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WELL, after my episode with the Epi-pen at the beginning of the month, I have been wary of even walking to the car when we still had the high 80 temps and the wasps and bees were buzzing around. Our temperatures finally abated this week, and we got some much needed measurable rain! In fact it continues to rain each day.
Our trees are so stressed...they aren't turning colors, just an occasional one here or there, the rest are just dropping their leaves.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
Hubby is in the middle of replacing our front wall of windows. They have been cloudy with broken seals since we moved here in 1984. But, 109"x 84" is a lot of window to replace. $$$$$$$$, hence why we are installing them ourselves. Every window and door has been replaced in our 1973 house by my Hubby, as well as cement siding...so we can sit out our senior years with little to no maintenance.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
Well, almost they are almost replaced. We opted for three smaller windows with two cranking out.
Hubby found out why our windows were always cold and frosted, the wood plate covered a void space of no insulation between the foundation, brickwork, and windows! NO WONDER!.
Anyway no Fall decor as the front porch and living room are all ripped up, we are shooting for Thanksgiving to actually have it all done.
Of course it's a dominos project: upgrade the electrical, new trim...new drywall---(PAINTING), drapes or blinds. I'm waiting until everything is done before making that decision.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
I did purchase one large pumpkin and one smaller one. Our garden pumpkins looked terrific, except I think they boiled themselves hollow/rotting from the heat. The sun and temps were so high from July through the first week of October.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
This potato vine is turning from burgundy to green...and it's so pretty. It's coming into the house before the weekend.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The Zinnias have not stopped, and now they don't want to dry with all the rain..I want to save seeds.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
I forgot these sweet ladybugs were in the middle of all those flowers.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The pot planted marigolds gave up---but the vinca vines are still going!
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Here is the in oldnewgreenredoground marigolds...yikes these are supposed to be 8-10" and they are twice that or more!
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The mailbox planter is really done.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The front flower bed, is a mess---the Giant Sedum plants are turning...I need to spread the seeds from the Liatris stalks in hopes of getting more plants. I need to bring in some more colored foliages to this area. And probably some marigolds for later color.
I did not buy any mums this year... it was too hot, and now they are all dried up and ugly at the stores---and in two weeks we will have a hard frost---thus, killing them anyway. Such is this MIDWEST Fall season!
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The Giant Sedum is gorgeous. These are one-year old plants, I put in last year. Glad they survived our wicked summer, many of my new perennials really struggled.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The Day Lily leaves are limp...but the mint is thriving because we watered this area heavily to save all the plants.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
This is three days of Walnut balls dropping on the front lawn--it rained immediately after I took these photos---so they will have to wait until tomorrow to be picked up as walnuts kill anything they land on or next to.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
Still a Fall success are my three Mandilla I have to bring into the house by the COLD weekend. Last year I had blooms until Christmas.
Now on to the Vegetable Garden!
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| oldnewgreenredo |
Our Fall Garden would be a success if this was a 16" sauce---lol, but it was only a 10" saucer and everything is miniature. The Butternut squash are ripe inside, the turnips are under 2", and I picked 4 green beans that weren't hard as rocks.
Here's the 12" strainer...we only got total 9 peppers out of 6 plants this year...sigh.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
I just scrubbed them...and trimmed off the dried stuff and the tops, tips.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The heritage red carrots are really ORANGE inside...some of the turnips had spoiled spots inside.
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| oldnewgreenredo |
The mini Butternut squash was perfectly formed, seeded and sweet. Everything else went into a chicken soup base and it is in the slow cooker and simmering away!
This is all there was for this year---
I give 2021 gardening a D+ for the year.
Clean up begins next week! All the leaves, grass clippings, vines, will be tilled into the garden---if it isn't still raining! We also have to clean the greenhouse and finish the insulation to be ready for next year!
HOW"S YOUR FALL GARDENING GOING?
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Sandi, you are so smart to getting your home in shape now than later. When we renovated we didn't want to "take away" the character of the old house so we did not replace the windows, only a couple on the back of the house. Now when we can't afford to do too much we are paying the high heating and cooling bills. I regret it now that we didn't. You have a large garden but look at what you got from it. Having the fresh veggies is wonderful. Our leaves are just barely turning and we had enough rain to wash the windshield of the car. That is it..Happy Wednesday..xxoJudy
ReplyDeleteHi, Judy. Our kids laughed when we told them their inheritance was the cement siding! (woodpecker proof)LOL. We are definitely toasty in the winter, and the bills weren't too bad this summer despite the high temps. With the increase in costs---for fuel/gas/electric, it has paid off. The most important is improving circulation in the living room...only having the two doors and three fans going it is still stuffy most of the time. Two opening windows will help! Hugs, and thanks for visiting. Sandi
DeleteI love your beautiful garden. Adorable flowers. Hugs and blessings.
ReplyDeleteThank you---it is so waning now, moving into Late Fall, and skipping the cool golden days. Hugs back, Sandi
DeleteIt's always so much fun to see all the progress you guys are making around the house and in the garden. I love to see how all your flowers are changing and to see the bounty from your garden too. Almost everyone I've spoken to say the weather has been unseasonably warm this year. It's still hot in Florida 89 today which is bananas. I'm so ready for it to feel like Fall! Hugs, CoCo
ReplyDeleteAh, yes, it's been a rough year! Enjoy your summer while you can, before you are invaded by all the Northern snowbirds! thanks for stopping by! Sandi
DeleteThis is such a hard time of year for our yards and gardens! You guys are always working so hard! Your vegetables look beautiful even if they are small...Glad you will have new insulated windows, what a difference that will make!
