Of course it will be months before the tulips and daffodils poke their heads up through the ground. Like wise it will still be months before I can turn the ground in the garden beds and put the cold crops into the ground.
It won’t be that intricate, but you get the idea. Also this week I will be purchasing some of the plants I will be starting from seed or root. I have a whole space I set aside in the fall for Jerusalem artichoke.
I believe that part of gardening is looking at the landscape you have around you and figuring out how that works into your garden plan. My garden just happens to be filled with lots of invasive things. On the surface that would seem to be a drawback, but as I think through it all there are lots of advantages that the invasive species bring.
One of the species I deal with is Japanese knotweed.
It grows fast and takes over. I do cut it back every year and I have often thought about getting rid of it altogether, but the birds and the rabbits love to nest in the dense foliage. There are always an abundance of nests wedged into the close growing bamboo-like stalks. In the winter it attracts hosts of sparrows who use it to hide from predators during the day and night. This year our rabbits have built their warren in the heart of the knotweed jungle.
This beautiful fellow has been hunting on our property all this week.
This winter I am trying to learn more about forest gardening and the plants I already have in the forest as I lay my garden plan for the Spring. Here is something I have learned about knotweed.
One of the reasons that the leaves here in New England were so brilliant this year was because we have been cool and dry. We are currently in a level 3 drought here in Winchendon MA which means we are in critical drought. We are also in a severe fire threat. With 518 fires in the state having burned 1500 acres so far, outdoor burning of yard waste has been banned through January 15th here in MA.
That means here in the forest garden my growing pile of brush is not going anywhere at the moment. It’s Ok. I am still putting plastic on the windows inside just now. I don’t really have time for a fire in the fire pit.
Forgive the Game Of Thrones reference please. Today was the first day of daylight savings time. Two days ago it was 75 degrees here and we had enjoyed two more days of Indian Summer in Massachusetts. This morning the dogs were up at 2 A.M. and it was down in the 20’s when I took them out for a walk.
I got a lot done last month towards the winterizing of The Vicarage and the forest gardens, but there is much more to do before the true winter settles in.
There are still cellar windows to be covered in bubble wrap. It’s a new thing I am trying in the cellar to see if it improves the insulation in the dead of winter. This came as a suggestion from my sister who uses it on certain portions of her apartment in the Netherlands. The plastic at the cellar doors also needs to be hung. It was a big help last year with the winter wind.
Most of the leaves are gone now. Just the Norwegian Maples still hang onto their leaves. They light up the forest garden in the early mornings making the light almost magical. I still have some garden areas to prepare for next Spring. I am planning on planting a stand of Jerusalem artichoke out by the grape vines.
And I have plans for a pumpkin patch next year. So there is some cutting and dirt turning to do before the ground seriously freezes. I also have a few more rocks to move into place around the picket fence area before they freeze together in the winter storms.
It was a beautiful fall. Now it is time to get ready for the holidays and the New Year.
Our little bout of Indian Summer has ended and the temps are back down in the forties.
It has been a lovely fall, but it is definitely time to begin putting the Vicarage to bed for the winter and doing all that needs to be done to get the forest garden ready for….next Spring. Today I will take the walls off of the prayer tent.
And I hope to get at least some of the garden furniture stowed away in the cellar.
I also have about forty bulbs to plant in the side garden by the pet cemetery.
Usually things get quieter out in the garden as the winter sets in. Somehow I think this long winter’s nap is going to be a busy gardening season, as we get ready for next year’s planting.
One of the things that has made this sabbatical so special is the amount of time I have had to spend at home working, resting and praying fresh vision for the future. The Vicarage is beautiful at this time of year. One of the spiritual exercises I have tried to practice these last sixteen days is to build on the beauty of this little piece of Earth entrusted to me, while being mindful of the wild beauty it already does possess.
I was on the phone with my sister the other day and she suggested that I should photo-document the sights at the Vicarage so that people can see what I am seeing and perhaps they will then understand some of the things I am thinking.
This is my neighbor Sing’s house.
Sing has done such a beautiful job with his yard. It seems always in bloom or full of color. He is someone with a real gift to make the most out of what he has. I hope to grow in that same direction and mindset.
The red maple tree out in back of The Vicarage has broken out into vivid color this week.
One of the projects I want to work on as part of beautifying the Vicarage is cleaning up this side yard and getting some trails cut into the wooded part of the Vicarage property to the left. I know it is too much to do this month, but part of the visioning process this month is to plan the way I want the forest garden to look in the Spring and to decide on the first steps come November.
When the sun shines through the colors of the trees, on these cool autumn mornings, it is hard not to feel hopeful about the future and about the eternal continuation of beauty. I am well aware of the precarious ledge of darkness our world is walking along right now, but in this little corner of the world the sun is shining bright. I know I can not take one day of sunlight for granted.
