December Snows

We had a couple inches of snow over the last few days. Just enough to cover the ground and make it pretty. We took a walk in our son's woods with a weed eater, a chainsaw, a pair of long handled pruners, and a pitchfork. The walk was to get some fresh air and exercise after being cooped up in the house for several days. The tools were to do a little brush cutting to clear a path to some firewood.

The wind was really starting to crank up on the hills, but down in the woods it wasn't bad at all. Though this fern looked like it was feeling the cold.

I was cutting some brush under a hawthorn tree, and when I looked up, I saw this bird nest tucked into the branches. 

I had to stop and take a photo of one of my favorite spots in their woods. 

Another storm blew in later in the day, and when we woke up this morning, we had another 6 or so inches. Very fluffy. And very cold! It was beautiful, but I didn't take very many pictures when we went out to shovel out the sidewalks and plow the driveway. I couldn't take photos with my thick gloves on, and I found out very quickly it was too painful to take them off with a wind chill of 10 below 0. 

But I did pull them off long enough to take a quick snap of this table on our deck. 

Isn't that cool? Love how the snow fell through the holes in the tabletop. 

I stood in the warmth of the dining room to take this one. The pine bush outside is weighted down by the snow, and I like how it looks behind one of the snowmen ornaments I painted several years ago. It would have been nicer if there wasn't a screen in the window, but I still like the effect. 

 

It's supposed to warm up later in the week, so all this snow may turn to mud in a few days. With any luck, we will get a chance to do a little sled riding before it melts. Too, too cold today, but maybe tomorrow! 

Learning on the Job Digging Dahlias and Gladiolus

The warm days of autumn have faded into the chilly days of early winter, and I've been busy helping Kevin and Katie wrap up the growing season. My flower growing knowledge is rather limited, but bless their hearts, they agreed to let me help out, and I'm really enjoying it. And I'm learning a lot! 

Annie has taken it up herself to keep an eye on me as I work. 
Not a bad idea, someone needs to make sure I do it right. 

A couple weeks ago, I volunteered to dig the dahlias. These were from their specialty patch at their house that Katie uses in the flower arrangements she sells in season. At first, I dug them and laid them in the grass nearby. But it was a windy day, and I was having trouble keeping their nametags in place. 

So, I abandoned that idea, and as I dug them, I just carried them 2 at a time to the greenhouse to dry for a couple days. Let's just say that helped get my steps in. Ha. 

A couple days later, George helped me dig the dahlias from the U-Pick patch, which was less stressful, since those ones weren't tagged, meaning I didn't have to worry about making sure I didn't lose said tags. After they dried a bit, Kevin got them all tucked into barrels with a blanket of peat moss to keep them cozy for their long winters nap in their basement. 

Today, it was the gladiolus' turn. Because of the wet spring, they got planted late and then bloomed beautifully as long as they could. Kevin and Katie decided to leave the glads in the ground for a while despite frosty nights, so the glads could go through their winding down process. But with the possibility of snow next week, it was time to get them out of the ground. 

This was my first time digging glads, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out I could just pull them out of the ground by hand, using a garden fork occasionally if one broke off from the stem. I filled 2 crates by myself, then George helped me fill 2 more. The kids helped with the last 2, and let me tell you, they had the pulling process down! I was the stem cutter, and I could barely keep up with them. 

Hopefully the fact that the glads had some frosty nights won't be an issue. Last year, Kevin accidentally skipped a row when he dug them up, and that row made a surprise appearance in the summer, with no damage. 

Now the glads are taking their turn in the greenhouse to dry before they too get put to bed for the winter. 

 

A Surprise Under the Dahlias

Our daughter Jessica gave me some of her dahlia tubers last spring, and I planted them by the porch, outside the kitchen window. Such a unique, and beautiful star shaped bloom! I think this variety is called Verrone's Obsidian.

For a week or so during the late summer, a hummingbird would hover around them, drinking in their sweet nectar. I was never quick enough with the camera to get a photo, but I sure enjoyed watching.

We've had a few hard frosts by now, so a couple days ago, I decided to dig up the tubers. I was surprised that I didn't have to get out the shovel or spade. I was able to pull out the whole clump by hand.

But that wasn't the only surprise. When I pulled them up, I noticed the slightest movement in the dirt.

