Last summer we had baby cardinals in our green space. It was so fun to watch Mom and Dad come and get their food, fly to feed the hatchlings, and then we’d hear chirping. Throughout the winter we have had a pair of cardinals who come to eat early in the day and then again late – about 5pm. Today they are here again. So beautiful! Such a treat! They are definitely well fed!
Well, we did it! After years of passively searching and over six months of actively seeking property in northern Minnesota, we closed on 40 beautiful acres of wooded high ground not far from Canada. Yup. It’s cold. It’s REALLY cold sometimes. Yup, there’s a lot of snow. But it’s our cold, snowy dreamland now.
It will be a pretty big process. There is an old logging path so that job is already done, but there is no well or septic, and no dwelling at all. There is a natural clearing we plan to use as the homesite, but it will probably be at least late April, maybe later until we can start that preparation.
And then there is the garden. So far we have seen A LOT of deer and snowshoe rabbit tracks and some tracks that look like moose tracks. Plus lots of field mice. So a tall gated garden lined with chicken wire will be necessary. We also know that composting would not be wise (bear yummies).
Some of my favorites from years ago are probably going to make a comeback. It sounds like bearded iris, daffodils, and grape hyacinth are deer resistant. I know from experience they naturalize beautifully!
We never dreamed we’d do something this big. Well, my husband hoped … We still plan to keep our townhome for at least the foreseeable future, but who knows. God may have plans we could never imagine! Can’t wait to share this wild adventure between our townhome and the woods with you all!
Please share any zone 3 woodland gardening expertise that may be helpful ☺
Last night, on the eve of Thanksgiving, we had a beautiful full moon.
Today we had a visit from both of the white squirrels. Here’s one.
On the start of what is so often a buying frenzy and fraught with obligations, we hope there is (also) time to enjoy simple things 😍
Happy Thanksgiving!
It was only a few weeks ago that a friend and I went to Stillwater (MN) to do some late season leaf peeping.
The river was so high!
We did some walking around by the shops and then we wrapped up with dinner at a cafe on the river. It was a full moon and made for a great view!
This past Friday, after a pretty decent snow, brisk winds and cool temps gave us a “feels like” temperature of 6° F. There’s not going to be much sitting outside on the patio for a while 😉
The scarecrow picks froze into the ground. One of them is so solidly frozen that I just left it out there. The wooden pumpkins are now in, as is the concrete bird bath. The sedum are frozen. Good luck to the birds in harvesting those seeds. I’m sure they will find a way.
But there is a serenity about the landscape when it is snow covered, and I really enjoy that.
I don’t right now, and probably won’t for months, have lots to post from the garden. But when I catch something special, or if we get a particularly pretty snow like this past Friday, I will share.
Yes, that chair still needs to come in.
The last garden chore of the season is always pulling in all the garden decorations – the spinners, the funny little statues, things like that. I bring them inside and let them get acclimated to the indoor temperature, and then I put them away in a tote for the winter. That is now done. Everything always fits in one bin – as long as I simultaneously put the winter lanterns out on one of the shepherd’s hooks. Eventually the scarecrow picks and door hanger will go in that same bin, as long as they aren’t too beat up by the wind and rain – and the lawn crew – lol!
As I mentioned in a previous post, we live in a townhome. Sometimes the lawn service crew gets a little over-zealous with the blowers. Unfortunately they pretty much destroyed two of the 5 sedums this past week. Not quite sure why, as there were no leaves to blow out of there, but nevertheless, it looked like a giant storm had come through that area alone. Oh well. Stuff happens. I will still leave the now blown over sedums for the birds, and cut them back in the spring. Unless, of course, they really start to bother me this week 😕
I had a change of heart on the bird bath warmer and put my “use what you have” ideas to work. I took an old (mauve of all colors) plant pot, and weighted it inside with an old terra cotta plant pot. Then I put an empty dish garden on top of that, put the bird bath warmer in the dish garden and plugged it in. Within 15 min the birds came! But we haven’t had a freezing night this weekend so I can’t report on whether or not the warmer is working. And it’s been raining so I don’t have good pics … Stay tuned for updates.
The hibiscus has had 14 (maybe more) blooms since we brought it in, but is now resting. There are a few more buds, so I won’t trim it yet.
The shamrocks started looking shaggy this week. They will soon die back for the most part, and, like the hibiscus, rest.
Saturday I used up the last dozen of the tomatoes that were green last weekend and finally ripened.
