countdown to frost

I had almost convinced myself we might make it to November before a frost occurred.  Or maybe that was wishful thinking on my part (egged on by an extremely kind Mother Nature this fall).  You'll know why I had high hopes when you see I still have sunflowers sending out blooms:

and snapdragons every bit as beautiful as in early summer:

then there are the toadstools that sprang up after our recent welcome rains (a sight I usually only see in spring & summer):

However, despite my optimism, the weather forecast is calling for frost tonight (upper 20's).  I'm making preparations (always better to err on the side of caution, right?) tho secretly hoping they are wrong.  Tomato vines have been pulled and harvested ~ below are a few waiting to be wrapped:

I'll store them in the basement then use them as they ripen. 

I'm also disconnecting my garden hoses and blowing the dust off the birdbath heater:

I wouldn't want the birds to wake up to frozen water!

I'm not forgetting, while hustling around, to say my goodbyes to some old favorites ~ like the pink roses blooming alongside my arbor:

It's sad to think I won't see them again for almost another year.

But at least I saw them, unlike the passion flower, whose vine grew up and across the side gate arbor but didn't produce a single flower:

It's hardy to zone 7 so I'm going to push my luck this winter, mulch it extra well, and see if I can keep it alive to try again next year.  Wish me luck!

Now I better get back out there and finish up my chores.  Happy Monday everyone!

 

Comments

[Meredehuit♥]

Lovely post... it's always a sad day when we pull out the tomatoes. In fact it's all rather melancholy, isn't it?!

[Rebecca Sweet]

What a lovely tribute to the changing of seasons! Fall is definitely in the air, isn't it? But I must ask - do tomatoes really ripen if you pick them & store them like that? I've never heard of that and must give it a try!

[Meredehuit♥]

Where DO you garden? We had a hard frost last night. I did get all done that I needed to. Now I'm off to survey the damage,

[Sweetbay]

It looks like you have a lot of lovely fall color there! We're expecting our first frost this weekend..

[RainGardener]

Looks good Kathleen. I've missed your posts. Just got out of the hospital and hopefully will get back to blogging as soon as I can think of something to say - encouraging that is.

[RobinL]

What is it with the crazy passionflowers this year? I've heard many people say that theirs never did bloom. Mine is trying to conquer the earth, but no gorgeous blooms to earn it's keep! And that cup and saucer vine is fabulous, I'm glad it finally bloomed. We've numerous light frosts, but many flowers are still going strong.