No, it's not fall, but...

This is an image that looks like fall, yet it was taken on August 1st.

I especially love the color of the Jarrahdale.

While there are quite a few ripe winter squash and some of the early leaves are going brown, there are still a lot of immature ones and the plants are still setting new ones too. This picture shows the yellowing leaves.

But look at all the lush ones here. And you can even see some tiny fruits.

This jack o'lantern will be a beauty!

The tomatoes are starting to ripen, beginning with the cherry varieties.

I have begun to pull up the spent cuke vines. I will have to use the wheelbarrow to move this lot to the burn pile.

I think I will pull out the zukes really soon. They are not really producing much anymore and they have given in to the annual mildew that eventually turns the leaves whitish.

Here are the beginnings of the burn pile. I have so much cutting to do again. It seems like all the stuff I cut back last fall and spring has regrown even bigger. I made my arms ache from all the cutting I did on Saturday!

I just like this view of the garden.

Although parts of the garden are winding down, you can see others are still going strong. Here is a healthy looking second crop cuke plant.

We're eating the first crop of string beans at the moment. We've had some roasted eggplants too, with homemade egg pasta, though the eggplants are not setting fruit very well. There seem to be a bunch of aphids on just the eggplants, but no other veggies. Still, I think we'll get plenty!

I'm hoping for a couple more months of good pickings!!

Front Door Facelift

This weekend, Jeff is working hard on the front door to remove a lot of old paint.

It is tricky work as there is lots of detail!

We are planning to paint it red. I can't really get an accurate picture of the color. It looks different in shade and sun. All the colors are a bit wonky in this picture of the shade card.

This is the color chip sample which looks a bit closer to me.

It is called Apple Polish.

After we get the door finished, there is a warped floorboard on the porch to be replaced. Then we need to paint the roof supports and stain the floor.

I am thinking of getting a full glass panel storm door, so the pretty old door is shown off better, but we'll see if we get to that. I think the porch needs a bit of decorating, perhaps a nice big planter with an evergreen shrub and a bench or chair, but that might wait for next summer at this point.

Then, we need to paint the backdoor too. I think we'll do it the same color.

Hopefully there will be some house maintenance FO's to show soon!

Edited to add:
Down to wood.

First coat of paint.

Photographing a Needle in a Haystack

Well, that's what it seems like trying to get a photograph of a hummingbird in a zinnia patch! The hummingbirds are so skittish, but may be getting more used to me. I've seen two at a time now, so there are at least that many! I hope we have more!

You may want to click on each of these to see the bigger images. You'll be able to see the soft wisps of feathers on the upper leg/side and the little feet.

In each image the iridescent feathers have reflected the light a little differently.

The green colors look like peridot and emerald gemstones.

Although it looks like they are always hovering, they do perch on the blooms sometimes.

As a gardener, it is so rewarding to see birds enjoying my efforts. There are always birds in the garden, perched on tomato stakes or under the shady leaves. They find the puddles on the plastic mulch and bathe and drink. They wrestle bugs from the air and from plant stems in a flurry of wings and beak thrusts. In particular, the goldfinches and cardinals like to balance on the stakes. The goldfinches check to see it's safe and then swoop down to a puddle. The cardinals eye the plants up and down looking for a juicy, wormy snack. The morning doves waddle around cooing 'wooo' at things and picking at specks. The robins flap down looking for the biggest puddles for an extra splashy bath. They hang out in the shade under the zukes and startle me sometimes. There are multitudes of sparrows in little groups. They alternate between puddle baths and dust baths. They make little cups in the dust where they scratch and beat their wings to raise up dust clouds. These are all very common birds and I haven't mentioned other common ones like the jays, cat birds, silly acting crows and families of hawks soaring overhead and crying 'skreeee'.

