figgy figs!

Three have ripened. We each ate one. Small, but very tasty! 

I was pleasantly surprised. 

The flavor much better than last year. 

 Because I picked them later (more ripe) or because the plant is more mature? (My newer turkey fig has fruit also, but not ripe yet). Dunno, but satisfied regardless.

fall work

I've been busy doing things to prep the garden for winter- spreading loads of compost on the beds. Emptied my secondary outside compost pile, an old metal garbage can with holes drilled into it, into the newly-started compost pile (it wasn't 'finished' yet) and then refilled the can with finished compost to save for the last few beds that still have plants occupying them. (It's going to rain tomorrow, so I didn't want to leave some of the finished compost out to get washed away).

Bought a small load of concrete blocks (16) to redo one of the newer raised beds, and have been waterproofing and painting them in stages. Raked out the bottom of the vacated compost pile spot, sifted out the twigs and leaves, and scattered on the lawn. Watered the patch of newly seeded grass, waiting to see it grow . . . 

Meanwhile, here's some inside stuff. I took another set of 'rodeo drive' coleus cuttings. The ones on the left, paler yellow green and more prominent purple veins, is from the back deck. The slightly darker grass-green one with thinner purple markings, was on the front porch. 

Took cuttings of the sweet potato vine.

Moved the madagascar palm to join other plants on the bench by sliding glass door. I think it hasn't been getting enough sun.

Zygo cactus isn't too happy. Getting a bit yellowish. I moved it back from the window- too much light?

The solid-color spider plant next to it- has grown an offshoot with a baby plantlet!

And small joy- one more violet cutting is starting to grow a new tiny plant. It's called 'Lady in Red'.

lavender cookies

The lavender is so pretty I wanted to make use of it. Had a nice long hot soak in a bath with a handful of sprigs scenting the water. And the other day made cookies. I love shortbread, but it's so fattening- I think I've only made it two or three times, less than once a year! So earlier this week I made lavender shortbread cookies, as a little something special on the day of equinox. For this I picked the most tender young leaves-

chopped fine-

mixed into the dough and chilled- I don't often do this kind of baking so slicing chilled dough felt fancy to me!

Ready to bake-

All done- wow, it was delicious. 

Tasted more like lemon cookies, though- the recipe I used called for lemon zest I substituted lemon juice and it was too much. I'd rather have have more of the flower flavor. Going to adjust next time.

nearing the end

of this season for the garden. I don't think I'm going to get any more tomatoes, and don't know how long the sunberry and amaranth will last.

Some things are still thriving- carrots! Haven't pulled a single one yet. I think they will taste better if I let them grow in the cooler weather a while.

Most of the herbs are still giving me flavor, although basil is looking sad now, lemon balm had a revival-

Other herbs still getting regular use in the kitchen- here a bit of parsley, chives and lovage I cut recently

Not in the garden but near it- the hollyhock mallow (zebrina flower) has doubled in size again. Only one lived. I doubt it will bloom now. I just read that in some areas this can be a pernnial- so maybe next year?

I do finally have flowers from the other one I planted late- cardinal climber! A few of the buds open in the middle of the day now

This one's grown up to the deck railing. I leaned through to get this photo.

View from below is pretty too-

I'm definitely growing this one next year. Just going to get an earlier start on it!

um, grass . . .

Kind of embarrassing to go out and kneel on the edge of the driveway to pull crabgrass by hand for an hour. That area I had cleared and reseeded last year, that sprang up all bright, pretty vivid green? It died in the summer heat. There's pretty much only this one tuft left.

However, the seed I scattered all through the rest of the front yard seems to have taken in most spots- the bare patches have all filled in. With crabgrass again as well, unfortunately (though it does seem less thick than last year, hard to tell. Definitely less of it in the back yard now, where I've been catching the clippings when there are seedheads present). So now I'm pulling up crabgrass again- making bare areas and reseeding them with this variety that's supposed to have deep, drought-resistant roots, and send runners out underground to spread and fill in on its own accord-

Started out alongside the driveway once more. If this area takes well (and lasts thru next summer) then I'll go ahead and pull/reseed another section. At least I know what works now, to get the grass seed to grow. I did it the same: mix equal amounts seed, compost and ashes, scattered evenly over the bare, raked ground, mulch lightly with crushed dry leaves, water regularly.

little prickly

Found a few little hollies growing here and there on edges of the yard. I dug some up and transplanted them to spots where I wouldn't mind having a shrub to fill in space or shield from neighbor's view.

