The Country Garden Showcase #40

welcome back friends

Autumn is upon us, and winter will be on her heels.  Posts about long days full of chores in the garden will soon be replaced by stories and images of Thanksgiving and new Christmas memories.

In consideration of this and the fact that there will not really be much to talk about in the garden over winter, this blog hop will be changing its tune for winter.  Starting today, the Country Garden Showcase blog hop will be once a month, on the first Monday of each month, through January.  The hop will be open all month long so you can add a post anytime, and won't feel rushed to complete something when you've got other tasks to get done too.  Please know that I am ever grateful for your time and the wonderful ideas that are shared among the members of this small online gardening community.  May your gardens continue to feed you and warm your heart.

Today, I am going to share a few pictures of the plants that are still hanging in there, in my garden...

 My strawberries are still hanging in there... when the hens don't find them first.

 the mint is still going strong too.  I made a batch of mint tea for the hubby today.  Thanks for the idea Rose Petal.

The jubilee yellow tomatoes have been a wonder in my garden this year.  So sweet, juicy and bountiful.  They are a new favorite and have earned a place in my garden from now on... I have even been roasting them and adding them to my paste tomato sauces.  They're very flavorful and sweet.

 I lost a few heads of garlic a few months back.  Here they are.  Popping up.  I am going to separate them for lots more heads next season too.

 The San Marzano paste tomatoes have not been as good as I'd hoped (low volume production) but they taste great.  I hope that this HOT weather keeps them blooming and ripening for a few more weeks atleast.  The plants are 5-6' tall and full of green tomatoes...

 There are still a few sweet peppers and specialty tomatoes in my garden.

Brandywine tomatoes

There are forty tomato vines on the left side of the garden...  The T-posts are 7' tall.  Next year, I am going back to my old method of caging tomatoes in wooden A-frames like the one on the right side of the picture above.  They're strong and stable.  They hold much more weight than the raffia pea trellises I made this year. The weight of the vines crushed many of the trellises.  Lesson learned.

I am surprised to still see a few eggplants growing

 the hens love the kale

 there are a few zucchini left

The compost pile is growing too...

The year 2012 has been hot and dry for most of us in the Continental United States, so I am hopeful that we may get some real moisture and cooler weather soon.  That's what's still growing in my garden.  

Now, it's your turn to share what's been growing in your garden.  Please link up below and remember anything garden related is always welcome.  A few examples include posts about things growing in your garden, recipes made using items from your garden, and tips/tricks/ideas for gardening, but don't be limited by this short list.  It's just a few small examples.  Have a great month and we'll have the entire month of October to continue to link up to this hop and we'll have 4 whole weeks to read through every post too, before the next one.  Thank you!

Heidi