Fall is Coming
Yesterday I came home and noticed that the leaves were collecting by the back door and it hit me that fall was here. I love fall so I’m quite excited about the changing of the leaves, raking, pumpkins, cider, camp fires, cool weather and all the other wonderful things that come along with the changing of summer to fall.
If I had to pick my favorite thing about fall, I think I’d have to pick the weather. There’s something wonderful about the crispness in the air after a long hot humid summer. It’s quite refreshing and really helps me get all my fall gardening chores finished.
Do you have fall in your climate? What’s your favorite thing about fall?
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Fall Field Trip to Ramseyer Potato Farm
Last Friday I went on a field trip with my nieces and nephew. They’re home schooled and are involved in a homeschool co-op that schedules field trips for all the kids to go on together. We spent the afternoon at the Ramseyer Potato Farm.
They have all kinds of activities from corn mazes to duck racing. My sister took the two younger kids on the potato farm tour and my dad carried around baby Katie. Unfortunately it was record breaking highs on Friday with temperatures in the high 80’s, it’s a good thing we took plenty of water.
I went on the Ohio Corn Maze with my oldest niece and my mom. It’s a huge corn maze in the shape of Ohio with major landmarks as the maze trails. There were signs with information throughout the maze and the kids had a worksheet to fill out when they found each of the locations.
The farm is also a pumpkin farm, so there were fields and fields of pumpkins. We got to go on a hay ride and pick our own pumpkin from the field. Hannah picked a nice big one.
There were also other fun activities like duck racing and corn crib sandboxes. The kids enjoyed running around and being kids for the afternoon and little miss Katie enjoyed being carried around by grandpa.
When it comes to my family, you can never leave home without ending up at a local ice cream shop (a tradition thoroughly embraced by Mr Chiots).
The kids had a great time, and hopefully they learned something on their visit. They especially enjoyed spending the day with grandpa as he just got home from spending 3 months in South America.
Have you enjoyed any great fall activities recently?
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A Race Against the Weather
Remember that batch of fall cucumbers I planted hoping for a late September or early October harvest of cucumbers before the first frost? Well, they’re doing well. They quickly climbed their supports and are blooming prolifically, which the bees are loving. I spotted the first baby cucumber late last week and I’ve been keeping my eye on it.
It looks like I should get a decent harvest, unless we get an early frost or the weather turns cold earlier than normal. I should be able to pick my first cucumber later this week, perhaps tomorrow!
Here’s hoping for another large jar of pickles in the fridge to feast on all winter long!
Do you have any crops you’re hoping to harvest before frost sets comes in your garden?
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Quote of the Day: C.S. Lewis
“We live, in fact, in a world starved
for solitude, silence, and private:
and therefore starved for meditation and true friendship.”
C.S. Lewis (The Weight of Glory)
One of the things I love about gardening is the solitude and silence. Gardening gives me time to think, time to unwind, time to contemplate and time to simply enjoy some peace and quiet.
What things help you find solitude and silence?
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The First Brandywines of the Season
The tomato season is almost over and I’ve already taken out 80% of my plants. I have a few nice plants left and among them is my ‘Brandywine’ tomato. It doesn’t produce a ton of fruit, but they’re the quintessential tomato when it comes to flavor and type. The tomatoes are HUGE and the flavor is probably the best as far as classic tomato flavor goes, at least in my book.
There are a lot of varieties of ‘Brandywine’ tomatoes, these are from saved seeds from a tomato a friend gave me so I’m not sure what variety it is. I’ll be saving seeds for these for years to come. I’ll always grow at least one vine even though I only get 5-10 tomatoes from it, it’s worth the space for such delicious flavor.
Do you grow ‘Brandywine’ tomatoes? What tomato provides your favorite perfect tomato flavor?
