Phaedra's 2021 Garden

[baymule]

I used to deep litter my chicken coop. In the fall many people rake and bag up their leaves and set them on the curb for the garbage man to pick up. All those nice leaves! I embarrassed my husband, making him turn around so I could get those bags of leaves. People looked at me like I was nuts when I asked if I could have them. Chickens LOVED the leaves. At that time, I had an 8'x8' coop and an 8'x 16' covered run. I would fill the coop and run up to 2 or 3 feet deep. The hens dove in. In a few short months they scratched to bits all those leaves, pooped all over them and mixed it up very well. They reduced it from 3 feet to a few inches. Then I dug it out, black crumbly garden gold. They made the BEST compost for me. Then I put more leaves in there for them. I stored the extra bags of leaves so they had entertainment all winter.

 

[Phaedra]

It's still a lovely day in the morning, according to the weather forecast. So I quickly finished all my other works, then cleaned the small path from the pond area to the west side of the garden.

As mentioned, such a stone-based path is stylish, but it's never easy to maintain - weeds are always much quicker and more vigorous than humans expected. The previous house owners tried to cover the grounds with black plastic cloth; however, it lost the effect after a particular time.

This photo shows how it looked like before cleaning.

After one hour of weeding and hard pruning the weigela (grows too wild and blocks the light), this area looks much tidier and brighter. I know it's too late to prune weigela, and we won't have flowers next spring. However, I want to clean up this area before winter arrives. I like how it looks now.

Let me introduce one of my 3 Pullets. I don't know which one started to lay, but someone did for the past two days. How can it happen? They are just 15 weeks old! They had a very balanced and rich diet, cozy living space. But 15 weeks old is still too early, right?

My favorite cockerel, Odin
He is the biggest guy among the three cockerels, but not the alpha one. I like his temperament and hope he can keep his character.

Splendid Dahlias
I am not sure how much time we can still enjoy their beauty. The temperature drops so quickly.

 

[baymule]

That is nice before/after pictures. How satisfying to clean that up! Your pullet has a cute top knot, like a mohawk hair cut! Winter is coming, I will miss the beautiful flowers you grow, probably not near as much as you do. I'm just glad you share their beauty with us.

 

[Phaedra]

From today on, we will have several sunny and bright days. Originally I planned to do more cleaning and cutting works, but it's also not bad to enjoy the weather without doing something specific.

This summer is too cold for most of the tomatoes, chilis, and eggplants. They didn't thrive, just survive. The lavenders are sowed in the late spring, and their growth is satisfying.

The Asters come back every autumn, like an old friend.

 

[baymule]

Nothing like a beautiful day in a beautiful garden. Sometimes you have to take a day off from the work, just to enjoy the work you have done.

 

[Phaedra]

Saturday is our weekly grocery day. We went to Köln (the city I stayed in the first years after moving to Germany) and replenished seafood and fruits in a supermarket that was only open to restaurant owners in the past. Due to the impact of the lockdown, they decided to open to general consumers from last autumn. We seldom came here, too far away. However, there are so many ingredients and food that are not available in ordinary supermarkets. Twice a year, we come here for those items.

We are pretty lucky as they have some heavily discounted items, such as the newly harvested apples, 6kg for 3 Euro. Then we visited my father-in-law, who treated me even better than my biological father. I am the only one in this family who shares his interests in gardening, cooking, and classical music. We had lunch together - it's now something bitter and sweet. He had dementia, and various perceptions were disappearing from his world.

After coming home, we finished mowing the garden's west side and washing both coops with a high-pressure washer. I don't think I am a neat freak, but I prefer a certain level of cleanliness.

A busy Saturday, as usual

Tomorrow we plan to have a long walk and picnic near a lake, then rest. I will need to make the next batch of candles and start sewing projects.

 

[baymule]

What a lovely day. How sad that your father in law is being robbed of his memory. I know you grieve for him, but enjoy him all you can. I'm sure that you bring a ray of sunlight into his world.

 

[Phaedra]

We had a lovely walk today. Although most of the leaves are still green, the sunny weather made our day. Maybe two weeks later we will visit here again when the weather is pleasant, like this morning.

We stayed at home most of the time during the past 18 months, and now it's time to go back to the outdoors gradually. We will visit some lovely small towns in our surroundings soon again.

The first frost of this autumn happened this morning, and the low temperature might last at least several hours. It caused damages to the Dahlias without any protections. Those near the main building or trees have much fewer damages.

The upperparts are seriously damaged. When the next frost attracts, those will be at their ends this year. Maybe I should already dig them out for overwinter?

The afternoon is as sunny as it can be. I stayed with chickens for a long while, and they are always so adorable.

I love their fluffy butts so much! 😍 😍 😍

 

[digitS']

I like for the dahlia to die back from the frost part way - maybe more than one-half.

If they die back and have several days after, in my imagination, they have time to store nutrients in preparation for dormancy. I like to see the damaged foliage actually begin to dry but that seldom happens because the overnight temperatures tend to slide down over just a few days and challenge my composure.

It's difficult to assess the possibilities. If it looks to be especially cold, piling material around the base of the plant should protect it. The tubers themselves absolutely cannot freeze, however.

Steve

 

[baymule]

What pretty scenery. It that within walking distance from your house?