Now is the time of year when the white pine needles are shedding furiously. I rake up the top-most layer under the tree and re-line the pathway from the back door, which was first worn down to dirt by a puppy who leaves the door like he’s shot out of a cannon, and annually is re-worn by the same dog in the same way. Every autumn I put a couple inches of pine needles down, making the path cushiony and orange, and the next autumn the needles are disintegrated and the now-dirt path has some new plants growing on it.
I generally think of autumn as a closing-down season, but this is something that is instead renewed each year.
Just starting the process this year. You can see the contrast here between natural state (dirt) and fresh needles Probably three more wheelbarrows-full to rake and transport. The needles are light so it is easy work!
While some logs in our yard seem to be passively disintegrating, at least one is being actively attacked. And the “progress” is impressive.
A few years ago, we had a pileated woodpecker harvesting snacks from some of our logs and I thought he was at it again on this fire-pit “side table,” even though I had not seen him. The bits of rotten log material scattered around the ground seemed to be a tell-tale sign.
Fresh log bits on the ground point to bug-sleuthing. Right?
Yesterday, my husband discovered the log destroyer–a red squirrel who seems to be making tunnels – thru – the log, possibly just for fun.
Can you see the tunnel? What an awesome place to hide from a hawk!
Our side table may not be long for this usage option and I should start looking for a replacement. But with the change in seasons maybe the cold will discourage the squirrel before the log collapses. The race is on.
We have various logs in our yard for sitting around the fire or propping up your feet. Logs are great to have around! Over the past few years, the bark has fallen off most of our logs and they have started rotting away from the bottom. Then, because of the bugs in the logs, the woodpeckers took an interest in them. In other words, most of our logs are now in the later stages of structural instability.
Bugs love chomping on old logs!
There is one log that came with the house that is obviously a very hard wood because basically nothing has happened to it since we’ve lived here. It looks old, but it’s still as dense and heavy as ever, and is thus the perfect footstool / coffee table for outdoor chilling. Probably it will soon be the only viable log around!
The other day I noticed that the center hollow of this log was growing something: a mushroom forest! This was a surprise and delight and I have enjoyed checking on it every day.
We have two large trees dominating the backyard of our quarter-acre village lot. One of these is a Crimson King maple tree, known for its dark burgundy leaves.
As I sit outside on this cool autumn morning, the sounds of barking dogs, festive music, and yard work activities in neighboring yards are accompanied by an occasional crunch — that’s a leaf from the Crimson King hitting the ground.
The Crimson King is a unique tree in my personal fall foliage experience because it kind of looks fall-ish year-round with its dark-colored leaves, and when fall comes, the leaves don’t turn into a beautiful color, but just die on the branches and fall to the ground, crunchy and brown. As someone who loves fall colors, this is a disappointment.
A Crimson King leaf in fall, still attached to the branch
The dog often thinks a heavy leaf tumbling from branch to branch on its way to the ground is a squirrel scrambling around in the tree, and I try to make sure one of these leaves doesn’t splash down in my morning coffee, so this season means we are in relatively high-alert for a month or two.
Fortunately for me, several neighbors around us have really gorgeous trees to enjoy during this season.
A tree I can see from my yard while dodging falling leaf bombs
One of my favorite things about sunflowers is how they seem to grow fast and burst into all their glory overnight. There are several sunflowers in the front of the house that have been spared from the trampling feet of Blixa and are, therefore, sure to be a delight this summer. They’re also creating a natural shade for the cucumbers as they grow, which will be helpful if it ever gets really hot here (that seems like a big “if” right now!).
This sunflower is looking right in our front window. It’s a cheery way to start each day. And I can look it right in its big eye if I slouch a little. Who can help but slouch a little in the garden…
This is the season of fresh things coming out of the garden so you’ll be seeing some photos of “firsts” over the next several weeks.
These are the first tomatoes from the front-yarden (yes, that’s what I’m calling it these days!). I have some big ones that are 95% green still, but the beauty of the little tomatoes is that they ripen faster. Guess what I’m having for dinner?
I’ve been keeping an eye on this yellow squash, but it seemed to very suddenly get huge. Time to pick it, don’t you think? This is the first picked item from the garden here in Michigan (not counting one tiny strawberry, because it really shouldn’t count). Exciting!
Now, I don’t REALLY like squash but it appears we will have a ton of it, so recipes are welcome!
I had been concerned about not planting my sweet basil until this past Sunday, but it was only 57 degrees out this morning. Knowing how basil grows best in hot, sunny weather, I’m pretty sure it hasn’t missed much growing time this summer so far!
The garden is doing well. I have about ten tomatoes that are still very green, but I have two yellow squash that are almost ready for harvest time! The cucumbers had to be restarted after the plants I bought didn’t live, but they’re looking good now and are semi-shaded by some huge volunteer sunflowers!
Looking forward to “real” summer starting next week with some temps above 80 degrees!
South Main Almanac 