October in my Garden....by (Angela) Jean

So far, it has been an October of extremes, here in Southern Ontario. Two weeks ago, the temperature dropped down to single digits and it took great will power (and extra socks and sweaters) to resist turning on the furnace. Last weekend was Thanksgiving, and we were blessed with a long weekend of glorious fall weather. In fact, it was so warm, that during our annual trip to the pumpkin farm, we almost suffered heat stroke in the corn maze.

This week we have returned to cold, wet and windy.
Despite the less than ideal conditions, I have spent considerable time in the garden, ripping out flower and vegetable beds, and doing general clean up.

look what happens to broccoli when you don't pick it

My brussels sprouts: too much brussel, not enough sprout.

I have washed all of my patio planters and furniture, and stored them, along with my hanging baskets, in the garage. Some baskets still looked quite lovely, despite the flowers being finished, so I left them up for now.

I felt badly about cleaning out the finished sunflowers.

The gold finches loved them so much, and we loved seeing the gold finches.

So this week, I bought a finch feeder with special finch food.

So far, no finches, but hopefully they will find it soon.
I have plans to put up some more bird feeders around the back yard, in hopes of luring some of these guys.

This one is from my parents' house and he likes to eat the peanuts that they leave out for Charlie the Chipmunk.

While the weather was pleasant, we had great fun playing in yard,

but the recent wind and rain have left our ash tree bare.

It was time to bag up the leaves for pick up.

It appears I may have missed a few.

The front step has been properly adorned for the season,

and there is much talk of Halloween around our house. Planning for pumpkin carving and costume making is underway, but consensus is never easily achieved around here. We still have a few weeks to think our ideas through.
As we go for our daily walks around the neighbourhood,

sometimes to the park, but often just along the paths,

I continue to be struck by the beauty of the foliage and grasses.

The growing season may be over, but some of the plant life is just starting to show off.

I hope you are enjoying your autumn and taking some time to marvel at the beauty all around.