Happy Halloween: A Quick Garden Reminder

I thoroughly enjoyed passing out high fructose corn syrup, pre-packaged cavity blobs to the neighborhood kids last night. Hey, if it were pc i'd make corn balls or pass out hard boiled eggs, but i'm sure they'd just be tossed out and considered 'poison' by the parents, so i join the rat race and purchase candy. Pocket enjoyed her chicken costume, though i couldn't keep the 'comb' hat on for most of the night.  There was much woofing of 'people at the door' warning, but it was good practice for her to see that she does not need to leap out the front door every time someone comes a calling.

Pocket and Belina, two birds of a feather

In the garden, things are a bit spooky too: no recent rain makes for difficult times in the germinating department. I have to water by hose (nasty, broken, too rigorous of spray hose) almost daily to keep the soil moist, my rain barrel is empty and clogged, and the tomatoes are covered with green fruit preventing me from tearing them out to make room for other veggies i want to put in. So, i stuff transplants around every nook and cranny i can to get them in on time:

• Kohlrabi
• Cauliflower
• Broccoli
• Kale
• Herbs

And keep stuffing seeds in the rest of the cracks hoping that they'll decide to germinate and get happy before it's too late:

• Kale
• Beets
• Carrots
• Broccoli Raab
• Lettuces and Spinach

I recently sold my plumeria plant, but if you have a potted plumeria in your yard, you may notice it dropping some leaves with the cooler temps at night. The rule (for Austin, at least) is "In at Halloween, out at Easter." Plumerias need to come inside to be dormant for Winter in our area - so bring that sucker inside now. You can leave it potted, or pull it out and store it bare root. I usually stuck mine in the bedroom closet. It's now far too big, thus my selling it before the dormant season. I miss those beautifully smelling flowers, but it's absence made room for healing calendula plants.



I didn't plant pumpkins this year, i simply haven't the space. But now would be the time to harvest if you'd planted them in June/July. Did you plant pumpkins? Have any winners on your hands?