ReplyDeleteJenna
Thanks Jenna, those little squash were perfectly ripe inside with complete seeds and everything---totally weird. Thanks for visiting, Sandi
DeleteTheres' still beauty in a fading garden, isn't there? I love the sweet potato vine changing from burgundy to green - just beautiful! My vincas are still going strong - I think they may last into November! Good luck with the rest of the window project - it will be so worth it when done.
ReplyDeleteHugs, Amy. I sometimes think of the lovely woods you have next to your yard or in it...I'm sure next time we talk, there will have been snow...LOL. Thanks for stopping by! Sandi
DeleteYour new windows look great. It's nice that your Hubby can do the work to save the price of labour. Your ground marigolds are beautiful and I bet that chicken soup base will be delicious. Hugs.
ReplyDeleteAh, thanks, Thelma, it was a busy week. Soup was very good, and the mini veggies, too. LOL. I'm hoping you still get to enjoy some nice weather, I love your posts with your beautiful scenery. Thanks for stopping by, Sandi
DeleteI always feel hornets and bees ruin fall for me, and a lot of other insects like asian beetles. There is still so much beauty in your yard. We just had our first frost last night. I need to harvest what is left of the squash and bring the houseplants back inside.
ReplyDeleteOh, gosh, we missed frost by a few degrees, but will have it by the end of this next week. I have no idea where I will put all the plants, I may have to farm some out to friends, lol. Thanks for stopping by, Sandi
DeleteSandi,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by!! We have been having unseasonably warm weather so our trees are so far behind in turning colors that they will most likely lose their leaves before they turn.... Finally a cold front came through and we are now experiencing Fall weather with high's around 60 and low in the high 40's...I am loving it!! We hope to replace our windows next year...For the second time as we did it 34 years ago....Stay safe, healthy and happy!!
Hugs,
Debbie
Oh, Debbie. We took a long ride today--and basically trees are green or totally bare...it was such an awful summer. Frost this coming week, maybe something will turn red? Thanks for stopping by, Sandi--oh yikes, I remember it was too bad in the town house for windows, but this house is all big glass windows, so we've had to do them a bit at a time! Hugs, Sandi
DeleteI'd love new windows but I don't see it happening. Meanwhile, your garden looks spectacular and oh, so prolific!
ReplyDeleteOh, darn Jeanie, they are so expensive. All our windows are at leas 72 x63, and three are 108x63. That is why these are a little less. Thanks for stopping by! UPSIDE heating and cooling is way cheaper now. Hugs, Sandi
DeleteHow wonderful to have a handy husband to do work on your house. I like the new windows. It's good you got some veggies from your garden. thanks for the blog visits and have a nice week Sandi.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Julie. Hubby is handy and not happy unless he has something ripped up! LOL. Garden was great for tomatoes and that's about it. Tough year, too hot and very dry, even with constant watering. Hugs, Sandi
DeleteYour fall garden looks great--love potato vine! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!
ReplyDeleteAh, Thanks, potato vines are a staple in my pots, every year!
DeleteIt's always bittersweet this time of year, isn't it? Stuck between one season and the other -- looks like you've got a great handle on things! Congrats on the windows - we replaced our second story windows this year (along with a new roof $$$$$)but hopefully we can get the first floor windows done next year. xo Kathleen
ReplyDeleteYikes, Kathleen, that is a lot of pounding. We are raising our roof next year. It's too shallow for the snow to slide off...Thanks for visiting! Sandi
DeleteSandi,
ReplyDeleteMe again!! Thanks so much for stopping by!! I have to start Christmas decorating early because of the extent in which I decorate...Last day it took me 33 days so there is no way possible that i can wait until after Christmas...Plus I want to be able to sit back and enjoy the Season!!!
Hugs,
Deb
Yes, totally understand. WE have scaled back so much here, I will put up the village this year with the Grand's help! Hugs, and looking forward to seeing Nelson Crest again! Sandi
DeleteI feel such an amateur. Only a professional would know the length of his/her strainer (which we, in any case, call a sieve).
ReplyDeleteAnd all that bringing things in to protect them from the winter. And there was I thinking these things were organic and/or natural and thus - somehow - capable of fending themselves whatever the weather. What did they do in Neolithic times when primitive man was more concerned with protecting his own extremities when the mercury dipped? Answer: these flowers/fruit/veggies were waiting to to be invented once primitive man had sorted out a central heating system for his cave. Powered by bear fat and thus no threat to the environment.
Such seasonal obligations. Almost as if you were were enacting one of the later verses of Good King Wenceslas:
In his masters step he trod
Where the snow lay dinted
Heat was in the very sod
Which the Saint had printed
Unlikely in Newtonian energy conservation terms and 1600 years to wait before the equations were formulated.
Oh, Dear Roderick. The UK is surrounded by ocean---which temperates your climate despite being further north. Here in the midwest we can have 20 below 0 very quickly and for long periods of time. Even a greenhouse can't sustain plants without extensive heating. We just finished the 4th season of the 'Last Kingdom' originally a BBC production picked up by Netflix. During the late 800's and of course, I know that temps were horrid then across N. Europe---one of the reasons the Danes/Vikings sought settlements elsewhere. It's always interesting to put things in perspective according to the weather. Love the bear fat comment, not sure if you meant burning or eating? Sandi
DeleteSandi,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for taking the time to drop by and leave such a kind comment!! Hope you had a great October and are ready for November!!Stay safe, healthy and happy!
Hugs,
Deb
Always fun to visit your home! thanks, I have to get my rear in gear around here---cleaning after construction--is just too boring to post for blogging, LOL. Hugs, Sandi
DeleteYou had me with all the fresh veggies from the garden. I can make a meal of the vegetables.
ReplyDeleteOh, me too---hubby just found two lone peppers that actually grew the last two weeks. Everything is done now and solid frosts for the next week! Hugs, and thanks for stopping by! Sandi!
Delete