Spring is here!

Stopped by the garden this evening after work. We now have garlic poking up all over the place and a few bits of rhubarb peeking through. It won't be long. Will need to put the new fencing in as soon as things dry out enough, and then it will be off to the races - gardening at last!

Rhubarb!

Garlic!

Our plots may be snow free, but there are some seriously snowed gardens and very wet and flooded plots:

And of course, the obligatory sky picture. First of the season, many more to come, I'm sure:

We won't be gardening any time soon...

A quick visit to the garden this afternoon. The front plot is clear of snow, the back plot is mostly snow covered. We don't have it nearly as bad as garden plots on the back (non-meadow) side of the garden. Over near the barn there is probably still 3 feet of snow. Maybe 2 feet on some of the plots on our end of the garden near the compost area. Nothing is showing any signs of growth yet.

The front plot.

The back plot.

Just another incredibly beautiful evening at the garden...

Another sunset visit to the garden, and the weather was spectacular.  A front came through this morning and cleared out the warm humid air, bringing us our first real hint of autumn: cooler, drier with a lovely brisk northwest breeze to keep the mosquitoes away.  Invigorating.  The lenticular clouds were a constantly changing show and the golden hour light kept drawing me away from the garden tasks.

We picked many tomatoes again, and I even found 4 usable squashes amongst the quickly declining plants.  I was prepared to pull them all out until then.  Found a number of small squashes forming and quite a few blossoms.  So they got a reprieve.  We'll give them another week or so.  I was also able to pick a nice bunch of pole beans.  Looking good! 

While we were working in the garden, this young woman was wandering around the area.  Before she left she came over to our garden and thanked us for the gardens, because they are so beautiful.  A very lovely complement.

Senior pictures being taken. This time of year we see this all the time.

Stopping by to pick tomatoes

A quick visit this evening to pick a whole lot of tomatoes (again), and to add to the compost pile.  Looks like we will return tomorrow evening to pull out the squash plants (they are finished) and to let the nasturtiums take over. Another lovely evening. We have been so lucky this summer.

Another evening at the garden

A short visit yesterday evening to harvest some tomatoes and take a few pictures.  Things are definitely winding down now, though we are waiting for the pole beans to finally give us something to harvest.  We have planted more lettuce and winter daikons and radishes and they are coming along nicely.  This time of year there are lots of sunflowers blooming all over the community gardens.

The squash, pretty much played out.

New lettuce.

Daikons and Radishes

Onion crop drying on the balcony.

More harvesting and a few bee stings

We spent the morning volunteering for the Maine Audubon Craft Fair (taking donations at the entrance) and then wandered around the Fair for a while enjoying talking with some of the artists.  We then harvested a whole bunch of tomatoes, the rest of the red onions and some blueberries.  It was quite enjoyable until Marcia was stung twice, first on one ankle, then on the other.  Earlier I had what I think was a bee sting on my calf.  Things are definitely winding down now.  We will probably be removing the squash plants soon and maybe the chard, which is hopeless.  There is a bit of blight on all of the tomato plants and even the pole beans, which are just blooming, seem to have a touch of something going on with the leaves.  Still very beautiful in our "back yard"!

Bass player, Asher Platts, for the jazz trio at the fair: Pastel Sound Explosion

One artist's creations

 

The garden's compost at the start...

...in process...

...and the finished product.

Pole beans are finally blooming

Our volunteer sunflower

It's a jungle in there

The harvesting has begun

Yesterday evening was dedicated to harvesting the rest of the garlic and the yellow onions.  We came home with 4 brown paper bags full of garlic and a considerable amount of onions.  The red onions are not quite ready to come out, but they will be soon.  We also got a few more squash (still doing nicely, but starting to wind down, it seems), some radishes and a lovely 18 inch daikon (East Asian white radish).  Oh, and the tomatoes are ripening as well.  All is good in the garden and the sky and the sunsets continue to draw my attention.  What a beautiful, magical place.

4 bunches of garlic...

Two kinds of yellow onions...their names are escaping me now.

Breakfast Radishes

18" Daikon

Peppers are coming along.

 

Off topic...a sunset from Kettle Cove on Sunday evening...

...another Maine beauty spot in Cape Elizabeth.

Stormy sky at the garden Wednesday.  

Thunder and lightning and rain sent us away pretty quick.