Fall Colors in the Garden

The leaves are just beginning to change colors in Saco, Maine but the flowers still blooming in the fall are bursting forth with their beautiful colors. So many of the spring blooming flowers have short lived blooms but that is not the case as the fall approaches. Some of these flowers can even be dried to prolong the enjoyment of their beauty. Every year I bring in some hydrangeas to save for a winter's bouquet. I guess it is finally time to part with those saved from last year and replace them with this new harvest.

The mystery squash reported several postings ago ended up simply being a two-toned gourd on a very prolific plant that emerged from the compost added to the asparagus bed. I now have a basket full of then to enjoy as decorations.

I have pulled all the gladiola tubers for winter storage but will leave the dahlias in the ground until after the first hard frost for they are still blooming vigorously.

I continue to pick tomatoes even if the plants look terrible and have vastly under produced this year so I will have a supply of red salsa and might even end up with some tomato sauce for pasta meals. I have purchased cucumbers at the local farm stand so a few batches of pickles are canned. The beets are a big success though, and I am about to pickled some for the canned goods storage shelves. The cabbage was just picked and will be turned into sauerkraut after six weeks of fermenting in the old crock