October 16, 2018
My shovel felt heavy yesterday. I looked to see if mud was caked on the blade but it was clean. I've never noticed it being heavy before so I wondered why. Did I do something the day before to weaken my arms? Is age taking it's toll? A few minutes later I forgot where my chair was. Only for a moment, but I began to wonder if I've been taking things for granted. The answer was clearly yes..
The cold water from the faucet is life giving, yet ignored. Fragrances interrupt our thoughts, bringing us back to the present moment, from which we seem to continually leave. Back and forth we go, in and out of the present, thinking about the future and the past. Preparing for the future and learning from the past is how we survive, but the older you get the less you need to let your thinking interfere with your living..
October 17, 2018
The hard frost last night finished off the zucchini, tomatoes in towers, and corn. It burned the outside leaves of the bush bean row that was under plastic, but maybe there are enough under leaves to finish ripening the crop. The corn kernels are showing a slight yellow hue so they might ripen if I leave the stalks standing. It's time to pull up the tomato plants and hang them where it doesn't freeze, to see how many tomatoes we can get to ripen over the next few weeks. You can just hang the whole tower upside down if you can't extract the vines, or cut the vines as long as possible and tie them together in bundles that you can lift..
It was pointed out to me that the average first frost for zone 8b is October 15th, not November 15th like I've been saying. Sorry for the misinformation. I guess if you're looking for accurate gardening information you're at the wrong site..
October 18, 2018
After I dragged off the frost burned zucchini plants to the compost pile, I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the empty mounds. Makes no sense to me, but logic is not the language of the heart. A freshly plowed field tends to draw us in with a notion of it's potential, maybe the mounds do that too. Thinking of them being barren for five months is sad, but for right now they are a delight to see. The tops begged for compost, so I obliged, and the hay mulch surrounding them needed fluffing. The pathway next to them got a fresh coating of shavings and now the scene is complete..
The plants did so well this year that I'm having a hard time thinking about rotation. Each hill with three plants grew ten feet in diameter, so the spot they are in is perfect for them. They filled up the area between two pathways so picking was a snap too. Planting them elsewhere to thwart the squash bugs would be a good idea though..
