Fall has officially arrived. Many evenings are dipping into the 40’s and the tips of trees are changing. Fall came early this year. Oklahoma temps usually stay balmy through October, but this year is different… in more ways than one.
I am still enjoying picnics in the front lawn during my lunch break. By noon, the temps are lovely outside and the dew has had enough time to evaporate. My co-workers must think I’m kooky, but I need sunshine just like the sunflowers in full bloom on the corners of every corn field right now. I make sure my kindle is fully charged, lunch is warmed, and shoes are off. Sometimes it’s good to make ordinary moments extraordinary.
Gardening made this season so busy for me. I have canned many colanders full of tomatoes. Come to think of it, I better get out there and prune the ones that are still producing. I had planted my broccoli late so they were stunted, but my patience is paying off now that I see small heads forming on each plant (hallelujah!)
Farmer’s Almanac predict Nov. 1 to be the first frost, so I don’t imagine my beets will be done nor the watermelons. I am going to try the plastic bin method for my cool-loving veggies like my kale. The clear plastic keeps the frost out while allowing the sunshine in.
As a gardener, I need a spell of rest after such a busy season, and there is a long fall job list of repairs and projects that are already well underway. I am trying to think of fall as the beginning of something new, rather than the end of the gardening year.
My kale has been growing in the shade of the tomatoes. Once I harvest the last off the tomato plant on the left, I will cut it down and plant some salads and beets next to this kale and cover with a plastic bin to keep through the winter for fresh produce.
Home with Hope 