August 25, 2019- It seems like it is already fall.

The march of time can be so interesting.
It can be excruciatingly slow.
February comes to mind.
Sometimes it seems to almost come to a stop.

It can also move fast, leaving you to wonder what ever happened to these last few...days, weeks, months, or years.

But it does move. It hardly ever stands still.
We give points in time names.
Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall.
(Why do I want to start with Winter when I name the seasons? I guess I would not want to end with Winter.)

As summer fades away there can be the lament that it is almost winter.
Perhaps this is just the attitude if you live in the north.
There is an easy response to that lament.
Before Winter there is Fall.
And Fall is wonderful.

All this of course applies to the garden.
We speak of a long Winter, or a short or early Spring.
Certain flowers last a long time.
Others bloom just for hours. (I think of the night blooming cereus.)
Last year we had a late Spring.
This year Spring was on time, but sort of got stuck.
It got stuck about the time the bluebells were blooming.
That was not a bad time to be stuck.

Summer in the garden for me is divided into high summer and then whatever comes next before fall. High Summer is the summer of daylilies (unless they are eaten by the deer). It is the time of riotous color in the garden. Late summer is hot summer. Late summer is when you have to water the garden a lot. Late summer is the time when many people go to the beach. Late summer is the time of cicadas.
Late summer is when we see glimpses of the coming of fall.

Summer is ending here in Iowa. Public school started this past Friday. The students at the University are coming back. This is the time when you have to look both ways on one way streets.
It seems as if Fall is already here. The first tree in the yard, the buckeye, has started to drop some of its leaves. I quickly sweep them up to fool myself into thinking that it is not yet that time of year. The buckeyes themselves will follow. I see a few walnuts on the ground.

We observed the change in the seasons this past week with rain.
I remember that last fall was very wet.
Maybe we are in for a repeat performance.
Last Sunday we had 2 inches of rain. On Tuesday there was another 3 inches.  These are measurements from our rain gauge. Officially there was only about 4 inches.
This rain was in contrast with a total of 2 inches of rain in the previous 6 weeks.
I have for the moment retired the hose in the front yard.

The temperature and humidity were much lower this week.
Weeds come out so easily.
It was just about perfect.

The rain and cooler weather trigger changes in plants. I see more orchid cactus buds coming. I watch and see the first bougainvillea flowers.
The three year old ghost pepper plant is really producing flowers all over.




I love the color that zinnias bring to the late summer garden.


















I actually did not see these wonderful enlargements until I was just about finished with the post for this week.

Here was another night blooming cereus flower on Friday night. It was just a single flower but it was appreciated.













This coleus is one that I overwintered in the basement under lights. It is doing just fine.

I planted some of the coleus cuttings I started a few weeks ago.
As I planted them I replaced them with more coleus cuttings.
Remember, we could have several more months before a frost.







This is perhaps the best color combination in the garden. It is that burnt orange coleus and the purple Persian Shield.
Imagine an entire bed of these two colors.
Maybe next year.
I just started some cuttings of the orange one today.












Here they are, right up against one another.

I really don't know why garden centers close down the annuals in July.
I would certainly pay a fair price for two months of wonderful color.













Here is the window still in the kitchen at the moment.
You can just continuously make cuttings all summer, into fall.














The Japanese Anemones are going strong.
As you think about and prepare the fall garden, these Anemones should be included.
There are different varieties, even though this pink one is the very hardy one that grows all over.
The single white one will bloom in a week or so.

























What you have here below are three sets of leaves from the 3 varieties of Japanese Anemones in the garden. I had not realized that the leaves were different.
The one on the right of the two together is the leaf from the pink one above. The other two have not yet bloomed. One is the big white one, that has appeared in the contest over the years.
The other one is...well I am not sure. Maybe it is a double pink one.




The annual asclepias has been blooming all year.

My effort to photograph the frogs in the pong continues. This week you get a video, complete with sound. They do take a dive whenever I approach.
I have redone the iris bed on the north side of the pond. It makes it easier to see as I get close. I replanted the iris back into that bed yesterday.

Julia's recipe

A different coleslaw

Here is the link to all Julia's recipes that have appeared on the blog.
https://mearskitchen.wordpress.com/


This coleslaw recipe came from our friend Barb, who (with her husband Larry) moved to Portland, OR (not ME). Thinking about it, I realize Barb taught us to make 3 things (as memory serves right this minute): pineapple salsa, Thai peanut noodles and this light and vaguely Asian coleslaw: all excellent, all different.


Ingredients for the slaw: 3-1/2 cups of thinly sliced (not grated!) green cabbage (some red is good. I would not use only red. Savoy or Napa would be fine too); 1/4 cup sliced scallions; 1/2 cup diced (maybe 1/4" bits) red or yellow or orange pepper; 1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds; and 2 tablespoons sesame seeds.

For the dressing: 1-1/2 tablespoons regular (vegetable, canola) oil; 1-1/2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (use less if you are using other vinegar. Not red wine vinegar, please, as the color would be weird.); 1-1/2 teaspoon honey; 1/2 teaspoon regular (not kosher) salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper (or a bit more).   

I started by turning the oven on to 350 degrees. I put the almonds and the sesame seeds on two little pie plates and stuck them in the oven. I used sliced almonds which I left whole. If I had used slivered almonds, I would have chopped them a bit. I set the timer for 6 or 7 minutes. The idea is to toast the nuts and seeds lightly. They don't necessarily toast at the same rate (hence separate pie plates). The nuts should look a bit tannish around the edges. Both should be slightly fragrant. Taking them out a bit early is better than late - these things burn easily. Be advised.



While the stuff was toasting, I prepped the vegetables and put them all in a big bowl.

When the nuts and seeds were toasted, I set the pie plates in trivets to let them cool.

Then I got out a small jar with a tight-fitting lid, measured out the dressing ingredients and poured them into the jar. Closed it up, shook it vigorously and poured it over the slaw. I put the slaw in the refrigerator so everything could get acquainted.




About 10-15 minutes before dinner, I took the salad out of the refrigerator, gave it a toss and sprinkled on the nuts and seeds.

This slaw is light and crunchy and easily prepared. It benefits from a brief stay in the refrigerator but that's not necessary. In any event, add the nuts and seeds just before serving. And if you do refrigerate, take the slaw out of the refrigerator 10 or 15 minutes before you eat it. It tastes better it it is not really cold.

We had this coleslaw with your basic hot dogs and hamburgers cookout. We have also had it with our version of pulled pork sandwiches, in which case it can be a condiment (a little scoop on the bun) as well as a salad. Leftovers keep for a day or two which is as long as they last around here.

Odds and Ends

In the fall I do redo certain beds.
Redoing a bed requires digging up the entire bed, saving the plants that need savings.
We then pull out all the bad dirt/clay/sand down to maybe 8 inches.
That is discarded.
We then put back in a mix of compost from the City, peat, and manure.
Then it can be replanted.

The area right next to the curb always needs a makeover. (We have lots of curb since we are on a corner lot.) That area gets the most sand and other stuff in the winter. It also had the most clay and sand just from being near the street and the curb.

Yesterday we reset one little bed right along the curb on Fairview, next to the stop sign.
Sometimes I like to leave a open bed like that for a few weeks.
Right now it is so full of possibilities.
I could plant some tulips there. That would like a neon sign to the deer, requesting that they come visit. Maybe not tulips. Maybe daffodils.

In talking about the change in the seasons I forgot one thing. Daylight. It slowly gets darker.
Sunrise is now at 6:24. Sunset is at 7:50.

Have a quiet week.
Better times are coming.
Philip