Autumn Asters

Two lovely purple asters in the front garden

Today's Late Summer Harvest

Cucumbers, zucchini, kale, beans, and carrots

Raspberries and blueberries

Sunflowers!

Lemon Queen perennial sunflowers

Annual sunflowers in front of the bean trellis

Backyard gardens with perennial and annual sunflowers

First Pear Harvest!

Rescue and Orcas pears from the two young trees we planted last year. 

The pear trees are beautiful this year, and we've been pleasantly surprised to see such lovely fruit developing so early on.  We tasted one of pears already, and it was delicious!     

Fresh & Beautiful Garden Foods

This is my favorite new home-grown summer potluck dish: cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and calendula flowers.  They're all edible, and quite delicious!

 

August Gardens

Bees and Helenium

Helenium

Rudbeckia Goldsturm, aka Black-Eyed Susans

Snapdragons

Rozanne Hardy Geranium

Cosmos

Shasta Daisies

Hollyhocks

Verbena Bonariensis and Summer Phlox

Snow Peas, Cucumber, Zucchini, Cabbage, Onions, Lettuce, Calendula

Berries and Cherries

Today I harvested the last of our June-bearing strawberries.  In July!  It's been quite a full month of berry harvesting here.  We've eaten lots, shared lots, and have frozen about 30 lbs to enjoy during the winter months.  That's pretty good for a backyard garden. 

I also picked a few of the first Golden Summit raspberries, and some of the newly ripening Glacier cherries.  This is the first year that we've actually seen the cherries through to the ripening stage, probably because we finally netted the tree to protect it from the birds and squirrels!  I love being able to enjoy all these delicious fruits, each in their own season. 

Strawberries!

It's the height of strawberry season here, and we've enjoyed an amazing harvest so far.  We've been picking strawberries every day for over a week now.  At first it was by the handful, then in large cereal bowls, then in mixing bowls, and for the past two days, in large baskets like this one.   So delicious!

Early Summer Fruits & Vegetables

A Rescue pear, one of six on our new tree planted last year

An Orcas pear - This pear tree variety was first discovered by a horticulturist on Orcas Island.

Lots of apples on our 3-tier combination espaliered apple tree this year

A beautiful white cauliflower, just before harvesting 

First zucchini of the season

Bush beans and their colorful blossoms

Parsnip seedlings in the center; carrot seedlings above; leeks below, and potato leaves top left

July Flowers and Happy Bees

The bees are delighted with all the flowers blooming right now.  They've been buzzing all around the garden, and I was lucky enough to capture a photo of one. 

Dianthus barbatus, commonly known as Sweet William

Clusters of Sweet William with orange calendula in the background

Pretty purple campanula persicifolia, also known as peach-leaf bellflower

The bees were spending lots of time around the bellflowers this week.

Red poppies are my new favorite flower this month.  I'm already making plans to find a few more spots for them next year.

California poppies

Cornfield poppies, also known as Shirley poppies

 Yellow calendula next to yellow flowering mustard greens

Pink foxglove - They're dominating the landscape right now.

A peachy-pink foxglove

A hand-me-down pink garden phlox from the neighbor who bought it last year and thought it would stay small.  Ha!  It will probably double in size next year! 

Snow pea blossoms

Even the wood pile needs a little decoration with some cheerful calendula flowers.

June Gardens

Lavender lilacs

Ladybug on a foxglove leaf

Bountiful blueberry blossoms

Strawberry patch

Herbs, pea tipis, and perennial sunflowers

Expanded square foot bed with flowers, Delicata squash, cucumber, kale, snap peas, and cauliflower

A broader view of the new square foot bed - from this side you can see the cabbages, and some cosmos and strawberries in the new cinder block frame

Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, chives, and bush beans

First broccoli harvest

Perennial path with colorful columbine just beginning to bloom

Perennial path leading up to the maple tree

A quiet, shady place under the maple tree with lipstick strawberries, hostas, columbine, and ferns

Jacob's Ladder in bloom

Volunteer columbine in the cracks along the walkway

Potatoes are growing well and have needed hilling up already; in the center is a Thelma Sanders sweet potato winter squash

Zucchini!  I wonder if I really should have planted three of them...

Lots of cherries

Pretty pink rhododendrons