Frost protection for Fall garden & Pumpkin decor

On this Hallows eve, I worked a bit in the garden. It is supposed to drop to 25 degrees F this weekend. So, I arranged water piping over the broccoli, cauliflower, kale plants. Then laid garden canvas over each. 

At my other garden, I did the same--covering thr kale, turnip, basil, cilantro, strawberries, radishes, and flowers. 

There are many ways to cover and protect plants from the cold and frost. What methods do you use? I have tried plastic jugs, jars, and plastic sheeting, and that's usually too harsh for plants because they scorch from the excessive heat. Cloth is usually the best! 

As these nights get colder, I've noticed bugs warming themselves in the carved pumpkins I've lit. Slugs, especially, have taken advantage of the little fires in the pumpkins. 

Did you carve pumpkins? Is that a tradition for you? For me, carving pumpkins are symbolic, and artistic. It is a favorite past time of mine. Pumpkins are a symbol of warmth, stability, plentiful, wholesome. To use these as nature's own little lanterns, makes me feel like I'm warding off the bad, the negative energy. This doesn't mean that that's what pumpkins are doing; but, that's the feeling I get.

Pumpkin carving, painting & Fall food dinners

For the last two nights, Ashley and I have been decorating and carving pumpkins. We got 10 pumpkins for 10 dollars. We saved 3 of those for painting a Frankenstein's monster, witch legs and a black rose with thorns. 

The rest were different carvings of a little man face and puzzle pieces on the back side, cat and a pumpkin face on the back, "Boo" and "Yas", house with a moon and cat, cauldron, and vampire face.

In the above picture, we have our house plants nestled together over top a vent for cool or warmth and displayed my Halloween painting I made years ago. These were the little pumpkins I used for carving and painting.

The colors this year seem brighter, more vibrant, than in the last several years. The quantity of leaves I see in piles skirting trees are more plentiful this year than previous years it seems. Of course, that's my own opinion. 

To further enjoy, and celebrate the Fall you could say, I have been sipping vegan hot chocolate and baking vegan peanut butter cookies, eating lots of seasonal crops like radishes, tomato, kale, and herbs from the garden, and lots of squash and potatoes. And baking pumpkin seeds!

Vegan stuffed peppers with rice

Vegan stuffed squash with vegan cheez

Produce box

Kale harvested to fry over rice

On Sundays, I've been visiting family to check in on them and my gardens, and on these nights, I've been having little fires to roast vegan hot dogs, watching scary movies, and sitting outside.

What are you doing to enjoy Fall this year? What is keeping you motivated to stay hopeful, positive, and active in your life or community?

Sowing corn, melons, squash in pots & garden

This week, I have tried to beat the rain to sow seeds and till the garden. I am struggling planting anything because of the rainfall and the birds! The birds are eating the seed right from out of the ground within the hour that I sow it. And it's constant! I'll keep sowing the seed, and then the bird will eat them immediately--like the birds are watching me.

I have 50 garden pots that I'm sowing veggie seed. I sowed cantaloupe, yellow squash, and zucchini in the pots. I have done this 3 times and every time, a bird is eating the seeds...so, I'm at a loss except to sow the seeds again and cover them with plastic sheeting and garden canvas.

Even when I covered the pots with plastic sheeting, something got into them...maybe not a bird, but a mole!

The rain is just as limiting because I cannot till the garden to plant beans and corn. But, I tilled some of the garden wet...finally! I was able to till a patch of my big garden. Then I hoed rows of soil to plant seed. I planted 3 and a half rows of cushaw, 1 row of cucumbers, 1 row of watermelon, 1 and half rows of corn, and a row of transplanted tomatoes.

Then today I transplanted more tomato plants in my grandparents porch garden bed.

Not only have I been focusing on the veggie garden, I am making flower beds. I have started one flower bed at my grandparent's around a tree, which I am decorating with turtles and frogs. The other flower garden is where I planted gladiolus bulbs and decorated with my grandmothers angel figurines, which you can see below.

Despite the mess, there is some beauty in all of this...the blackberry patch...the thyme...the strawberries...are all very lush, green and vibrant...

Blackberry patch

Lettuce...with some weeds

Thyme

Arugula flowering

Strawberries

Seasonal festive holiday Nature eco gifts

The fall garden still has some bounty left, like all the flowers and herbs. There are some cherry tomatoes and peppers I'm still harvesting. Actually I harvested peppers then pickled them yesterday before I had to go to my work's gala event.

When I got home, I cut up these squashes in the pic below and cooked them with rice, ginger, garlic, salt, carrots, and apple cider.

Flowers pressed

 With the pressed flowers, I'm using them to make holiday gift ornaments, as you can see below. Many of the flowers were wild and others I picked were some I planted from seed or bought from Lowes.

I'm cleaning the garden beds

I don't think I'll be planting any winter crops, though 

I did consider sowing seeds but it would probably be futile

 I have been doing this, in addition to cleaning my garden shed and the porch greenhouse. I put up new plastic sheeting for the porch so the plants stay covered. I'm debating about bringing them indoors...

I had a gala last night for a fundraiser for work, and the higjlight of my evening was eating the morel mushrooms! The chef said my plate was worth over 100 dollars! Fancy gourmet!

Garden harvest, broccoli growing larger, & visiting the orchard

Granny and me at the orchard