I especially like this one that has lighter color to some leaves.

Done this before and lost track of where the plant is, or it died or got out-competed by nearby plants. This time I took more care in their placement (nothing else nearby), gave a mulch of broken twigs and have been watering when it's dry for a week, a bit more care maybe they will make it.

a few around the yard-

Photos from when I was doing work planting the week before- I noticed my lady's mantle plants are all withered or eaten. It didn't do well, which disappoints me. However, the stinking hellebores look fine! and I liked their different look, the blue-green hue. Want more.

This plant has cropped up again in various places. I let it grow, especially near the garden. It still seems to attract pests away from other plants.

I found this- I do believe it's a chocolate joe pye weed seedling!

And this one, which I pulled up. Looks awfully familiar. Maybe scion of the forsythia?

Young pokeweed that sprang up in a corner of the garden- next to a marigold. I let it be for a while.

Those cuban oregano cuttings I took and stuck in the dirt next to some garden edges, are growing just dandy.

new volunteer

I saw this plant on the far side of the rear perennial bed, and it looked kinda attractive so I left it alone.

A closer look- it has these odd papery things growing on it, hanging below the foliage.

My first thought was tomatillos, or chinese lantern plant- both which I've heard of, but never seen in person before. Looked stuff up- it doesn't match either of those. It might just be a native ground cherry. Which is edibe and apparently has amazing tropical flavor. I'll have to wait and see how these develop.

sunberries

aka wonderberry. Still haven't eaten beyond a taste when the first few came ripe. I had been picking a small handful every few days and adding to a container in the freezer.

Then learned that they ought to be very dark and lackluster at picking- that's when fully ripe. Some I gathered earlier still had flush of purple or even green. I sifted through the container and discarded about half. Then left more on the plant to ripen as full bunches. Only then more got ruined by insects or started decaying by the time I plucked the whole bunch off-

out of that batch, only these were good:

So I'm back to picking individual berries again, only waiting until they're fully dark now.

pile of beans

This was one day's harvest. And then it started slowing down.

I'm trying to go out there more often to pick them when they're smaller, save up for a few days in the fridge to have enough until we eat them. At this size they're a bit coarse texture even with the strings pulled off. But I baked some in a casserole and it was great that way. (These are steamed with bit of salt and butter)

While out there snipping off sickly-looking leaves (I find this keeps the spread of pathogen in check- which I think is caused by the stink bugs) I also cut off these mottled bean pods. I thought they looked moldy.

Actually now I think they were just going through color changes as maturing? I split them open curious to see how the seed was forming, and it looked great- but not good to save yet. They weren't quite plump and all felt a bit soft or squishy.

Oddly I found two that appeared to be sprouting inside their pods- from the moisture of recent rain? The sprout wasn't coming from the attachment point where the bean was connected inside the pod, but to the side of that spot.

Anyhow, all the beans that got too big before I picked, I've left to mature on the vines and many of them are getting the same mottled look now. Soon to quit watering and just let them all develop seed.

insect life

Another swamp cicada.

Red-spotted purple butterfly (a swallowtail lookalike)

Monarch just emerging from its chrysalis under a daylily leaf.

Small butterfly with gray/russet checkered undersides to the wings- on my sweet potato vine. I think a skipper.

Found another tomato hornworm- on the sunberry bush. I don't mind if it eats some of the sunberry leaves. 

I let it alone. Because I would so like to see a sphynx moth (aka hawkmoth)

Closeup swallowtail caterpillar on the rue

Cicada wings on windowsill. The one I photographed last week must've been at the end of its life- probably why it didn't move much. Something ate it and left just the wings intact among debris.