There is a chill in the air

There is a chill in the air, and I'm not sure I am ready for it.
We have had way too many night time temps in the single digits this summer, including the last few nights. The day highs are in the low 20's. Is summer over already, or did it not happen at all.
Some things in the garden loved the cool temps and regular rain. The lettuce has done amazing, the sno peas are 7' high and at their peak production. The sugar snap peas are producing well, having recovered from their early summer pruning by the deer.
My current favourite lettuce is Drunken Woman (gotta love the name). It is an amazing green colour tinged with a blush of red around the edges. It is slow to bolt in the heat, which is a bonus in a normal hot summer.

Even the beans haven't minded the cooler temps, and are producing basketfuls each day.
The chili peppers on the other hand, really aren't doing that well. They are only now producing the first few chilies. Fortunately they are growing in a pot. This usually helps, as the roots stay warmer all summer than they would if planted in the ground. This summer however, with the cold night time temps, not so much. However as it cools even further, I can at least run them indoors when necessary. My usual practise, when we leave in the fall is to put the pots-plants and all-in an out of way corner inside, and do nothing else til spring. We then come back to Canada to a plant covered with red, dried chilies,perfect for grinding up and storing. I hope the peppers are far enough along when we leave this year that this will work.

Tomatoes, squash and cucs also struggling with the cold. Maybe the fall will be warm and sunny. We can always hope.
But inspite of this we are now managing to get most our veges from the garden.
We are eating beans, salads and stir fries, almost totally from what we produce.It is the usual story of growing enough variety that there will always be things to harvest no matter what the weather throws at us.

 

Board-walk

Behind our property in the small town we live in, there is a board walk.It begins just off the main road that we live on, and meanders through a large wet land area. It then connects up with a path that runs up the river, across a pedestrian bridge and down the other side of the river.
We run this route every morning.
There are no buildings to be seen. It is a small pocket of wilderness, that reflects the changes of the seasons.
In the spring the fresh grasses emerge 2' below the walkway. As the summer progresses the grasses and flowers grow higher than the walkway. and brush against you as you pass through. The fall turns it all a tawny colour, backed by the oranges and reds and yellows of the maple trees that surround the wet lands and the tamaracks that live in this area.

There is opportunity to see lots of wild life. The hoards of insects, musk rats, turtles, beaver and it seems to be home to the deer that visit my garden on a regular basis.
It is well used and there is a constant flow of people taking the walk, in groups, alone, with their dogs, or armed with a camera. And yet I often don't encounter anyone else, and can appreciate being alone in this tranquil oasis.
I look forward to my daily or twice daily circuits through this natural garden that is at my doorstep. It calms as it invigorates the spirit. A great way to start or end the day.
 

Apples

A couple of years ago we planted 5 apple trees.This year one has a couple of dozen apples on it. Three others have a couple, and one seems to be putting all its energy into grown very big.
So we are looking forward to September when we can start to eat them.

Last evening a deer and her young fawn wandered through the property. I am happy to see them as deer proofing the vege garden seems to be working, and they don't seem that interested in the flowers. lets hope that doesn't change. Too bad I didn't have my camera with me!

Sunflowers

I love sunflower season. They just seem so cheerful.
I used to buy special multi-stem varieties. I liked these for cutting and for the number of flowers they formed.
 But I learnt that if you take the tip off after 3 leaf nodes have formed you can turn any sunflower into a multi-branching plant.
Another good trick is to plant them on the west side of the garden, and the heads then face to the east as they form, and are not turning away from you.

 

Paving Stones

After recently finishing a project with paving stones, we had a pile of broken bits.
There seemed to be just enough to make a nice little entry to the vege patch.
I dug out the turf, put down a little sand and arranged the mini pavers, then filled in the gaps with more sand. It turned out pretty well I think.

 

Tomatoes

Yesterday I found the first tomatoes ripening. Only about 1 month later than usual.
I blame all the cold weather we've had this spring and summer.

This is the tomato harvest last August.

Lettuce

The first lettuces are going to seed. These are the ones that self seeded from last years lettuce plants, and ones that got planted in May. I have been harvesting them leaf by leaf all summer.

 

 I have been sowing lettuce every 2 weeks since then, so there is still lots on the go in the garden.

I grow lettuce several ways.
I start some of them in flats. This works well if I want to separate out specific varieties. I find that seeding in a flat means that if the germination is erratic, I'm not taking up a lot of space with individual cells. Lettuce doesn't germinate well at high temps, so if it is very hot, I can put these flats in a cooler spot or even in the fridge for a few days.
Once the seedlings have a couple of true leaves, I then prick them out and transplant into individual cells or small pots, depending on how long until I expect to plant them on. They can now keep growing safe from slugs or being over whelmed by bigger plants, until a spot opens up in the garden.
Some will go into big pots where I will grow then until they are eaten. These tend to do better, as I can keep them better watered and grow them in better soil mix. Also they can be kept right beside the kitchen door for easy access.
Several times during the summer if I have the space I also direct sow in the garden. These are quite thick plantings, and I use these for a cut and come again harvest approach. I usually use the seed I have saved from the previous years harvest mixing the different colours.
I also let plants go to seed over the summer. The flowers help provide food for the beneficial insects, and provide self sown seedlings for next spring.