Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Mid-Week Already and the End of the Month

We've been in a definite wet spell for the last week.  It hasn't been solid rain, but lots of heavy dew and many sprinkles . . . plus a couple of storms like we had for a short while last night around bed time.  They say it's so much better for trees, plants and the soil in general to go into our winter season wet rather than dry, so our recent moisture is a good thing.

Papa Pea and I have been getting out for a couple of hikes and rides down back roads.  The unbelievably vivid colors this fall have had most everyone commenting that they can't remember such beautiful coloration ever before.  Lots of "ooohing" and "ahhhing" going on.

I still have a bit (probably until a hard frost hits, if I were to be realistic) of work to do in the garden.  Our potatoes are still in the ground as are the beets and mangels that will be simmered on the garage wood stove overnight, chopped and taken out to the poultry as supplemental feed this winter.


The vines of the pumpkins and Red Kuri winter squash (above) have just about given up the ghost, and I'll be harvesting the fruit soon.  Really soon.  I'm eager to place the jolly orange pumpkins around for decoration.


The onions (one shelf of red shown above) are still drying inside and under cover.


As are the bundles of garlic.

The guy who's in charge of our apple trees (aka Papa Pea) wants the apples to stay on the trees until just before a hard frost threatens.  A couple of days ago I made an apple crisp with some of the windfalls.  The slices of apples stayed kinda crisp and crunchy (not quite ripe?) which made the dessert taste "different."  Or at least we thought so.  Somehow, we struggled along and ate the whole thing.


In spare minutes, I've been happily stitching on a Thanksgiving-themed counted cross-stitch project.

I was in my quilt room doing so yesterday late afternoon when I changed thread . . . and then could. not. find. my. needle.   My very favorite needle.  I could not go on without it. (Insert theatrical sob.)  I was sure I had set it down on the table right next to my project.  Well, I spent several hours five minutes moving everything around on my work table, crawling around on the floor under the table, searching my clothing and driving myself half crazy before I found it.


Stuck to the blade of the scissors I'd been using.  Can you even see it in the above picture?  (Magnetization is not always beneficial.)


I have only one window in my quilt room but the view can't be beat.  Aren't I one lucky little ducky?

15 comments:

Rosalea said...

Those squash!!! I must grow some of them! We have also been checking out the colours this fall, and they are amazing. I saw the most red, red maple I've ever seen in all my 60+ years this fall. It was literally breath taking. I think I could give you a run for your money on your window view though! We have had a couple of rainy days, although I did get some outside work done yesterday when it dried up. Not much left, just have to manure and mulch the asparagus bed, dig up the gladiola corms, and clear the last bed of cold hardy stuff when the killing frost hits. Its good to get back to crafting. I even finished some spinning that has been looking at me from the corner all summer. Have a great day!

SmartAlex said...

I've been using my windfall apples for dried apple chips. It doesn't matter if those taste tart. I'm just now getting apples ripe enough for pie but still have to add one of a sweet variety to improve things. Unfortunately the squirrels got all of my sauce apples.

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

That view is beautiful! My next house is gonna have craft room just for me.

linnellnickerson@gmail.com said...

The red squash look so good. How are the pumpkins doing? I like the cross stitch your doing! I like to do the stamped cross stitch. No brainer! Happy to hear your enjoying yourself a little. Take care!!

Mama Pea said...

Rosalea - Yes, the pictures you've been showing on your blog are amazing. You win the prize! Glad you reminded me that I still have the gladioli corms to dig, too. Just within the last couple of days one of my whites and one of my pinks put forth a lovely spear of flowers. Kinda late to the party but lovely still.

SmartAlex - What a good idea to use the tart apples for dried treats. Most of the time, I find dried apples don't have much flavor at all. Those darn squirrels. Reminds me of our blue jays. Hmmm, don't like to think about it, but there is a solutions to those robber squirrels and jays . . . just sayin'.