So the outdoor garden is done and resting, and the plants we over-winter are also beginning to rest. But I have envelopes of seeds just ready for May. And I can’t wait to see what the daylily seedlings from this year might bring in 2019. I suppose up I could head to the garden store and get something blooming, but more than likely I’ll just enjoy pictures – of our garden, and of other’s. Maybe this winter I will do another garden album. It’s been years!
To round out this weekend, here’s a pic of today’s squirrel antics. When our guest in the garden noticed them, he let them know he did not like that one bit!
2018 fall garden trimming is done. Whew! That’s enough work for me! I made the last 2018 trip to compost yesterday. Yeay! The last ninebark got trimmed, the remaining hostas got trimmed, and some sedum got trimmed.
All that’s left to do now is pull in the garden “pretties” like the funny hunting and hiking bears, the toad and turtle playing checkers … I was going to do that today but ach! … it can wait another week.
Today I can rest and enjoy our guest in the (indoor) garden. He got groomed yesterday so he thinks he’s pretty snazzy. After a long walk in the leaves (LOTS of sniffing involved), he settled in for a nap. He deserves that oversized blankie you know 😁
Updates on previous posts:
I decided to cut back the sedums that were falling over, and keep those that are staying upright. That left 5 sedum plants for the birds to enjoy this winter.
The bird bath heater is too big for my little bird bath, and I don’t want a new bird bath, so back that goes.
Inside the hibiscus continues to bloom.
The orchid blooms failed this week, after 4 months of blooming. That will rest now too.
And the tomatoe plant wrapped up (indoors) last week. Today I am making chili with the last of the tomatoes. Yum! A good pot of warm food in the Lodge dutch oven. Now that’s fall!
Over the past week or so I noticed that the bird bath has turned into a water bowl. We are even seeing robins there, and we thought they were long gone. This poor robin was late to the game and was left with slim pickins.
Dark eyed junkos, chickadees, bluejays, cardinals, and of course squirrels are coming for a drink. But if I put water in at night, it freezes. So, I ordered a bird bath heater. Crazy, but I hear they attract birds all winter.
It will come in the next few days so I will do a follow-up.
The gardens, minus the sedum, are all done. The cold and the wind are starting to feel winter-like. We did have a couple gorgeous (high 60s/low 70s) days but this morning the wind is very brisk, the “feels like” temperature is 26° F, and we have snow flurries.
Our guest in the garden doesn’t care at all to be out in the garden this morning so we’ve got the fireplace going and I’m enjoying the hibiscus.
Hopefully the wind will calm a bit this afternoon and I can get out and cut back at least the Aureomarginatas and the Blue Mouse Ears.
We’re a tad early on the coming winter this year. We had snow Thursday, and it’s snowing again today.
I’m not adverse to sitting inside with the fireplace going (a wood stove would be be better 😁) but gosh, there goes the hostas.
Good bye garden 2018.
Today it was 40° fahrenheit by 9am in our area so I got going right away on the fall clean-up. All of the daylilies are now cut back. I included the daylilies out back – the new ‘Hush Little Baby’ daylilies, the ‘Purple D’Oro’ daylilies, the last ‘Just Plum Happy’ daylily and the red daylilies, along with the ‘Marque Moon’ daylilies out front.
Sad to see them all go, but they were ready.
Also sadly, either the wind or some bird or squirrel broke off the last daylily buds I had found a week or so ago. I’ll try putting them in water, but I doubt they will bloom. But, on a more cheerful note, I did find some seed pods from Dad’s hostas that I saved as well.
I also trimmed two of the three ninebarks, the weigelia, and the alpine currant.
Then I bagged it all up and got it over to compost.
All that clean-up means that next weekend all I have on the schedule is the remaining hostas, two clematis, and one ninebark. Sad to wrap up, but awesome that things are on schedule.
I still haven’t decided if I will cut back the sedum. They may stay. More on that in another post.
Now I can relax. It’s too windy to use the little fire pit tonight, so I probably won’t bother getting propane, and there’s a lot of activity (birds, squirrels) in the small pine tree, so I will rake the seeds later in the day or tomorrow.
(Check out the dark-eyed junko on the ground in the two pics above. )
One of our white squirrels stopped by while I was getting lunch ready. I tried to get a pic but she was being camera shy today.
All in all, it was a good morning. Now I deserve a cup of coffee and a good book 😍
Susan's Daily Garden 