What Did You Do In The Garden?

digitS'

Garden Master
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
26,730
Reaction score
32,528
Points
457
Location
border, ID/WA(!)
Do you make beer, @Shades-of-Oregon ? Dad and I used to make beer. "Cascade hops."

The 5 foot wide bed is put to its Winter rest. Double dug, it was loaded with frost-killed tomato plants, cucumber, squash and melon vines, etc.

I continue to be pleased with how the spading has been going. Heavy work but tree roots are no longer a problem. The efforts to remove them in the Spring has paid off.

Steve
 
Last edited:

flowerbug

Garden Master
Joined
Oct 15, 2017
Messages
16,948
Reaction score
26,562
Points
427
Location
mid-Michigan, USoA
finished up one garden and did not get the front or shed doors painted, but the counter tops and some other things did get varnished by Mom so she'll be happy to have that done.

my own digging was also good today, that back SE corner garden has been amended, had garden debris and turned enough times that it is pretty nice garden soil and it was very easy to get the shovel down in there. i didn't have to dig such a big trench but it was a good 25ft long at least so i took my time and probably had it done in 45 minutes. then packed all the bean plants in it and stepped on them a bit to pre-compact them before shoving the dirt back in there. piled it up on top a bit too, knocked it flat so that any rain it catches will not run off too fast and the raked with the cultivator around it to make it all look tidy enough to pass Mom's inspection.

when i get a chance i can use three or six buckets of wood ashes on that garden, but that may be a week or two yet before i get around to that sort of garden task. i like to get the ashes put down on top and then dig them in the top layer of garden soil to keep them from getting blown away - there's often a fair amount of breeze out there. i don't usually water them in (the hoses get put up about this time of the year) but that would help if i could get it done earlier before i put the hoses away.
 

Dahlia

Garden Addicted
Joined
Nov 24, 2020
Messages
1,772
Reaction score
4,786
Points
205
Location
Pacific Northwest
Do you make beer, @Shades-of-Oregon ? Dad and I used to make beer. "Cascade hops."

The 5 foot wide bed is put to its Winter rest. Double dug, it was loaded with frost-killed tomato plants, cucumber, squash and melon vines, etc.

I continue to be pleased with how the spading has been going. Heavy work but tree roots are no longer a problem. The efforts to remove them in the Spring has paid off.

Steve
I never tried making beer, but I have made mead, hard cider, and multiple types of wine. It was fun, but quite time consuming. Especially the part where you have to carefully sanitize all of the bottles at the end. My favorite part of wine making was when the wine is in the glass carboy and bubbling gas out the airlock!
 

SPedigrees

Garden Addicted
Joined
Jun 9, 2018
Messages
840
Reaction score
2,673
Points
237
Location
Vermont, USA (zone 4)
I'm too lazy to make mead, but I buy it!

I've been busy the past two days. First I moved an orange solar light from up the steep hill behind the house to down below in the more civilized picnic area. The path to reach it is getting overgrown with brambles that I don't feel like doing battle with, and also a little mini forest of oak trees has sprung up around the shepherd's hook holding the light and I plan to let it grow. The leaves on those young oaks were especially pretty so I picked a few.

This photo from some years ago shows some of our solar lights, and the one that needed moving is the one in the middle, to the right of the others.
SolarLitesAndFullMoon2014.JPG


Light in its new home.
OrangeLightMoved.JPG


Oak leaves from the light's former home.
OakLeaves.JPG


Then I mowed some areas with the string trimmer, and took apart the dead tomato and squash foliage from the raised vegetable bed and retired the tomato cages for winter.
FallCleanup.JPG


Still have to bring in the windchimes and a few containers from the front porch, and bring in all the solar lights, but the bulk of the autumn tasks are finally done.
 

Shades-of-Oregon

Deeply Rooted
Joined
Jul 22, 2024
Messages
894
Reaction score
2,582
Points
145
@akroberts The dogs like sweet tater chews. And my fav sweet potato for holiday is the ruby sweet . I did not know that sweet taters need to be cured before storage . I read curing helps improve the flavor, longer storage life and protect against disease. Who knew…

@SPedigrees your solar lights adds a lot of light to a darkened landscape. I just love the many colors and designs available. My fav are the bugs made to hang in places in around the garden at night. Many solar lights line a dark section of the driveway.
Your oak leaves are beautiful. And the autumn trees in the background of the last pic is really a nice scene for the colorful transition before they fall.

Dragonflies, hummingbirds and butterflies.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_2861.jpeg
    IMG_2861.jpeg
    143.7 KB · Views: 15
  • IMG_2862.jpeg
    IMG_2862.jpeg
    115.4 KB · Views: 16
  • IMG_2863.jpeg
    IMG_2863.jpeg
    150.4 KB · Views: 16
Last edited:

SPedigrees

Garden Addicted
Joined
Jun 9, 2018
Messages
840
Reaction score
2,673
Points
237
Location
Vermont, USA (zone 4)
@akroberts The dogs like sweet tater chews. And my fav sweet potato for holiday is the ruby sweet . I did not know that sweet taters need to be cured before storage . I read curing helps improve the flavor, longer storage life and protect against disease. Who knew…

@SPedigrees your solar lights adds a lot of light to a darkened landscape. I just love the many colors and designs available. My fav are the bugs made to hang in places in around the garden at night. Many solar lights line a dark section of the driveway.
Your oak leaves are beautiful. And the autumn trees in the background of the last pic is really a nice scene for the colorful transition before they fall.

Dragonflies, hummingbirds and butterflies.
Love your blown glass-looking hummingbirds and bugs! Do they light up? I really like these.

Most of my solar lights were just the cheapest white lights available, but I changed their colors to orange and some to green, by filling some with colored beads, and using colored duct tape on others.
 

Shades-of-Oregon

Deeply Rooted
Joined
Jul 22, 2024
Messages
894
Reaction score
2,582
Points
145
Love your blown glass-looking hummingbirds and bugs! Do they light up? I really like these.

Most of my solar lights were just the cheapest white lights available, but I changed their colors to orange and some to green, by filling some with colored beads, and using colored duct tape on others.

The solar lights do light up the birds and bugs . They are made of a hard durable plastic. Isn’t everything plastic anymore… 😉
Also many different styles/characters to add to gardens . If you get a chance google garden solar lights you will find a lot of choices even some that randomly change colors during the night.
I brought all my solar lights in it’s started the fall rain , misting season.

These post lights each one change colors all night.

IMG_5979.jpeg
 

ducks4you

Garden Master
Joined
Sep 4, 2009
Messages
11,769
Reaction score
15,588
Points
417
Location
East Central IL, Was Zone 6, Now...maybe Zone 5
I have used solar lights--we call them "fairy lights" bc DD and I first saw them about 20 years ago in a graveyard--since about 2003. I used to even change the rechargeable batteries, but they have gotten so cheap, I don't bother anymore.
I also have these inside, multi-colored:
1729702089522.png

My purple one died, so it's on my Christmas list.
 
Last edited:
Top