Fall Comes to the Garden

I'm amazed that the impatiens are still going strong. This entire planter full came from one tiny hanging basket that I divided and transplanted. It's hard to believe a whole season of  color for under six dollars.

 The weeds and plants got away from me this summer but I'm raking them out of the gravel now.

Things are a mess as we moved the campfire ring up to our little patio area but it's been nice to have as the weather cools off.

It's also handy for dealing with branches and old logs...and a good place to cook up a little something as well.

Fall garden clean up

There was a bit of gas left for the mower so I ran over a few more leaves to mulch them into the lawn.
It's kind of fun to do them that way and you save yourself a lot of lifting and bagging and don't have to worry about getting rid of bags of leaves.
I've got enough lawn furniture spread around the yard so I can sit down and rest whenever I need to.
As expected standing or walking aren't an option just now as I recover from my efforts but I'm headed back into my painting and won't really care.
We all have to find what works best for us and so far I can tackle most anything a bit at a time. It's just a bit embarrassing that I'm into the second week trying to get my kitchen clean. Thank goodness company yesterday stayed on the other end of the house! Oh, in case you're wondering-no one noticed that the mugs had been made from the painting on the wall.

Re use and recycle garden project

It doesn't look like much now but wait until next summer when the roses are trained around it and blooming. The white and pink will be welcome pops of color in this corner of the yard.

Sorting plants in the old garden

 Here's a long view of the places I like to rest while working on the yard and garden.

 This mess is mostly wildflowers, chives and lilies.

 Here are some lilacs, raspberries and grapes.

It may be hard to believe but there are rosebushes, maple trees, iris and lots of other things in here.

Roses in the air conditioner

A sunny afternoon

 Well, the yard still needs a lot of work but I wish you could hear the birds over the sounds of the traffic or see the butterflies drifting through the yard from time to time. (We have a couple of butterfly houses and a lot of the plants they thrive on as well as some gravel areas that handle the water well)

When things dry up a bit we'll mow along the borders and cut fresh edges to neaten things up a bit.

Warmer Weather and a bit of yard work

 Our weather warmed up a bit so I thought I'd deal with some more of the leaves again. By the time I'd raked them away from the house I've got to say that It felt good to run them over with the lawn mower to break them up.

 About the third time I ran them over I was thinking that this basic feeling explains a lot of games and activities. (The pleasure of running over anything that annoys you or gets in the way). Just last week one of our local newscasters was talking about it being great that we have a place where anyone that can afford it can drive a tank and even crush cars with it.

 I began to wonder if it doesn't say something about the attitudes of a lot of people in this country...instead of relaxing and enjoying the yard we're all busy running all sorts of power guzzling machines over and through it.

I went back indoors looking at things a bit differently and beginning to wonder if it will change the way I handle problems in the future.

Preparing for winter in the Paintersgarden

I'm not doing much out in the garden these days except for a bit of clean up but as you can see the squirrels keep busy picking up the walnuts and tucking them into all of my planters, Yes, they're doing quite a job re-arranging the hosta too.

Like a lot of people we're having to make the choice on what areas to heat this winter so I'm rounding up all of the paintings and trying to incorporate them into our living spaces. This Iris oil doesn't take much room but some of the other pieces are presenting more of a challenge.

I've been hoping for years to find a restaurant or coffee shop that wants these. Having them stacked next to the sofa was never a plan...

These are just sitting on the floor in the corner right now. One thing for sure is that I'm glad  I've gone to working on 8x10 inch panels that can be kept in the bookcase. There just isn't room for large scale work or the big easel in a 400 square foot living space.
Yes, these are things that make winter a pretty interesting season around here...

"Cold enough for you?"

Summer seems to have shot by in our part of the country as I'm sure it has a lot of other places and we're not quite ready for winter in spite of the fact that some mornings it sure feels that way.
I'm having another cup of coffee and trying to talk myself into dashing outside and digging into the yard clean up but then I notice the debris field that is my house these days and find it funny that when I'm in the middle of a project I never even notice it.
I'm not sure what I'll be doing today. Right now I'm just content to be in where it's warm and the coffee pot is on.
What's life like where you are?

First Frost and Fall Campfire

Some of the frost on the roof this morning about 9:00 AM

Yes, there is an eighteen foot gravel circle out here around the 

campfire

The weeds weren't too hard to clear and it's staring to look a bit more useable

2 weeks ago this was full of weeds and wildflowers. A few of my friends thought  it was the garden

Now that it's been cleaned up a bit It's even looking pretty good from the kitchen.