Rose hips

These make the best jelly.

First frost of the season

The past two nights were frosty ones, and it even flurried last night. By late morning there was no trace of the light snow, but some of the tender plants bore signs of the temperature dip. Basil, coleus, eggplants, dahlias, and cannas were all burnt, but curiously most of the tenders in the backyard were fine while the front garden was the most affected. It must have something to do with the cold front usually approaching from the northwest (where a lot of the burnt plants are located). Next week we may be back in the 60s, so I'm hoping to get some closeout gardening done then!

Adventures in Canning 2009

Canned some pickles from our garden produce for the very first time. This:

became this:

Had a lot of green tomatoes that were probably going to shrivel before ripening. Pickling seemed to be a great use for these guys. Oh, and I have to admit that the cucumbers are not from the garden, they're from a local farm. Tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, carrots, garlic, and onions are all homegrown however!

Comments are finally fixed!

Yes, they are. Sorry about taking forever to fix it.

Late Blight Alert

Late blight has apparently reached central New York State. Kathy of Cold Climate Gardening has reported infected potatoes, and some neighbors of mine here in Syracuse (a few blocks from me) have also had tomatoes dying from the disease. We've been spared thus far *knocks on wood* at my house, but I am exceedingly worried (this thing spreads through the wind!).

Look for splotches on leaves, dying plants, and mushy tubers. Remember, don't compost these plants! Good luck to all of your solanaceae.