The Tulips Are Sprouting!

Rhubarb Knuckles

Punching their way through the ground. 

Of course, it snowed the next day. 

Garden Tomatoes

We had a lot more foliage than tomatoes this year, but the ones we did harvest have lasted a long time.

This is what was left yesterday after...

 ...I made this salad.

I bought a number of heirloom tomatoes from the daughter of the people who run Paseschnikoff Gardens at the St Norbert Farmers Market

Gnarly

Far too few of these.

Prolific and tasty

 I don't know that these ones are. Maybe the Manitoba tomato?

 The red cherry tomatoes below are Tumblers, but I couldn't find the tag for the purple ones. I am hoping I can remember the name when I go looking in the spring.

both tasty!

Some were more prolific than others, yellow pear tomatoes, I'm looking at you for sheer volume of juicy goodness.

 I harvested them October 14, in the dark, on  just before what I thought was a killing frost.

the first picking, not the last.

I'll never buy Roma tomatoes again. They consistently had blossom-end rot. So very annoying.

Next year I'll keep the foliage under control and hopefully have an even larger crop next fall.

Frost Warning

 Dragging out all the old shorts and blankets remind me of playing forts when I was little. 

The Monstrosity in the Garden

I am referring of course to this;

This is a wild amalgamation of the grape vine and pole beans with a few morning glories who crept in when I wasn't paying attention.

 A combination of this years heat and wet weather contributed to the grape vines growth spurt. And it has been severely pruned twice this summer- just think where it would be if it hadn't. 

At least the beans have finally started flowering. 

You can see the bean blossoms superimposed on a morning glory. 

The morning glory is also snaking along the ground too. The petunias are almost the same purple as the morning glory.

Roma VFs are Wimps

Of all the tomatillo varieties in my garden, they are the only ones with blossom end rot. 

First Ripe Tomato

Raspberries

 The smallest of many canes. Yum!

What's Growing in the Garden

 We've had grey skies for close to a week; the forests in northern Saskatchewan are on fire and the prevailing westerlys are blowing the smoke this way. I hear close to five thousand people have been evacuated from the path of the fire.

Smoke-grey skies -literally.

 Of course, thunderstorms are predicted for tonight so there may be clouds up there too.

Garlic curls.

 I hear garlic shoots are very tasty cut into salads or added to dishes. I can't say in all the years I've had garlic in the garden I've ever thought of doing that. But I will now.
 

Pea blossoms.

 The peas are blooming, and I found one or two on the beans, but those blossoms were hiding when I went to photograph them.

Ground cherry? Or tomatillo?

 I have both a tomatillo and a ground cherry but I can't remember which is which. Either way, they are both blooming, but this one is a show-off with dozens of bright blooms.

Peppers

 More blooms on the peppers.

There are cages on those tomatoes.

 The tomatoes have grown considerably since they were planted.

Cherry tomatoes.

 Lots of green tomatoes too -lucky us.

Ripe raspberries.

 Tasty berries. We've sampled them already.

Cheerful red birdhouse.

 And finally, after all these years, we have something growing in the bird house.

Mama

 Maman wren is busy even tho' I don't hear the sounds of chicks yet. The adults have been singing in the yard for weeks now. It is such a happy sound.

I spent ages trying to get a pictue of the female flying into her house and finally managed this one. At least she picked a better location than the last wren nest I found out about.

An Early Start

Two of the pepper plants have set fruit. 

The Hungarian Wax

and the cayenne. 

Those sneaky sqirrelsox will get quite a surprise if they bite into either one of those. 

The ground cherry is off to a good start too. 

I don't think I've had anything showing this early before. 

Peonies

I especially like the crimson centers. 

The Brussel Sprout Mystery

Don't get me wrong; I like brussel sprouts, but unlike some other fruits and vegetables that are a pretty colour, or smell delicious, brussel sprouts are...green. And usually they are so hidden in the leaves of the plant, you can't see them. Who was the first cook who decided to give them a try?

 

These ones were kind of tiny, not big enough to prepare my favourite way with balsamic vinegar, olive oil and pecans, so I put them in a pot with a can of stewed italian tomatoes and a can of pork and beans. That may sound odd and somewhat disgusting, but it was pretty good.

We odd ones must stick together.

Frosty Morning

Tomato Stems

Always look like spiders to me. 

Midsummer

Echinacea

When You Turn Your Back

Things can grow out of control.  We had a burst of hot weather and this burdock went crazy. It took the both of us to pull this out. 

Burrs and slugs. 

That Took Aaaa-ges

I planted these morning glories in May. I was starting to think the squirrels had eaten them. 

Glossy Green Tomatoes

I like the look of these. 

Roses and Petals

Morden Sunrise amongst wind-shattered peonies. We has so much wind last weekend, it's amazing anything is still standing.

Wild Roses and an Early Morning Glory