Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Favorite Place Tuesday...On Wednesday

Yesterday I stood at the kitchen window looking out into my garden. It was a freezing, foggy day. To my surprise, some of my plants were still going strong. The Cup and Saucer Vine hadn't even wilted in the frosts and still bore some gorgeous, translucent teacup flowers. And as I watched, dozens of maroon and yellow striped Jolly Jester Marigolds bobbed around in the wind. If anything, they seemed to have benefited from the cold.

But others in my garden were succumbing to fall. They were dry and brown. They were moldy. And they made me sad. The kind of sad where I couldn't bring myself to go out there.

And I hadn't been out there for weeks.

But I finally mustered up the courage and marched out to face my dying band of vegetable friends. The least I could do was hold there leafy hands as they departed this world.

I won't describe to you exactly all I found there, it's just too painful. But I will tell you the upside to the fall garden, and that is collecting seeds.

I've saved the seeds from my chrysanthemums, marigolds, dill, flax, peas, peppers, two kinds of lettuce, and cilantro. I'm hoping to use the seeds from this year's plants in next year's garden. This way, my plants will become healthier and stronger from year to year (that's the word on the street, anyway).

The seed saving process has been amazing, but all this time I've been waiting for ONE SEED. The big daddy of them all, the Mammoth Grey Stripe Sunflower. Oh, it sends the shivers down my spine, my friends.

That's why I was looking out my kitchen window yesterday, to see if the sunflowers were ready. And they were.

It's beautiful how the garden, in her last dying stages, will try desperately to throw you one more gift. And oh, what a gift it is.
Favorite Places Tuesday on a Wednesday? My garden that gives, gives, gives.

8 comments:

Kaylynn said...

I think I love you garden too, I wish you could do mine!

Liv said...

That sunflower is stinkin huge.

L Chang said...

WOW! I am so glad that you took up planting flowers, herbs, fruit, and veggies rather than being a "weed planter"! That was you who said that, right? How much were you able to store?

Abby said...

Lol, thanks guys. And yes, Linds, that was me. What a strange child I was.
Do you mean storing as in like, canning, freezing, and preserving? Because I didn't do any of that this year. Most of my veggies didn't even make it into the house because I would eat them on the spot. Brian would come out there to check on me and my cheeks would be full like a chipmunk getting ready for winter. ;)

Anonymous said...

Dude, The Roberts Garden is pretty sweet... I need me some more of those peas and lettuce!

Anonymous said...

And let's be honest, you grow a little "weed" out behind the shed under the camo tent...

Abby said...

That's right, Cabe, but it's only for special guests.
;) Haha.

heather said...

Are you for hire? Ryan would love if I had a clue on what was going on outside our window.