I guess the hummingbirds are extra special for me as they are not so plentiful, but also, they are just so different from typical birds, the way they eat, fly and change color in the sunlight! I so love hummingbirds! They have hovered in the air right in front of me and looked directly at me, first with one eye, then shifting sideways in a flash to scrutinize me with the other eye! Their little bodies stay focused while the beating wings blur around them. Maybe they will get more used to me and I'll be able to get closer and get some more pictures, or just have them near when I'm tending the garden.

A View From the Barn and other Garden Updates

Yesterday, I decided to take some pictures of the garden from a different angle, looking out the upstairs door in the barn. I use the word 'upstairs' in a loose sense...it's more 'upladder'! This picture is shot down through the trapdoor in the floor.

Look how worn the old boards are. Just imagine all the feet that have tread here!

When you are upstairs, this is the view to the south. The odds and ends of furniture were here when we bought it. There are some bottles, old metal milk cans and two man saws, etc. that I'll photograph another time. The window broke and is boarded up for now. Fortunately there are light fixtures along the ridge line!

And this view is to the north. Excuse all the grime!! It needs a cleaning as there are still scraps of hay from who knows when???

There are mini trapdoors for dropping hay to the cows below, a feed shoot and a chicken door, but I will take pictures of those some other time. For now, I have posted a view of some little holes cut into the south end of the barn. There are 2 on each side of the window and must have been for pigeons or doves.

And this is the old hay door on the east wall. The old spade came with the barn. We still have the huge hay hooks too!

And here are the 'aerial' views of the garden and yard. It looks so wild! How ever do I walk through all that greenery?!

A wider shot showing some of the lawn/dog's play area.

Zoomed in a little. You can barely see the compost bin in the foreground!

Back on the ground, I took some more update pictures. Here are the sunflowers, etc.

I don't usually show this angle of the garden since I have some messy fences coiled up here. I stopped using the rabbit fence several years ago and didn't use the larger piece as a trellis this year, so they are in the way and getting rusty. I may just have to take them to the metal recycle bins. If you look closely at the barn, you can see the door I took the pictures from. Someday, we have to have stairs built to it. As a home inspector once said when we were buying the place, 'that first step's a doozy'!!

This is probably the most photographed angle of the garden! You can see my late-crop zukes and cukes growing in the foreground. Hopefully they will provide a last taste of summer just before we head into the fall!

These tall arching plants with trailing pink blooms are called 'Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate', but mine grow over the compost bin. Somehow, 'Kiss Me Over the Compost Bin' isn't quite so romantic!!

This is a pretty good shot of my tall variety of Balloon Flower, showing you how it gets the name.

I completely forgot I had planted some hardy gladioli, probably the first or second year we were here and was surprised to see them on the 'back' side of the house today when I walked all the way around the house. I almost missed them as they are going by!

This is a beautiful hydrangea on a 'shared' plant on the property line. I really love this shade of blue!

Stir Fry Dinner

Since canning the cranberry pepper jelly, I have been excited about making stir fry sauce with it. In fact, we have had it two nights in a row!

I cut chicken and bell pepper (from the garden) into bite sized pieces and coarsely dice some Vidalia onion. The chicken goes in first and as the outer surfaces of that start to look cooked, I add in the veggies. When everything is cooked, I add in the pineapple chunks and a little juice and a few tablespoons of jelly. The jelly melts down and makes a sauce with the pineapple juice. I toss everything in the sauce. You can see the yummy sauce bubbling at the edge of the pan.

We have it with rice and green beans picked fresh from the garden!

Weathered Looking Butterflies

So many of the butterflies this year are looking very tattered. I wonder if they are getting attacked by birds or insects or if the heavy rains have damaged them?

Look at all the raggedy edges on this one.

The one in the next two pictures has a big piece missing from the left wing.


Even the smaller varieties have tattered wings. You have to look a bit closely, but there are two butterflies on this spike of butterfly bush.

Dogs Eating Zucchini

Just a video to show you how much the dogs enjoy eating veggies! They had their normal meal a few hours earlier, but apparently there is always room for zucchini.

I muted the video as the breeze made noise on the mic...just imagine a lot of loud chomping noises!