Late November this year still brings a symphony of color to the late fall garden. Hues of oranges, reds, yellows, and browns. It really is quite lovely.

This week saw the planting of the (I swear) final bulbs. I also cut down the pretty Mexican sunflowers in my fall pots because a hard frost got them. Actually, it was into those two big pots the final bag of daffodil bulbs (Narcissus Erlicheer) went. They are big pots and I did not plant them entirely with bulbs just some in the center to give a spring pop, and I will probably when the time comes put pansies around them. I will leave these bulbs to grow in these parts and just plant around them.

These particular pots are big enough that I don’t change the soil out every year I will enrich it with some compost and other things, but it’s too much soil to deal with, so the soil in these pots is amended and enriched instead.

I also covered up the baby fig trees for winter with burlap sacks. I actually covered all of my fig trees this year. I had resisted the urge before because it still gives me the slight feeling of garden mummies, but we’ll see how they do.

Interestingly enough, my chili peppers in the greenhouse are still alive. The greenhouse gets no heat. And this is the first year with my greenhouse so I find it interesting, and perhaps next year I will do lettuce in the late fall in the greenhouse.

Also this week, my neighbor took down the very dead (and tall) cherry tree that was looming over both of our gardens. I am very appreciative of that tree coming down before winter because it was starting to hollow in places. You could literally knock on the trunk and hear a hollow sound. They used the arborist I use, Treemendous Tree Care. I am always glad to refer them and I think they did a wonderful job. It also makes me more comfortable when the arborist being used by a neighbor is one I am familiar with because sadly I have had poor experiences with some who weren’t known to me and really didn’t care about neighboring properties or really about the property they were working on.

I will have fresh sage, rosemary, and thyme for my Thanksgiving turkey because my herbs are still going strong.

And my bluebirds are back! I had put out some treats for them and they returned and they were also checking out their bird boxes. I have also seen the Junkos and chickadees return. I also have a red bellied woodpecker who is not shy in the least. He seems to be hanging out talking away every time I’m in the front garden.

I have really enjoyed just being in my garden lately because it is so pretty and I can relax a little bit because most of my chores are finished. I say most of my chores because I always find something to do. Next up will be decorating for Christmas. I am thinking of getting birdseed balls to hang in the trees as natural ornaments.

Go out and enjoy the sunshine today.

Happy gardening!