First Frost

It has to happen sooner or later, tonight South Royalton, Vermont is predicted to have the first frost of the season. The weather forcasters are predicting temperatures to be in the upper 20s to around 30 degrees. Don't forget to bring tender potted plants indoors if you want to keep them a little longer. Also, cover any crops you may still have in the garden that you want to prolong the growing season of. I think I will bring in my nearly ripe tomatoes along with the ripe ones and put them on window sills to finish ripening. I have two huge potted herbs in the herb garden, a rosemary plant and a lemon verbena plant, that I will bring in. Other than the tomatoes and herbs, I think it is time to let nature take its course. By mid-September I am pretty tired of being a slave to the gardens. I am looking forward to putting the gardens to bed for the winter, and spending a cozy winter baking, quilting and wool needle felting, all in the comfort of two woodstoves.
The Tunbridge World's Fair is just a memory now, but despite the first two days of rain and mud, sunshine returned for the weekend. I was very pleased to receive blue ribbons for all of the herbs I entered, as well as my huge potted begonia. Our hens, despite their setback from the fox attack in August, received a second place red ribbon for their eggs.

Prize Winning Eggs

Blue Ribbon Parsley

 

The first place blue ribbon for my wool needle felted downy woodpecker and nuthatch was my greatest accomplishment. Although it feels so good to win a blue ribbon for things you have grown in the garden, there is no comparison to the feeling of winning first prize for something you designed and created yourself without the benefit of a pattern or instructions. I am already dreaming of next year's fair and what I can enter. I have never entered any of the vegetables I grow, so that is on the top of my list.

Wool Needlefelted First Place Birds

 

View the rest of my wool needle felting at www.thefarmatmillvillage.com