New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Sad Time of Year

post #1 of 8
10/23/08 at 7:10am
Thread Starter 
Anyone else feel a bit sad with the first killing frost?

We had temps of 30F or so predicted on Tuesday night. I diligently went out and covered my bell peppers which were still blooming and growing peppers. Alas, it didn't help and they still froze overnight. I had a volunteer tomato plant blooming and some of the plants I thought were finished had blooms. The green beans were still producing, albeit slowly. Last, but not least, my beautiful knee high impatiens that were so full, you couldn't see the dirt under them were killed back as well.

I have enjoyed my garden so much this year that I'm just a bit sad to know that it's all over for now. I knew the end was coming but had hoped to keep it going for just a bit longer.
Reply
post #2 of 8
10/23/08 at 12:33pm
Allie, I know what you mean, I had to cut and pull still blooming Dahlia's, Xenia's and late summer Tulips. We had our first frost last week :(
Reply
post #3 of 8
10/23/08 at 12:45pm
We've had a few frosts, and i've saved my peppers. Ive brought the chillies into the kitchen as they still have a way to go. I just need a couple more weeks.

At least the grass doesnt need cutting now till the spring Woo hoo!

I'm more determined now, than ever to get a greenhouse for next spring. Like you i hate the way things come to full stop in winter.
Reply
post #4 of 8
10/23/08 at 1:12pm
Thread Starter 
Oh a greenhouse would be wonderful! Covering my peppers worked through the first couple of light frosts but this last one was a doozy....even had us turning on the furnace for the first time......lol.

I enjoy cutting grass so even miss that chore. lol I'm just a spring/summer person! Fall and winter, I regret my choice to move north.
Reply
post #5 of 8
10/24/08 at 4:57am
I'm in a high desert region in the southwest US (altitude 6,300 ft.). It's been nicely warm during the day, but nights are getting cold. We had killing frost the past two nights. I gave up trying to have a garden years ago. DH is just 'too helpful'. If he can figure out a way to kill something, he will. :lol: This year, my brother moved close to us, so I can count on him to garden and share the bounty.

I've always enjoyed the fall of the year, though. It is my favorite season. We don't have all the brilliant fall colors of New England, but the cottonwoods and aspens turn golden yellow. They were stunning this year.

Sad? Probably in a certain way. But on the other hand, my kitchen is the cave where I hybernate all winter... baking & making soups & stews. I do agree that a greenhouse would be wonderful...imagine fresh lettuce, green onions, radishes & all sorts of fresh herbs all winter!
Reply
post #6 of 8
10/24/08 at 5:52am
Thread Starter 

This is the only positive thing I can think of once Christmas is over.....cooking and baking. I try to not turn on the oven in summer since we do without the air conditioning as much as possible. In winter, I use my oven almost daily. I try my hand at baking breads, making pizza (yeah, I know you can do it on the grill), slow roasting comfort foods, etc. I do get a lot more creative in the kitchen during the cold months. Don't get me wrong, I do a lot of cooking and stuff leading up to Christmas but that season is busy. For a stay at home mom, that period between January and the first warm days of spring seems to last a very, very long time.
Reply
post #7 of 8
10/24/08 at 12:20pm
I know what you mean, although we don't get such a frost here - very rarely, Right now the orange tree is going like gangbusters, lots of new fruit appearing, some older fruit ready to be picked. The fig tree is yeilding a few nice figs every day, and the birds are getting the ones that are less than ripe.

I lived in Wyoming for a brief spell, and my GF was an avid gardener. The growing season is quite short where we were - Jackson Hole - and she'd be cutting down her garden in September late, maybe October - very early by California standards. It was sad to watch her do that - she so loved growing things - she had such wonderful lettuce and it gave her so much pleasure to grow it and the other veges in her Little Patch of Paradise.

She's up in Wasilla, AK now, and I know she's been growing some great veges up there during the summer months and growing season. Have you ever seen some of the broccoli and other veges that are grown there? I know that makes her happy.
Reply
post #8 of 8
10/26/08 at 11:04am
Thread Starter 
My Grand Rapids lettuce is still going strong. It didn't do so well over the summer, which was cool by our normal standards, but now is growing like crazy. I have a feeling tonight might be the end even for it as they're calling for rain/snow mix along with these 50 mph winds.......yuck! Even if it makes it through tonight, I'm sure later this week when night temps are forecast in the 20's it will come to an end. I'm going out to pick some in a little bit to go on our sandwiches tonight, along with some more of my tomatoes. The rest of the tomatoes are going into the food dehydrator as an experiment. I've never tried drying them, just canning or freezing.

I cooked a green tomato soup last night using the last of those. Now I wish I'd canned some of those for winter. That soup would be wonderful on a very cold, blustery winter night.

I've never even been to AK. Les lived there for several years and still talks about the gardens he had there. I grew up in Georgia where my father would have a spring, summer, and fall garden. Our growing season just doesn't allow for that. We had frost past Mother's Day this year and the firs light fall frost was a few weeks ago.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: The Chef's Garden