End of summer

I have been away from my garden for a long time. I was happy to be back, I feel I missed a good part of the summer in the garden.

End of summer. I like this time of the year when you can feel things are changing, the garden is dying slowly. 

Let me give you a tour of what is happening here.

Harvest of the day,

 I am really happy with those round carrots. We only had a few of them as one of our chickens escaped and ate all the seeds...

Tasty tomatoes for my salads

Pansies in the planters for a little color

From my trip I brought back a hazenult tree...  

Asters are in bloom, this morning walking out in the garden I saw a bunch of bumble bees sleeping right on the flowers ! What a great bed for a bee. 

backyard chicken workshop

chris and i have taught several different kinds of workshops, all related to our backyard.
but one of our favorites is backyard chickens.
we taught one on tuesday night at a local high school through a community class program.
we give a really fun slide presentation with all of our own photos.
we talk about coop designs, breed selection, chicken care basics and the wonderful benefits of keeping a small-scale backyard chicken coop.
this time we thought it would be fun to give a two part workshop,the second part being in our backyard.
we wanted people to see how small our space really is and what you can do in such a tiny space.
today participants came for the second part.
some brought their kids (who got the biggest kick out of petting the girls and feeding them sunflower seeds) as well as partners and spouses.
two women even went home to get their husbands and bring them back to talk to chris more about how to build themselves a coop like ours:)
it was such fun showing every one around
and sending them all off to come up with their own little backyard operation.

weekend plans

our fall schedule is a busy one.

it has been days since i have had time to take a picture in the garden.
and today it was pouring buckets which didn't allow for much of a photo post today.

i did however manage to clean and de-clutter the pantry this week
to make room for some canned goods in the works such as applesauce and tomatoes.

i found an old crock at the thrift today and we plan on making some sauerkraut
this weekend from the cabbage that we have begun to get in our CSA share.

a pot of farm beets and carrots have been chopped up to make borscht.

and loads of swiss chard is waiting to be frozen.

speaking of canning and preserving have you seen this great site?

what are your garden/pantry/kitchen plans for the weekend?

in the garden

take a moment to pause & savor
the work that has been & yet to be done.
take a walk in the garden
eat lunch in the garden
as summer transitions to fall.

this is my favorite time of year.
the harvest is plentiful
my pantry is full
& there is still so much to be.

almost

although it is not quite officially fall yet, i can feel it coming.

this time of year always brings a new flurry of activity into our lives.
and i find myself stepping back and observing more than doing in the garden.

some observations:
-the song of the cricket
-sedums in bloom
-the changing light
-seed heads, and pods
-the rustling of grass heads
-ripe crab apples soon to be eaten by the squirrels and the birds
-beautiful brown eggs
-the slowing down of the harvest

some additions:
-two new critters
-and a rock wall

i hope to finish a few more tasks and projects in the garden before the cold weather really hits.

but i too find myself slowing down a bit and going to seed.

yes fall is coming.