The Garden in Fall

 Fall in the garden seems to start in early August sometimes, but by mid-September it's well underway.  There are fewer new blooms, less new growth, and some plants are beginning to look bedraggled.  In a garden full of tomato and pepper plants like ours, there are a lot of plants that can be removed once the veggies are harvested.  And we have had a very good harvest!

The biggest difference I notice every morning is the shade outside my window.  Looking straight ahead on a sunny morning, you can see that all the foreground is shaded; the sunshine is way back out there on the patio as the sun sinks lower in the sky behind us.

Among the plants still in bloom, the red rose stands out.

We also have a big clump of Helenium.  I love the bright colours.

The purple Verbena has spread like mad through the garden this year.

Over by our wooden heron we have a clump of Leopard Plant.  This one has very large leaves, and I've sometimes colloquially referred to it as 'Elephants Ears'.

The last of our Clematis has also bloomed.  This one has small yellow flowers, and the shot was takewn from all across the garden, but I thought that captured the best view - they all look like little yellow lanterns.

The harvest of hot peppers has been remarkable!

And the harvest of tomatoes even more remarkable!  As you can tell by the number of varieties here, Mrs. F.G.'s goal this year was to test all the interesting varieties she thought would grow well here.  Most of them did grow well, but the larger ones tended to grow into twisted shapes.  I think she would say that the smaller tomatoes were more successful.

Fall Anemones

I've long thought that Fall Anemones are one of the most beautiful flowers.  They bloom at a time of year when I think 'Good for you, you're still blooming as fall arrives'.

I just found this cluster of these flowers yesterday in a position where I could get a good close-up.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Good Neighbours!!

We're lucky to live on a street where we all know one another, and neighbours say hello routinely in the street.  We've had no fewer than four deliveries of baking in just the past few days.

One neighbour brought over hot scones, just out of the oven the other day, and the same a few days earlier.  Another brought over muffins, and a third gave us some hot cross buns.  It's been a good week or two!

Meanwhile. we've had five days of rainy cold weather.  I'm really looking forward to warmer temperatures returning tomorrow.  I'm not quite ready for fall yet!

And our friendly but destructive little chipmunk continues to wreak havoc among Mrs. F.G.'s tomatoes.  Just yesterday she brought in two ripening, large, almost-ready-for-sandwiches tomatoes with one bite out of each.

Scarecrows and the Old Fire Hall

Things have been changing downtown, so I wanted to bring you up-to-date on the scarecrows and the old Fire Hall especially, both of which I`m watching closely.

Town staff have been putting up the scarecrows, adding a festive touch to the downtown.  This one is on the main street where they don't have much scope to put up a group of scarecrows.  Let's head down to the harbour.

Harbour light standards feature those horizontal arms, which gives more flexibility.  All the scarecrows are made by volunteers.

You can see the light standards, with scarecrows, in a line down the street.

The other new thing happening is the restoration of the old fire hall, which is being turned into three restaurants.  It's been a BIG job, and I suspect they've spent a heap of $$!

They made a special effort to preserve the big old front doors of Station 87 as it's always been known,   I'm hoping they will still use these as the front entrance.

The hinges were carefully removed, cleaned and replaced.

On one side the big overhead door was open one day, so I peaked in to get a picture.  This I believe will be the casual sandwich and coffee outlet.  I'll be one of their first customers if the weather is ok!

Visiting the Harbour

I haven't been taking many pictures down at the harbour this year, so I had to gather together what pictures I could find for this post.  I remain enchanted by our sailing school; it seems like a great way to get young kids into sailing.  I can see the small sailboats of the school all summer long.

Given the timing of my own visits, I usually see them over at the sailing school docks, getting the sails up and getting ready to head out.

Here they go heading out into the inner harbour.

Partway through the summer I saw that had acquired some very bright new sails!

There were a few but not many boats docked closer.  This is the 'Last One', a boat based in Meaford and new this year.

Last week I noticed the town staff had been busy putting up the first of the scarecrows for the Scarecrow Festival.  I don't know how the last three misbehaved enough to get hung upside down!

The family of a friend who passed away has paid for a memorial bench in his name.  I find I'm often stopping by to say a quick hello.  It's a peaceful moment.

Sadly, summer is over and the sailboats have all been stored inside, waiting for next year.

Sheep, Poultry and the Tiniest Car I've Ever Seen!

I left the displays in the curling rink and headed out to the fairgrounds to see what else was out there.  It's an uncomfortable ride in my wheelchair, so I didn't ride all the way across the field to the cattle show, but the sheep, poultry and the fire truck were close at hand. 

First I got past the very large gnome who was advertising 'Christmas on the Bay', a festival held here later in the fall.

Then there was the sheep show.  I couldn't very well barge through the crowds, but I found a spot where I could look through the gate.  About 8 young farmers lined up with their sheep - some after considerable wrestling with the animal!

Heading for the poultry barn I passed the geese who had the luxury of being in a pen outdoors.

Inside each bird was in an individual cage; this duck took home a first place ribbon.

With all the roosters on display the whole place was a cacophony of 'cocka-doodle-do's.  There were dozens of birds on display. 

The turkeys always appeal to me.  They look very dignified don't you think.

I stopped by the fire truck to ask my usual question - 'What advice do you give when there's a disabled person in a home?'  This year I got an interesting new answer.  Apparently you can now have a residential fire plan made, so if they ever get called to your house, they know in advance what to expect.  They all have work phones on which they can call up a map, press on an address, and up pops the information.

All three of them were trying to advise me, and I got the information on who to call.  After all, we had a house fire so I know you only have about 2-3 minutes to get out.  It pays to be prepared.

After that, having thoroughly enjoyed my time at the fair, it was time to go.  I headed up the street, and look what I saw!  /The owner came along right behind me and let me take a picture.  This car is like a motorcycle with a cover dropped down on top.  Such a neat vehicle!

The Fall Fair!

Meaford is still an agricultural community, with lots of farm families, and this weekend was the annual Fall Fair.  They participate in everything from early grade level Lego projects to cattle showing (with Baking fitting  someplace in the middle there).  I really enjoy seeing the incredible range and variety of exhibits.

A beautiful embroidered quilt.  That's a first place ribbon you see in the upper left.

A Grade 4 Lego farmyard.

Lots of photography submissions.

I have to say I skipped the baking photos, it was just too painful.  But the jam and pickles resonated with me.  This is all the jam.

And these are the pickles.  I wondered what the dark ones on the right were - pickled beets of course.

Then we got to the good part, the veggies.  Tomatoes here, I didn't realize there would be a class for green tomatoes.

A lot of other veggies, from onions to cabbage.

Finally, lots of flowers, but you know me, I'm attracted to the bright ones.  You know my biggest surprise - how many people came up to say hello!  I think I'm beginning to fit into this community after 5 yuears.  I could easily have spent another hour in here, but there was more to see outside.