Autumnal Musings

 We're finally into autumn, and not a moment too soon.  As much as I love the gardens and new projects every year, summer has turned into something I just need to get through.  The heat, the droughts, the unbearable humidity levels...the older I get and the more our weather patterns change, the more I dislike being outside.  Luckily, the past few weeks have been beautiful, though dry save for one rainy day.  Sleep isn't so challenging and "hot" is upper 70sF.  

Taking stock of my efforts this season, I have some valuable lessons be mindful of next year.  

*Don't wait so long to plant cucumbers; waiting for the peas to die off takes too long.  Plant them in late June instead of late July or August.  I think I'll give up trying to grow them up the hay ring, and use homemade trellises like I used to.  The perennial sweet pea is probably better grown up the arch.

*Don't plant vegetables that need to be hilled up with ones that don't.  Trying to keep my leeks buried but not the carrots was a futile effort at best.  

*Get the sumac removed from the hillside as soon as possible in spring.  They shade out too much of the vegetable garden and result in poorer yields.  

*Amend, amend, amend!  The beds all need a good shot of compost.  Not adding manure to the cinder block bed is partially why my onions did so poorly.  Of course, lack of water didn't help.  

*Which brings me to water collection.  I really need to get that 275 gallon tote set up for next year, but with the amount of water we hauled in over the last few months, I'd go through that much in a week or less.  I think next year I'll try ollas in the raised beds, and maybe that will be a better watering method. 

*Finally...stop biting off more than you can possibly chew.  I need to concentrate on one project from start to finish, otherwise I end up with something like my track fencing that's still not done after how many years?  

There is still time to get a lot of my unfinished projects done.  I've already begun transplanting perennials - once again - out of the hillside garden beds and into the cottage garden and wildflower meadow.  My neighbor is going to try digging an area for the alpine garden, and moving large boulders into it.  I still have the forest garden area to clear, and the summer's manure pile to move to that area.  I don't have the luxury of boredom, thankfully.  And it really was a beautiful summer...