time that most enthusiasts head for the hills to see the trees change colors. It is an annual event, similar to hunting season. Only the instrument is most likely a cell phone or a camera. I do not mind whether you use a rifle or a cell phone, the season is for us to enjoy and use to its fullest.
I LOVE Fall!
