by Leslie Cox; Saturday; September 21, 2024

This last week was all about trying to wrap up the harvest and preserves. Or at least most of it.

The last of the zucchini have been picked. Most have made their way into relish and marmalade. The rest will be chopped or grated and measured into usable portions for future meals from the freezer.

 

 

The aronia berries (chokeberries) have been picked, measured and frozen. But in reorganizing the freezer, I discovered two packages of aronia berries dated September 2022. No idea how that happened but they were quickly dispatched into jars of jelly! So delicious.

The last stalks of rhubarb have been pulled and are making their way into chutney, jam and a couple of cheesecake squares. So far. John is currently addicted to the cheesecake square recipe so I expect I will likely be making at least one or two more before his taste buds are satiated for a couple of months. (My husband, the Foodie! Good thing he is such an avid gardener which guarantees he burns the calories.)

 

The harvest has not all been about vegetables and fruits, however. We have also been collecting seeds from favourite plants, as well as from those which are borderline hardy in our garden.

But with all of this “thinking ahead”…putting jars of preserves in the pantry, packages of fruits and vegetables into the freezer for winter enjoyment, organizing seeds for fresh plants next spring…it is easy to miss the advancing autumn changes in the garden.

 

My Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum, (doublefile viburnum), has been quietly changing its leaf colour from deep green to deep burgundy over the last three weeks, or so. Sadly, I cannot reliably pinpoint the exact date the green started to turn colour since I now am getting up in the dark and going to bed in the dark.

And even when I am out in my garden, I have not been making many trips past the doublefile viburnum…tucked off to one side as it is and partially hidden by both the Stewartia pseudocamellia and the tall English laurel hedge, Prunus laurocerasus.

 

Right now, my focus has been on removing the Omphalodes cappadocica, (navelwort), on the driveway side of my garden…under the large rhododendron, Hydrangea macrophylla and Pieris japonica. (Very pleased to report that I largely have that area pretty much eradicated of navelwort. There are a very few rogue stems popping up but those are easily dealt with.)

If the weather cooperates, I will be moving some plants into this new planting area that I have opened up. There are some which have not appreciated the longer hours of hot sun now the Acer campestre (European hedge maple) has been removed from the garden bed up by the house.

Looks like next week will be as busy as this one. Such is the life of a gardener!