Fall Preparations

Anybody else sensing that Fall is on the way?  We just had a 'spitting' of rain and 'the girls' have come back outside to search and scratch for any unsuspecting crawling things that may have surfaced during their short respite inside the coop.


I was delighted to feel the crisp morning air yesterday as I took the kids to school.  It inspired an impromptu mountain bike ride after the 'short people' were safely off to another day of learning and expanding their minds.  I have seen a few leaves changing color and my tomatoes must be enjoying the slightly cooler evenings, as they are beginning to change color.  I love this time of year.  Fall is my favorite season, as well as spring.  I love them because they are transition seasons.  We are weary of the summer heat-and God brings us respite just when we need it most in the form of Fall.  Just when we can't stand to see another snowflake fall, or are weary of the drab landscape of winter, God brings forth from the frozen earth, life in the form of crocus and daffodils.

Sometimes I feel that we go through transitional seasons as humans too.  There seem to be seasons that are full of life and we are truly blooming!  Others are more difficult to endure, and we even get to the point where we feel we cannot stand yet another blow.  Take heart-for God is always with you.  God doesn't make mistakes, He orchestrates everything in His perfect timing.  When it doesn't makes sense to us in the human realm, know that God is always in control.  Such is evidenced by the changing of the leaves in the fall, and the seemingly impossible bloom of the crocus through the snowy frozen ground.

Zephaniah 3:17
“The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” (NIV)
Today, I am doing a bit of preparing in the gardens for planting my second season/fall crops.  I was a bit dismayed yesterday when working with the spotted cucumber plants.  I found that the vines are yellowing as well.  I am going to severely trim it back, and if it's still not looking good I will need to pull them out and make room for something else.  I have grand plans for my second season vegetable of Beans, Jerusalem Artichokes/Sunchokes, more Cucumbers, Okra, Brussels Sprouts, Kale, Spinach and lettuce greens.  I am learning more each year and seem to be getting better at this every year-gathering more food each year.  Many of these crops are new to me, like the Jerusalem Artichokes/Sunchokes.  You buy them as tubers from the garden stores (local or online) and bury them much like potatoes.  They can be planted in the Spring and/or Fall.  As they grow, they develop long stalks and bright sunflower-like blooms!  They look as tho they are simply wildflowers growing amidst your vegetables.

When eaten, some describe the taste as being like that of an artichoke heart or water chestnut.  These can be pickled,cooked like potatoes, or sliced and eaten on salads.  This is a great vegetable for diabetics because when it is consumed, the inulin is converted in the digestive tract to fructose rather than glucose.  This will be my first attempt at growing these, so you will have to stay tuned next spring for the results!
I still have dirt caked under my fingernails from yesterday: wrestling with the moldy cucumber vines, weeding and re-mulching the front yard xeriscape planter.  You know you've got the bug when you look at your dirty nails and rough hands and say, "Eeehhh, I'll just re-soil them tomorrow!"

Psalm 36:5 -7 
Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.

Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.

How priceless is your unfailing love!
Both high and low among men
find refuge in the shadow of your wings.” (NIV)