Butternut Squash--Round Two

Second harvest of butternut squash.  A quick wash at the sink to rinse off any dirt from the down side of the squash.  Next, off to the cool storage.  With the hot September we've experienced, no need to harden this beauties in the house.  Mother Nature took care of it already.

This round of butternut squash look less pumpkin-y than the first harvest and but not quite like the classic butternut squash shape.  Still bet it tastes great!

Rooted and Planted

A friend gave me a cutting from a special plant--Night-blooming cereus.  I was lucky enough to get it to root.  Planted it.  And surprise...a little growth is spouting.  Let's hear it for mother nature.

Nice Bunch of Berries

Early morning walks with dog to try to beat the heat.  Saw this shrub laden with red berries.  With so much of the usually green grass brown these days...these colors really popped!

Onions Drying

Tucked away in a shady spot, these onions are drying so that they can be stored.  Some will need to be used quickly (the light green/white with small bulb). As the onions are drying, the green stalks will wither and dry. 

Post a comment on how you will savor summer!

Just because Labor Day has come and gone, remember we have fifteen more days of summer.  Let's celebrate the final fifteen.  Make a list of ten things you can still do to appreciate the summer season:  grill, walk by the shore, watch a summer sunset, catch lightening bugs, swing on a porch swing, eat an ice cream cone or a Popsicle, smell freshly cut grass.  You get the idea.  Make your list and capture some late summer moments!  There's still time. #holdontosummer #savor summer

Just Hanging Out Until Bloom Time

My friend has a wonderful potting bench outside of her garage.  The bench is an amazing launching pad for orchids.  The orchids are tended to until they produce blooms.  At that time, into the house for the show.  Once they are finished, they come back out to the bench and receive care until they bloom again.  She has about eight plants outside right now.  This one is ready to bloom any day.

Check out these amazing orchid blooms here, here (Roger's Gardens) and here (babysitting an orchid).

Diced, Sliced, Spiced...How Do You Do Your Garden Tomatoes?

 How do you prepare your garden tomatoes?  These are being prepped for tomato soup.  Tonight dinner was BLTs.  There is just no bad recipe if you include homegrown tomatoes. Here's a look back at tomato prep for tomato sauce with recipe.

White, Yellow and Purple Create a Recipe for a Colorful Container

Colorful combination of the planted container. 

No-Spotted Lady Bugs!

When I was in my garden today, I discovered my artichoke plant was covered with aphids.  That would be a discouraging find if not for the fact that lady bugs LOVE aphids for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.  And because there were such an abundance of aphids, the lady bugs had come to feast.  I counted ten on the top of the leaves.  I know there were many on the underside, because I could watch them walking from underneath to the top of the leaf.

I was also excited to see a kind of lady bug I had not encountered before.  Solid red...no spots.  Can you guess their common name?  No-spotted lady bugs!

Welcome to my garden, lady bugs.  Come often and stay long.

A Little Game Called "Name that Seed" See if you can identify these seeds--Answer at the bottom of post

A

B

C

D

A. Bean   B. Butternut Squash   C. Dietes grandiflora   D. Onion

Like Moss...and Needs Little Water

Saw a great ground cover today.  It's green with small yellow flowers in the spring and summer.  Common name of Goldmoss Sedum or sedum acre.

Once established, it requires occasional watering.  Very dainty but provides a nice thick groundcover.

Tree Staking 2.0

I posted recently about the importance of staking new tree plantings.  I saw this interesting staking mechanism recently.  Here's what I like...the loop gives the tree plenty of space to sway in the breeze.  This mechanical movement will help the roots to grow strong and the trunk to strengthen.  Supports which allow no movement will create weak trunks and roots.

It will be imperative for this support to be removed as the trunk grows in girth.