Wind, vegetables, and falling leaves

Apparently, the winds here and in the mountains of North Carolina are secondary to Hurricane Sandy.  Amazing.  There's been snow around Asheville already at high elevations, with more rain and wet snow to come.The lows in Asheville (located in a mountain basin) are supposed to dip to 31° on...

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Storm time

I've been reminded again today, as Sandy approaches the northeastern U.S., of the power of storms.We've had nothing but some strong winds and a bit of rain today, mainly from a Gulf-based system, not Sandy.  But leaves blew off, raining down on the lawn and mulched beds. I wish we'd got some more...

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Evening porch view

A wonderful September day (in late October) found the porch a perfect spot for dinner.  It's still normally nice at lunch, but at dinnertime -- how pleasant (although a bit unnerving, too).eveningThe reds and purples have been deepening noticeably over the last few days, along with the yellows...

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Fall color

 A beautiful fall day had me admiring the purples in the dogwoods and the exuberance of the (non-cut-back swamp sunflower) in the border that we see from the porch.from the porchNormally, I would have reduced the stem height in June, but didn't this year.  The tall stems are now flopping dramatically,...

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Fall saffron crocuses

It's been busy, trying to keep Woody calm (ha!) and tidying and planting as I can.But I was glad to see the first saffron crocus in flower.  I'd noticed their foliage a couple of days ago, and made a mental note to watch.  The fun of having a blog is I can search and realize that I posted...

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A tidier garden

Happily, even with a recovering Golden in tow, I've managed to clean up quite a few more of the seedling/sapling volunteers (think redbud, magnolia, sassafras, Althea, lacebark elm, American holly, Chinese privet, nandina, English ivy, etc.)  Not to mention the runners - Bermuda grass, vinca (major and minor), air potato vine, and morning glory.And the entrance to the front door actually looks...

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Fall weather and planting garlic in wide rows

 A green spider with an ominous red spot in a dew-covered webThere has been a turn in the weather over the past three days with temperatures in the 60s and humidity near 100% each morning. These conditions cause dew to collect on spider webs and this makes them really stand out.I am particularly...

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