MidWest Gardening September 2019

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It's the end of September and while some things are just DONE...
others are not. As of 9/27 today, our GREEN vegetable garden is pretty much done, except for peppers and butternut squash. I picked the last of the tomatoes and got a huge bag in the freezer. 

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This picking was early September---we had two more pickings and we still have a bunch of peppers on our 12 or so plants. They have been big and thick. 

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Today, the Basil has had too much water, I dump the excess after every rain, but we have been soaked every third day or so.The Rosemary, Oregano, Thyme are very happy in the pot on the right. My Cilantro has revived and is growing thick. My Parsley not in the picture is almost as big and also has lettuce starting. If it gets cold, these long planters will go into the new greenhouse.

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This Rosemary Pot is very sweet and quite crazy. I will bring this into the house when/if it gets cold.

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My crazy late sunflower has branched out at the top and I had 12 blooms on it this week. They change colors and vary, day to day.

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You can see the trees aren't turning at all, yet!

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My big pot at the base of the stairs is very happy. Now in shade most of the day, everything has doubled in size. The 'sunflower' turned out to be a mulberry tree. and was promptly cut out this week. I will have to dig out the root after frost.

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This, Unexpected gift, which is quite happy by the pond. A Baby Tears I had in a few planters last year. I dumped dirt from pots around the pond last Fall, and it must have taken root. I will mulch and see if it makes it. I have had multiple ground covers here with not much luck. Too hot in the sun for most of the Spring and Summer, I guess the secret is more water, since we had tons of rain, records in fact.

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While the Sweet Peas are dead, this Monster Morning Glory has started in. 

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Huge mutant rubbery leaves and gorgeous 3" blooms. The color is amazing. I assume they will go until frost!

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These were not planted, but the birds help with that---after eating the seeds, from the neighbors plants.

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These are the grown-from-seed Marigolds after I trimmed them for the third time. We roll carts down this concrete. 8-10" marigolds are 18-20". The 12-16" ones are about 30" inches high. Amazing what hot weather and tons of water will do.

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I keep nipping flowerings on the Coleus, but they are just huge this year! We gave up on bug/critter spraying with rain falling constantly.

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This one gets more sun and is just as big. I do use a mix of composted dirt and 1/2 potting soil. They were fertilized, once????

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My Giant Sedum plants are full of pinkish blooms---the bees are thick and loving it, so I have to stay away from these areas. Some have fallen over because of the weight of the heads. Next year I will wire ring them early. 

As soon as they begin to turn burgundy, I will use some for cut arrangements. Such a wonderful plant for NO CARE--drought resistance and great foliage.

Well, it is Chicagoland...and 

SPEAKING OF RAIN, we are now in our 5th day since I started this post-----so....

(to be Continued)

Later when I can get some photos!

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and I will be happy to try and answer questions!

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Sandi 

OldNewGreenRedo

Midwest Garden falling into Fall?

Normally, my blog is full of gorgeous summer photos of a garden to be proud of, but with the cold/late spring and the drowning two months of record rains, 

Chicagoland weather has been inhospitable to gardening.

My flowers are sad---everywhere, too much greenery to sustain through the season. I leave the blossoms on these to dry for the birds to feed.

Foliage was abundant, while roots were shallow and nonexistent on some of the tallest plants. A few days without water and tomatoes plants simply wilted instantly and refused to revive. Our tomatoes have been small, falling off the vines and way below normal production.

My Zinnias are 5 feet tall, but the flowers are very small and tight. 

No bouquets in the house this year each week. Never enough flowers to snitch from the yard.

I spent most of the summer dumping out saucers under plants and drilling holes in others for more drainage.

The Marigold on the right is growing through a crack in the sidewalk, just to show you what the dirt underneath is holding for water. I have watered it three times all summer.

But Fall is creeping up on us, and the sedum is small---but just opening.

These bees were absolutely burying themselves in the blossoms.

They never even blinked at me sticking a camera near them.

My back stairs---peeling from all the rain and we redid them last year, the green tinge is mold which covers everything. We bleached the stairs because they were scary slippery.

The birdhouse pole rotted, this year. Crazy!

Hollyhocks seed pods are still tightly wrapped. When they open, I will spread them out along the fence.

Strangely we have a few huge pumpkins. This one is at least 15" long.

Pie pumpkins are nowhere near ripening though.

Another large pumpkin on our antique cultivator. The leaves are starting to dry up, or mildew up--not sure which.

We have a few spaghetti squash, still hanging. Soon to be picked. They are very hard, not really ripe yet.

And Butternut squash, my personal favorite.

Another spaghetti squash, this one hides in the bean trellis, beans, we have finally had two pickings---so late.

Here's my dill---but there are no cucumbers to use it with. We had fresh cukes a couple at a time, not enough for making pickles.

Squash leaves looked like ancient tattered petticoats, and yet they try to blossom? 

Plants are confused, so am I.

And it's dropping into the low 50's tonight. Trees are thinking about turning, our Maple in front---with its edges starting to lemon out before either drying up or maybe turning salmon orange. 

Crossing my fingers. 

How is your Fall yard doing?

Thanks always for visiting. 

I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.

All the opinions and photographs in this blog are my own, I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or any products shown or anywhere I shop.

 Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog without my permission. 

Thank you for your cooperation, Sandi Magle

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