harvest time

Time to buy a tractor

Bet you didn't know that tomatoes had fuzz.

Puff

Some times I get lucky and take a picture that just says "cool". In this case, puffy too. It's a clematis at the end of it's life getting ready to send it's seeds out into the world.

Late summer flowers

The late summer flowers are winding down. Turtleheads, goldenrod, and sedum still look good. The last of the hosta is still holding on. The ligularia are just about played out. We don't dead-head any of our perrenials, so we're watching the flower heads, waiting till the seeds are ready to spread or give to friends. Pat's venture into suburban backyard deck agriculture has born fruit (ya, ya, I know). We've snacked on tomatoes these last couple of weeks. Now it's a race to see what comes first, the peppers maturing or frost. Maybe we'll plow up the yard. Every time I look at the pots of veggies, I hear "Green Acres." I guess Pat's Eddie Albert so that would make me Eva Gabor.

Paul and Amanda's wedding

Our friends Paul and Amanda got married Saterday. It was at Mapleside Farms. The view is magnificant. We are on the last foothill of the Appalachias. It's down hill till you get to the Mississippi. Just like settlers from the turn of the 19th century Paul and Amanda looked out into their future. It was blue skies as far as they could see. Me, I saw the prison at Grafton.

Oktoberfest

It's Labor Day and what better way to celebrate than at Oktoberfest. The national dachshund races and fashion show was there. German wine and beer vendors were situated perfectly. Just as you were done with something a vendor appeared. Local German restaurants had booths. There were guys walking around in lederhosen and I got this funny looking glass that looks like a boot. And the sounds of oom-pah-pah bands permeated the air.

Dachshund races, puppy division.

Ya gotta kinda wonder how these people came so close to ruling the world, twice no less. After an afternoon of eating and drinking food last experienced 30 years ago, all I wanted to do was take a nap.

No matter where we go, we're always on the look out for flowers.

On the way home through the Metro Parks guess what we saw?

what's up doc

Pat and I spent a wonderful evening with our friends Bill and Sarah Gann at Blossom. Blossom is smack dab in the middle of the Cuyahoga National Forest and one of North-east Ohio's greatest gems. Bill and Sarah introduced us to the place. The concert we saw this weekend was the perfect mix of classical music and Looney Tunes cartoons. Who didn't grow up with "kill the rabbit?" You can take a week and listen to Wagner's ring cycle or get all the Wagner you'll ever need in one cartoon. I'll tell you every time Elmer Fudd laughed every guy over 40 in the crowd did too. What a gas.

sedum

Sedum and bees seem to go together. The sedum are full of bees all day long.Since it evidently grows pretty well where we have it, we decided to move it around in the fall. Thus is the life of a gardener.

kill the rabbit

Nothing makes me break out in an aria more than rabbits eating my plants. Problem is the tune isn't about how much I like the furry little guys. it's more like "kill the rabbit" lisp included.

This was a good sized hosta 3 days ago and we feed the rabbits. You'd think they would leave our plants alone.

I think this was a butterfly weed. Every time it grows a little, rabbits snack on it.

This hosta should be about 3 ft. by 3 ft. by now. I gotta move it in the fall and maybe put a fence around it.