Garden stuff, critters, and a surprise plant....

September has come in with a distinct drop in temperature and a thankful absence of the humidity that was so energy sapping. The nights are cool, and it rained just a little less than half an inch last night. That is enough to be going on with, as crops are maturing in the garden. The cucumber vines are calling it quits, the squash and pumpkins are colouring up nicely, and the tomato harvest is on. Some mid-summer planted lettuces under the shade cloth, are now coming into their own, and looking good in this cooler weather.

There are a few fat berries on my hodge-podge of varieties of strawberries plants.

There are June bearers and everbearers, and I've lost track of who is who. (I had bad luck twice with bare root stock, so bought plants that were available to fill the spaces.) I've let the biggest, strongest runners root, and cut back all the others. That in itself is almost a daily job, as they seem to send out new runners overnight. I'm hoping to actually harvest some fruit next year, as all the plants will be mature then. That will depend on weather and pollinators of course. 

This little guy hopped up on the screened lid of a water barrel I'd removed to scoop out a bucket or two, to water some flowers during that two week window between rain events.

It is a tiny spring peeper frog. If you look closely, you can see the identifying X on his back.

This pretty Admiral Butterfly was checking out the new paint on the verandah this morning, and catching a few rays.

My newest addition, a third compost bin that Hubby built by milling the boards out of a big poplar tree that fell, with his chainsaw mill.

A big surprise a day ago was the discovery of this...

That vine I've been cursing as it curls around my rolls of fencing and hardware cloth stored behind the garden shed...is a hop vine! Who knew? I should have, as the old milk house on the farm I spent some of my youth was absolutely enveloped by hop vines. This vine, a remnant from some former caretaker of this property, has found a new lease on life because we cleared out this area, let the sun in, and it has been a stellar year for rain. It is crawling across a rock pile, taking a run at the Jerusalem artichoke patch, and climbing up to festoon the branches of the trees along the bush edge with garlands of lime green hops. (click on the pics to get a better view.)

(Credit for the Hummingbird-Gladiola header picture goes to our son.)