November greens

The lettuce and spinach were in the ground only hours earlier. That half-moon slice of radish near center top is a new favorite called 'Chinese Red Meat.' Below, behold a bowl of 'Tyee' spinach.

The last of the salad greens were harvested over the weekend. The spinach and lettuce held up quite well under the floating row covers, put in place as much for deer protection as for an extra degree or two on the thermometer.

The spinach -- handsome, sturdy leaves of 'Tyee' -- were cooked with cream. Popeye would be proud!

The lettuce -- a beautiful red called 'Galactic' and a speckled loose-head variety called 'Mottistone' -- consorted with some of the spinach in an early winter salad fortified with carrots, red onion and radishes harvested earlier this fall and stored in the fridge or in the crawlspace under the stairs.

Even in Zone 3-4, it is still possible to enjoy salad picked only hours earlier on a cold, gray day at the end of November.

Sources include Johnny's Selected Seeds and Territorial Seed Company. We found the Galactic seed at Johnny's but it doesn't look like they carry it anymore.

(Rosy) Seventh Day November

Some mornings, when the timing and circumstances are just right, the sun crests the trees across the road and throws beams of golden or pink light onto the tops of the trees behind our house. The effect only lasts a few minutes, but those few minutes are magical.

On this Nov. 7 we were treated to a "rosy-fingered dawn." And then we were treated to an evening meal of freshly picked lettuce and parsnips. The hours between were filled with work so we're a little shy on photos this time around. Still, click here or see the sidebar at right for more images.

Better late than never: Seventh Day October

 A bee works over a stand of asters in the backyard.

Did you think that maybe we had fallen off the face of the Earth? That maybe we had finally had enough of all the nonsense we've been witnessing thanks to the politicians and big-business types? That maybe we had decided just to pack it in and go off the grid? As tempting as that may be, the real reason you haven't seen much here lately is that we've been really, really busy.

October was a month of transition -- both in the garden and out of the garden. So let's talk garden: 

• Containers of summer annuals and vegetables have been emptied.
• Pots of scented geraniums and other plants for overwintering have been brought inside. Still need to find homes for everything. The dining room floor is way too crowded!
• Waterlilies and umbrella plants stowed in the closet under the stairs.
• Fish moved into winter quarters in the aquarium in the guest room. All four appear to be adjusting well.
• Harvesting potatoes, carrots, onions. Eating celeriac, beets, parsnips, spinach and lettuce.
• Planting garlic.
• Planting the martagon lilies we bought during a visit to the Chicago Botanic Garden.
• Cages going up for winter deer protection.

October passed by too quickly. Here, at least, we can slow down a little and see where we've been.  Take a look here or in the sidebar at right.

Between harvest and compost

Where do cornstalks go after the sweet corn is harvested and before they're tossed into the compost pile?

To Bill and Phil's house as part of their annual Halloween extravaganza.

The display also includes giant inflatable pumpkins, a pirate ship, a train and a black cat. Oh, and a simple maze constructed of hay bales.

They'll break down the Halloween decorations as soon as the last trick-or-treaters have visited. Christmas is calling.

Dinner, together

 A grouse is almost too heavy to balance on a stem of this viburnum while a chipmunk hangs upside down to grab his share of berries. Below: The berries.

The viburnum at the end of the driveway became a popular dining destination earlier this week. The shrub, Viburnum dentatum Red Feather, was loaded with blue-black berries -- until they were discovered by the birds, including this grouse, and the chipmunks.

The shrub is a good choice for our garden. It doesn't need a lot of coddling, always a happy attribute around here. In spring, the emerging foliage is maroon and because of some prominent veining, the young leaves themselves look something like feathers. White flat-top flowers follow. The berries arrive in fall as the foliage begins to turn purple.

 

These days, we're seeing lots of bird activity as the fruit on the crab apple, viburnums, roses and other shrubs ripen. The blue jays already have stripped a frontyard oak of its acorns. Sparrows scoot through the perennials searching out whatever seeds and other food they can find on the ground. And the Silly Dog has to keep track of the resident chipmunks as they run through the garden caching whatever they don't immediately devour.

Back to normal

The Silly Dog had the staples from his surgery of two weeks ago removed today, and we're happy to report that he is back chasing chipmunks and racing the UPS truck.

Life is good.

Black walnut update: Surprise!

 A chicken wire cage will protect the black walnut seedling from deer and rabbits.

Look what happens when you're not paying attention.

The background: We sowed 14 black walnuts in fall 2009. Three germinated. They were planted out back on the "nature trail" last fall. This spring, they looked good. We were hopeful. But then, nothing. Did a cold snap kill the buds? Who knows. There were too many other things to think about and we left the sad-looking stems alone. 

A couple of weeks ago we made the discovery. One of the seedling trees has put out a robust show of leaves. It lives!