In spite of my absence for various reasons, the garden continues to carry on valiantly its business of growing and changing by the hour. I love walking around and picking off a few dead flowers, or noticing seeds forming, even when I can’t give it the more thorough care it needs.
A couple of years ago I managed to transplant one of the vigorous Showy Milkweed plants (above) next to where the Narrow-Leaf Milkweeds grow. You can’t see the latter very well in the background, which is a good thing, because their leaves have mostly had the life sucked out of them by aphids and have turned black. But every spring, they come back stronger than ever.
The leafy green Tatsoi really took off in this pot where I stuck it in next to lobelia, and is begging to be thrown into a stir-fry a.s.a.p. Those I set out in the planter boxes are languishing; that soil must need amending.
The dwarf pomegrantes are mostly a fun member of the garden in that for most of the year have flowers, often with hummingbirds drinking from them; or foliage bright and beautiful catching one’s attention in spring and fall; and their darling fruits, that don’t get very large, and in this climate don’t get enough heat for their seeds to develop sweetness. But they are so cute right about now. This one is about an inch and a half in diameter.
Every day I pick figs; the evening of my return from the mountains I gathered two dozen, and yesterday nineteen. Soon I hope to make that Autumn Fig Cake I told you about one time. And the Juliet grape tomato plant is prolific. I eat the tomatoes in the garden and in the kitchen, and took enough with me to the cabin that I could eat a few every day for ten days, and they were always sweet.
I harvested all but one of the little butternut squashes I grew this year, and planted some Sugar Ann snap peas in their place. Ideally those will start bearing about February, if the winter isn’t too cold and if I can keep the snails from devouring the plants between now and then.
My native sneezeweed is of the less showy sort, but it welcomed me when I returned from my mountain retreat with a particularly lovely array of blooms, not plain at all.
No doubt about it, my garden loves me, and forgives my neglect.
It makes me want to do better in the future.
Gladsome Lights 
Your garden did so well in spite of your absence. The tatsoi leaves look a lot like basil. I am not familiar with tatsoi at all.
I had sneezeweed for years then one spring it didn’t show up. Strange how that happens.
LikeLiked by 1 person
How well your garden did in your absence. Mine was the same – the green beans and tomatoes kept producing and the root vegetables stayed snugly growing in the ground. I planted winter kale before we left for the Rockies and it’s now about 3 inches high.
Your figs look amazing. The second crop never ripens on our trees.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My fig tree, a Blackjack, only ever has one crop. And last year it didn’t ripen, as it was a cool summer.
LikeLike
I don’t know if my comment went through. WordPress had me sign in again.
All to say that gardens are wonderful examples of God’s continuing work in the world.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love seeing images from your garden!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, you make me want to grow tatsoi. I did get some lobelia seeds that’ll get sown in a few months. How lovely are yours next to that glossy green.
How promising those pomegranates look. We have more decorative shrubs around the neighborhood that have these tiny fruit, too. Mine (the edible softball sized ones) are about ready to be picked.
It’s what’s survived your being away that’s such an encouragement. During our 110F+ heatwave, it was instructive to see what shrugged off the heat and what plants wilted into compostable material.
I hope you will post your fig recipe. My aunt has been looking for ways to put her figs to use.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I linked to the previous post where I’d put the recipe as I made it, and here it is: https://gretchenjoanna.com/2019/10/10/its-a-mistake-to-rush-through-this-cake/
I hope you make it!
LikeLike
I think I have the Turkish variety of dried apricots but will look to see if Blenheim are available. Alas, her figs have finished so I’ll have to see what the stores have. Love the idea of the enhancement of butter flavor from almonds and fruit. And I think GF flour might do well in this application. Thanks for the link!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think next time I make it I will use GF flour. It doesn’t contain much flour to begin with, and I think it would hold together fine without the gluten. But the second time I made it I forgot to put the parchment paper in before I started layering the ingredients, and I ended up with a mess, trying to get pieces pf the finished product out intact. That was on one of the very hot days, and my butter was definitely not at “cool room temperature,” either. But it was all quite delicious.
LikeLike