At first, I thought it was a snake's tail. 

But snakes slither away quickly, and this didn't make a move other than the slightest twitching of its tail. I was feeling brave and used a long screwdriver to flip away more dirt.

A yellow spotted salamander! 

Even with the dirt removed, it didn't make a move. I gently covered it back up with the loose dirt and left it in peace in its hidden home. 

Bees, hummingbirds and even salamanders. Those dahlias sure did put out the welcome mat!

Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall on the Porches

The frost took the coleus a few nights ago, and the impatiens were alive, but not happy. I miss when they looked like this: 

But, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade, right? 

Time for fall! I decided to see how long the sweet potato vine and the sweet alyssum will last. Dare I hope until Halloween? 

Love pumpkins! I don't think I'll be potting up anything this late in the season, so I may as well fill the potting bench up with pumpkins. 

As for the potting bench on the other porch, it is also decorated for fall. And Willow seems to think she is part of the display. 

Trying our Hands at Drying Flowers

Just a few weeks ago, the U-Pick Patch at our son's farm was in full glory. Howard Family Farms in Salisbury, PA was the place to go to pick and arrange your own bouquet. 

Unfortunately, the end of the season comes when Jack Frost makes his annual debut.

The night before the predicted frost, George & I cut a row of flowers Katie wanted to dry from the U-Pick Patch, while Kevin did the same in their private patch at their house. 

It was getting close to dark, and we were hustling. And to be completely honest, we really didn't know what we were doing. But we managed to completely fill the truck bed with just one row of flowers.

The next day, George & I tied them together into bundles, while the kids & Kevin hung them to dry. Once again, we really didn't know what we were doing, but we gave it the ole college try. We were almost done when Katie got home from work, and told Kevin that technically, we were supposed to strip the leaves. Oops! But she was fine with how we did it, (or maybe she is just a good actor?) Hopefully the drying leaves won't be too much of an issue. 

Ah, well, this may be a live and learn situation. Isn't that most of life? 

They sure look pretty hanging there! Katie has plans for them. It will be interesting to see what all she comes up with! 

 

Strange Dandelions

Last spring, we found a few of the oddest dandelions on our son's farm in PA. It seemed that 3 or 4 of them fused into one, making a wide stem with multiple flower heads coming out of it. 

I have no idea if that is common or rare, but it was a new sight for me personally.

The grandkids found the first one, then we found a few more, all within the same general area. 

I'll have to keep an eye out for them again next spring! 

Frost is Coming Soon for our Flowers. Boo.

Chances for frost are increasing, so I wanted to get a final photo of our garden doors before the end of the season. The zinnias looked much better a month or so ago, but that's ok. 

George and I made all the decorations. All had been in our shop at one point. The butterflies we made from old tin corrugated roofing were a great seller, as were the various chair planters we had through the years. We had fun making birdhouses and decorating them with old junk. As for the garden angel, we did sell several of them, but we kind of got in on that trend a little late. They were starting to fade in popularity by the time we started making them. Ah, always a dollar late and a dollar short. We ended up keeping a few of them, and I sort of rotate them in and out of use. 

This is the view we see of them from our house.

And this is the view our neighbors see:

We want to make it look nice on their side too. Although I do have trouble remembering to water the flowers in the little wagon. They aren't looking so hot at this point. Actually, I thought they were dead once, but I went ahead and gave them a BIG drink, and they came back. Then we got a little rain, and dewy nights, and they managed to stay alive despite me neglecting them. 

We had bought the wagon to sell in the shop, but it never made it there. I rarely kept things without even trying to sell it, but the wagon spoke to me. "Keep me, keep me!". So I did. 

Same with this red one:

I can't remember for sure if I ever had this wagon in the shop, but I'm thinking it also told me to keep it. When a wagon speaks, you have to listen. Hee hee. 

Look at those plants! This is a first for me! That coleus... I can't believe it got so big. The sweet potato vine just kept going and going. The impatiens did pretty well, and the sweet alyssum... Wow! This is the first time I even kept it alive. Honest! 

I watered frequently, and fertilized with Miracle Gro a few times, and by golly, I got rewarded big time. I hate to lose them to the cold, but I guess that day is coming.  

I may fool around and learn how to be a flower gardener yet!