Way back, around the start of summer (I think, it might have been earlier), Dave and I were in Home Depot. In one of the clearance areas, they had some very small (2.5 inch pots), very sad little African violets. Like, they were pretty much half dead. But they were also 50 cents each. Dave saw the look on my face and said “yeah, you’d better adopt them”

So I did. I brought them home, watered and cared for them, and when it seemed like they were going to make it, I planted them up into three cat-shaped pots I had collected.

And a few weeks ago, they started to bloom

And I was thrilled to discover they were each a different colour. There was no way of knowing when I bought them, so it was just luck!

September has frequently been one of the best months for my roses. They love the warm, but not sweltering days, and almost always put on one good last show before it gets too cold.

But things are a little different here.

When we first moved, I assumed the roses would do even better here than the townhouse, because of the wonderful, magical soil. But here they’ve had way more of a pest problem than we ever had at the townhouse.

Still – there are blooms

Quicksilver has proved to be a fantastic rose. It’s one of the climbers I bought to clime the arbour out front. It started later than the other rose I put on the other side (Eden), but it’s put our more blooms.

Both have grown incredibly well and have put up canes that reach the top of the arbour already. I’ll be tidying and tying these in next weekend to give them a little more protection from winter’s biting winds.

Out back, the only rose currently in bloom is Good as Gold.

The Japanese beetles seem especially fond of this rose, but despite that, she’s bloomed fairly steady all summer long.

Beside her, my other climber, New Dawn, only bloomed once, but like the other climbers out front, she’s grown some amazing long canes

She’s planted almost at the corner and has put one big cane down each side of the fence. It’s certainly going to make a big display next year.

All the other roses aren’t blooming but seem to be doing fine with the exception of one.

Poor Chrysler Imperial!!! She’s completely naked!!!! In addition to fighting beetles and sawfly larvae, she got a pretty severe case of Black Spot fungus (it’s been an exceptionally wet summer, so it’s not a huge surprise). Sadly, I didn’t notice or do anything about it until it was too late. I’ve got to get up there and clean up all the dead leaves, and probably give her a prune.

I’m not looking forward to it, because she’s a thorny one! But it’s got to be done if I want any chance of saving her.

There is hope though…

There is new growth. If I can get her cleaned up, nurture this growth, and give her some extra protection through the winter, I might just be able to get her through.

After reading my post on Burton’s ‘thrones” earlier this week, I’m sure a few of you think I’m a little silly. I mean, why buy furniture for the cats. We all know ALL the furniture already belongs to the cats

And that’s certainly true in this house!

These guys have enjoyed the sun porch furniture far more than I’ve had the opportunity to do this year.

Even the furniture that’s supposed to be off limits isn’t

Though these two inform me that they are not on the dining room table, they are on the chair pads that I left on the table after washing them.

Of course, this behaviour is not at all surprising to me. They are cats afterall. What is surprising is that Dave is ok with it. Because he never used to be!!!

Though he says once he refinishes the table, and it goes into operation as a proper dining room table (right now it’s mostly storage for transient items), it will once again become a no-go zone for felines. We’ll see how well that works out…

I know you’re going to be aghast…. but I have been working on the great, grey beast!

I’ve been trying to at least put five rounds on it every night. I haven’t been completely successful, but I have managed to add a few inches to it though. There’s still several inches to go before I can start the ribbing, so I have to keep at it. With only 12 weeks to Dad’s birthday, I’ve got to stay focused!

I know it’s been ages since I’ve had a walkabout post. I’d like to say it’s finally happening because I’ve started walking regularly again – but I haven’t. The longest walk I do is to the post office and back a couple times a week. (And if I don’t have a lot of time, I drive).

But when I was picking up the mail the other day, I noticed something post worthy.

Someone had painted up a little rainbow rock and placed it in the window of the township office! How cute!

Then I found another one in the mail room

Adorable!

The back of the the crab rocks advertises a Facebook group called Alvinston Rocks. I’ve joined the group. I don’t know if I’ll paint up any rocks (I’d love to, but I have too many demands on my time right now), but it certainly makes me want to go for more walks to see if I can find some more!

In addition to cleaning the shed and porch, Saturday also saw us take a trip to town. It was originally just to pick up a couple of prescriptions, but Dave realized we were early enough for us to hit our favourite Used store before they closed for the day, so we took a slight detour.

We’ve offered to host the family Christmas this year (our first year ever), and one thing we need is some more (comfortable) seating if we are going to entertain (There will be about 10 people including us). With the two-level living room, we have more than enough room. But the futon on the upper-level is way past it’s usable life, so I’ve been thinking of getting a couple of chairs or a couch to replace it.

We got a good start on that Saturday with this find

There’s some wear on the arms, but otherwise, it’s in great condition. And I can make some nice covers for the arms. It’s a La-Z-boy too, so it reclines. Now that we have this, I’m thinking a nice loveseat will complete the space. We’re still on the look-out for that, but I’m sure the right thing will turn up before Christmas. Dave wants to visit all our favourite used places regularly.

Naturally, as soon as it was brought in the house, it was thoroughly inspected. And Poor Lemmy was ousted in short order. King Burton has claimed it as his throne and new regular evening nap spot.

But the recliner wasn’t the only thing we brought home…

Yep – another throne for Burton. A cute little cat-sized (or child-sized, if you’re into that sort of thing) wicker chair – just perfect for the Sun porch and my collection of rattan and wicker decor out there. I do need to make a cushion for this one – I’ll probably do it when I make the one for his bassinet.

