The gifts of Indian summer

We’ve had a lovely gift of a warm afternoon and now the fog is stealing in to make a gauze of my view off the back deck. I guess this qualifies as Indian summer since we had our first frost last week. Nothing like a frost threat to get a gardener’s attention. I picked the remaining green tomatoes and covered the dahlia’s and the sweet potato vines. I put the artichokes under boxes, and as I closed the garden gate I thanked the garden for the great run we’d had together. From here on it’s denouement.

But there are still lovely surprises below ground. I should have taken a photo of the carrot I pulled yesterday. I’m pretty sure there was someone in China pulling on the other end. And then I decided I’d better get my sweet potatoes up and curing before the next frost hits. It was a decent harvest. I put in 24 plants on Memorial Day and I think 18 survived. Each one produced 4-5 good sized sweet potatoes.

Meanwhile the Brussels sprouts which I had dismissed as a not very successful crop, have come to life in the cool weather. Each evening I can pick a pocket full for dinner, and there always seem to be more the next night. What was I thinking? Moreover, this is this first time I’ve tasted them off the vine as it were and they are so much nuttier tasting than even the glossiest store bought. I will leave them out there as long as I can and see how they do.

Well the gauze has turned to “socked in” out here. Time to go inside.