Kristina - I spent many years putting up and taking down my sewing machine on the kitchen table. Kept my supplies (including yarn for knitting) in a lower kitchen cabinet. Now I really, truly appreciate my own dedicated room. I can really lose myself (in a good way) in there. Here's hoping yours will appear in the not too distant future!

linnellnickerson - Our pumpkins are almost all orange! There are some that are still greenish on one side but I think they'll still change. I like stamped cross-stitch, too. Have a couple of sets of pillowcases I did that way.

The Wykeham Observer said...

Those squash are really a sight to behold! Beautiful color. I only have the buttercup type which aren't so dramatic, but they do also work well for pumpkin pies. The package you sent arrived in perfect shape. I'm just a little sorry for the postage costs. It was very generous. Thanks and happy squash and pumpkin harvest! Phil

Goatldi said...

You are a lucky duck! Love those squash. Will for sure look into it for next year. Aren’t we all blessed with the abundance we have in our lives?

Michelle said...

I just made a batch of apple pie filling and canned it. The apples are remarkably free of worms this year (we don't spray); I'm looking forward to an easier time of making applesauce because of that.

Mama Pea said...

Phil - I think any good squash makes a good pumpkin pie! I almost made one yesterday as a dessert for dinner (still have one more package in the freezer from last year's squash -- purred and ready to use), but then chose something else. Great to hear the package arrived. I don't know why I'm surprised anymore, but postage (whether it's at the P.O. or UPS or other) is always a sticker shock anymore. It does seem so out of line but then costs for everything are sky-rocketing. :o( I was happy to send the quilt top to you so don't worry!

Goatldi - Even after I harvest the Red Kuri squash, I'll let it "mellow" a bit in storage before trying it. (If I can be patient!) But they are looking good right now. I'm planning on saving some seeds to send to you for next year.

Michelle - Speaking of the Red Kuri squash, did yours ever do anything? Eeeuuw! Wormy apples! Wouldn't be my favorite thing to deal with. We don't spray either and, so far, our apples look beautiful. Well, except for the ones that are getting pecked to pieces by the blue jays. Sigh.

Goatldi said...

Thank you MP! Appreciate that. How much space do they need?

Anonymous said...

Wow, I thought at first your red onion crop was red cabbage!! Just beautiful! How green your grounds are. Here where I live only 4.25 inches of rain all year. Burning up and wondering how we can survive another year like this. Great tomatoes, peppers, cukes, summer/winter squash, eggplant and herbs...I think they like drought! Oh, and a great onion and carrot crop too! Thank you God for blessings in the worst of times.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=rm&ogbl#sent/KtbxLzGDcLmKRcRmrRLltrqsdsldkjLfdq?projector=1

Nancy In Boise said...

great fall colors but I was wondering what is a mangle?

Mama Pea said...

Goatldi - Four square feet is supposed to be adequate for one plant and each plant should produce 2-4 fruits. This past season I planted a small patch of them (maybe 10 x 12' with four plants) and also put two plants in a 4 x 8' raised bed. I've got four fruits in the raised bed and 10 in the "squash patch" which look more mature than the ones in the raised bed.

Anonymous - I think any of us gardeners are very grateful for anything we've gotten out of our gardens this year. It all helps with our food supply especially now when prices in the grocery store are going up, up, up. Plus, I truly believe the food we can grow is better for us.

Nancy - A mangel is kind of like a turnip or rutabaga and has historically been grown as livestock feed. I've read that if they are harvested young, they're good as human food, too, but have never tried them. During difficult times, I understand many cattle were raised with mangels being a large part of their diet. In climates more mild than ours, farmers would plant fields of them, leave them in the ground and pasture their cattle on them all during the winter. The cattle would grab hold of the tops and literally pull them out of the ground!

Leigh said...

A wonderful time of year; productive busyness with a view to a nice winter's rest! And a view of autumn beauty too! Glad you found your needle. :)

Mama Pea said...

Leigh - This autumnal weather has felt soooo good! It's actually energizing me to get on with all those outside tasks that need to be done (in our climate) before the snow and really frigid weather arrives. (Along with bringing those times to snuggle inside and quilt!) Hope your fall season is going well.