In the meantime, I think he looks rather regal – don’t you?

It was another busy weekend that just flew by!

On Saturday, I spent most of the day on a long-overdue cleanout and reorganization of the shed. It needed to be done so I could move a bunch of stuff off the back porch and get it cleaned because on Sunday, best friend Samantha and her lovely husband were coming for a visit.

And come they did, bringing along their youngest, Ethan, who isn’t so young anymore! He’s in Grade 11 and I can’t believe it. I should believe it, because he’s a year older than Rowan… but I can barely she’s as old as she is!

It was a wonderful visit, as always. Though I didn’t take one single picture! There was a lot of talking and laughing, just as there should be.

I did get some knitting done.

The fishing sock is now at the gusset.

Sam also brought me a wee present… or several wee presents..

They are tiny little plant pots! Aren’t they cute!

I hink this one is my favourite

At first, I thought he was a skunk, but he doesn’t have a big skunk tail. I think he’s actually a badger. Whatever he is, he’s darn cute!

And now I need to get several new wee little plants!

I’ve mentioned that my poor roses have had a bit of a hard year. With sawfly larvae, Japanese Beetles and Aphids.

I’m on my own with the first two, but with the last one I have a little help…

The wonderful Ladybug! I’m always thrilled when I see these guys on my plants. They are such helpful, and cute, little creatures.

This year seemed to be a really good year for them. I didn’t know why until I talked to my neighbour. Apparently he ordered a whole pile in early summer and released them in his veg garden for pest control. But he was a little disappointed in the result, as they didn’t seem to stick around. We had a good laugh when I told him the all came over to party in my yard instead.

And, they must really like it here, because not only did they stick around…

They made babies! Believe it or not, these little creepy looking guys are Ladybug larvae! And they will eat 10 times as many aphids as the ladybugs will!!! This is the first time I’ve ever seen them in my garden, and I’m thrilled.

Enjoy the feast, little dudes!!!

The trick to having a wonderful fall garden is knowing your plants. Learning when plants bloom, and for how long.

Flowers like Irises, Allium, Bleeding Hearts, and Poppies only bloom for a short while, then they are done for the year. Those are all spring/early summer plants, but the fall has some too.

Like the Toad Lilies. These guys are nothing but leaves until September (and sometimes October, depending on their light conditions). But then bam – those cooler nights hit and they start popping out small speckled blooms all over the place.

These guys are all in the Catio, but they’ve multiplied like crazy. Next spring, I’m going to move half of them to the Woodland garden.

I planted another type of Toad Lily in Willow Grove this spring, but I probably won’t see blooms on it until next year.

The Asters could be lumped in with the other “seasonal bloomers”. Like the Toad Lilies, they don’t start blooming until after the new School year starts.

But where the Toad Lilies will slowly fizzle out, these guys will keep blooming until the frost gets them – which here could be any time in October or November – it’s really unpredicatable.

On the left is my New England Aster – a native plant. The right is a new pink Aster I picked up from the garden centre last week…. because we all know I have a serious plant addition and even autumn won’t stop me from collecting new plants.

But back to plant lesson…

There are of course, the fall standards…

Autumn Joy sedum, which the bees just love

The Black-Eyed Susan and Purple Coneflower. Both of these really get going in August.

But Coneflowers come in a variety of colours and styles, with many blooming both summer AND fall

These are just two of my collection – I also have white, yellow, a couple differing pinks, and even green!

And lets not forget the native coneflowers

Like their cousins, they start flowering mid summer and just keep going.

And the varieties of Susans are always pleasing too.

These ones are called Cherry Brandy and they seeded themselves all over the place last year. I’ve moved quite a few to other gardens, bringing colour to every corner.

Deadheading is another good way to keep some plants flowering through the fall.

Cosmos are a wonderful example. Lop the seedheads off often, and these guys will keep going until the frost takes them down.

And don’t neglect your annuals

Dahlias, Gerberas and Petunia love the cooler nights and warm fall days. I find the Petunias are usually spectacular by September because they’ve had all summer to spread out and grow! (All of these can benefit from deadheading too)

But the fall garden can often bring suprises

Like daisies that decided to rebloom. I can tell you this is the first year I’ve ever had that happen. They are normally an early summer bloomer and then that’s it! I did give them a big chop mid-summer to tidy them up. I do that with the Delphiniums, and that makes them rebloom – so maybe it’s the same for the daisies?

And I always understood that clematis have one bloom season (some are spring, some are fall)

But this purple clematis has been blooming on and off all year since late May!

And this Red (orange) Hot Poker was a nice late-comer

I planted five of these throughout the gardens, and only this one has grown and bloomed.

There’s something wonderful for everyone to enjoy in a fall garden if you plan it, and plant it right!

On the long weekend, Burton and I tackled a long over-due cleanout on the closet.

We sorted through all my clothes and ended up with three garbage bags full, ready for donation.

A few days later, Dave and I dropped them off at Goodwill and then we went into to see what they had for “home goods”. You know we love good vintage finds around here!

Nothing jumped out at me except for this:

A wicker doll bassinet for just $5. (A super steal if you’ve seen what these things can go for on FB marketplace!). I didn’t have a doll to put in it…

But, I do have a Burton!!!! Yes, I totally bought a doll bassinet for my cat! And he LOVES it!

It came with a little pillow and a thin blanket, but I’m going to make a proper soft mattress for it… and a quilt of course!

I just have to find the time!!!