This leaf strewn pathway is one of the projects I began this summer. It leads out to the vernal brook which is dry most years after June. It reminds me of how much more potential is in this place. It just has to be spoken forth and created.
I am reminded that this season of autumn is quickly passing just like my sabbatical. Soon both will be passed. Then, it will be about beginning the work of bringing the future God has revealed, through this season of abiding, into reality.
We are falling quickly into autumn here in northern Massachusetts. The evenings get down into the 40s, but the days are still in the 70s. It’s that time of year when I fight with myself about whether or not to put on the heat at night. So far my frugal self is winning.
This morning I admit, I turned on one of the mobile heaters in the living room just until I didn’t need to wear a blanket in the house.
Today is my Sabbath so I have been trying to be mindful all day about my prayer time and about taking in the beauty of my surroundings.
The gardens are still full of beautiful fall flowers, like this stand of Maximillian sunflowers.
The nasturtiums are in flower. I have been adding the leaves and flowers to our salads these last few weeks.
The Japanese knotweed is absolutely beautiful right now too.
This St. John’s Wort is letting us know he is ready for what is to come.
The white and purple asters have been remarkable this year.
These tiny rose hips are already attracting the wild birds around the area. We are sure to be loaded with cardinals and bluejays this year through the winter. I hope we can get some good footage from Kristine’s camera.
While my daughter is not a fan of the goldenrod I love the brightness it brings to the season.
Today was not a big work in the yard day. I have been sitting out for my prayer sessions, but most of the day I have been in doing paperwork. Last week was yard work week. I got a lot of mint harvested and hung to dry.
I also mowed the whole yard…except the forest path. That I am afraid is looking pretty unkempt just now.
But Kristine got the chicken paddock moved. The chickens love it!
Well, all except for Partly Sunny. She escaped this morning through a hole in the fencing. We found her hiding in the bushes just behind the paddock. She complained when we put her back in the chicken yard, but I just checked on her and she seems resigned to her fate…at least for now. Kristine moved some of the fencing to deal with the hole and I am going layer some field stone around the bottom edges of the paddock to shore it up. All in all we are doing pretty well getting ready for winter.
WHAT DOES YOUR WORLD LOOK LIKE THIS FALL? OR IF YOU ARE IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE WHAT DOES YOUR SPRING LOOK LIKE?
The temperatures here in North Central Massachusetts have gotten unseasonably cool. From what I have read the next few weeks are going to be more like late October or early November than early September. We are definitely into the Brrrr months.
The gardens are slowing down and it is time to begin thinking about bringing in the last of the harvest and to get ready for the winter in a big way. I feel like all my fall projects are being put on the fast conveyor belt. The issue is basic maintenance here at the Vicarage seems to be taking more and more time. Mowing the lawn, walking the dogs, caring for the chickens, laundry, dishes, cooking. The kids are helping a lot, but I think I am still saying yes to too many things. I still haven’t figured out that perfect rhythm. Maybe I never will. Of course it could also just be that the whole family (except for me and Joe) have had COVID for the last week. We have been down two adults to help with the work. I think I am definitely feeling that extra burden.
Anyway, whatever may be causing my autumn angst doesn’t change the fact that time has to be made to bring in the fall plants. It is time to start drying the herbs for winter. I have a huge mint harvest to hang and then I have to start moving plants from the front gardens to other locations for the Spring. I have giant hosts, and daffodils and some irises to move.
Before all that though…the mint. Here is a video on how I am going about the process of drying.
I didn’t get all the mint harvested the other day. So I am back at it today.
We have had a bit of dismal weather at The Vicarage over the last several days. The raindrops interspersed around ministry have made it a bit difficult to accomplish some of the tasks I had set for myself this week.
I still haven’t finished chopping down the brush around the chicken paddock.
It’s about half done. Maybe I’ll get it finished today so we can start building the actual paddock.
The forest creatures have not been deterred in the slightest by the weather.
If their appetites are any indication it will be an early fall.
I wrote YESTERDAY about how the sense of impending fall is giving me an urgency about the chicken projects. That, and the fact that two of the chickens have made inroads into escaping from the playpen is giving me a bit of agita. I came home from CVS this morning to find that Squash and Eggplant were sitting on top pf the netting.
The garden is still blooming though.
White Flat Topped Aster is blooming all over the property.This sweet autumn clematis has put in an appearance around the sumac.
The cone floors are also in full bloom.
A sure sign of fall is that the Japanese Knotweed is flowering too.
Some of these stalks are ten feet tall.
And this year I have a giant patch of jewelweed growing.
I will be harvesting some of this to make an anti itch tincture for the winter.
It’s all coming along. I am enjoying the fact that I am being more consistent with the property this year. That said I am hoping I can get everything done before the weather breaks.
DO YOU HAVE A SENSE OF URGENCY CONCERNING THE WEATHER THIS YEAR?
Notes From the Vicarage 