Autumn Changes

Crunching down the path

Golden rod fuzzy with seeds

Hard maple in Fall colors

The changing colors over the pond

Shelling popcorn.  We shelled about 10 gallons this year.

Tulip planting time.  1400 whites, yellows, peach, red and purples.  I can hardly wait until spring!

Uncapping the Fall honey.  A dark yummy golden rod honey.  Not much this year but what we did get was super great.

The only filtering we do,

The bees cleaning up their supers before I put them away for the winter.

Seven years ago this oak fell over in a huge wind storm.  The roots still strong.  Even the backhoe couldn't get this out.  I guess my caldron will return to its resting place -not to mention Snowy the cat's favorite summer sleeping area.

Beautiful red berries.  Not sure what these are called.  The birds don't even eat them. Yet they add such lovely contrast to the changing colors of Autumn. 

Today's Journey Joys: The humming of the dishwasher, warm Autumn temperatures, super-finds at the auction, wood mulch delivered, firewood stored in the hoophouse, pumpkins being gobbled by our free-ranged pastured chickens (what orange yolks they have!), cleaning up outside and in, storing and sorting for winter, and the smell of fall leaves.

Autumn's Preparations

Firewood ready to split.  I'm so thankful for renewable resources which are readily available. I'm imagining being toasty warm inside during a cold, breezy snow storm. Drinking hot tea and ginger snap cookies.  Why wait?

Gourds

Harvesting popcorn before the racoons and deer do it for me.

Our neighbor's beautiful young cattle.  They like to look at me while I'm working.  I wonder what they think about?

Lavender - growing but still little.  I sure hope they make it through the winter.

The last of the zinnias.   We had two evenings of frost last week.

Rusty golden colors of autumn

The bones of the hedge apple tree starting to show.    

Cactus & Oklahoma zinnia.

The road less traveled.....

Today's Journey Joys:  Turkey and chicken processing done for the year.  A summer-like warm day after nights of brrr-cold temperatures, kitty-fur thickening, bees tucked into bed for winter, crunching of leaves during morning strolls to meet the bus, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie, applesauce and muffins, brewing coffee and tea.

Capturing the Beautiful

Today's Journey Joys: early autumn warmth sustaining the colors, safe and restful trip there and back to Indianapolis with warm reception of presentation, munching cotton candy grapes,  popcorn drying in the field, surprise weeds with deep purple flowers, honey bees on golden rod, huge orange pumpkins and pie pumpkins waiting to be made into yummy delights, even more flowers in bloom.... O, the sweetness in blessings noticed!

Colors of Early Autumn

The colors of autumn are captivating. 

Sometimes called shattercane and sometimes broom corn - they are over twelve feet tall.

Our farm stand filled with color....

The welcoming flower garden.....

Wild flowers among the trees.

Golden rod and purple loose strife.... a naturally occuring beautiful combination.

Sunsets of rose and pinks.....

Today's Journey Joys: maturing chickens, the tweets, clicks, chirps and gobbles of our big tom turkeys, dragon flies fluttering, black birds beginning to gather, orange pumpkins, blackberry plants alive and well under weed cover, chicken and ranch pizza with a small birthday ham and pineapple pizza for Ally's half-a-birthday celebration.

Summer's Heat Returns

Angelonia

Straw flowers - perfect for bouquet or dried arrangements.

White gomphrena

Our tri-colored chrysanthemums beginning to bloom.  Autumn must be right around the corner.

Golden raspberries - sweet.

Pump-ke-mon decorative pumpkins. I love their stripes!

Wild flowers along the hoophouse.

Gourds growing

I can smell the honey!  Time to harvest - yet the thought of dressing up in a bee suit with heat indices over 100 degrees - well, it is just not going to happen.  The honey and bees will have to wait.

Tom turkey strutting his stuff.

Afternoon pecking 

Golden rod.

Kitties in a box.

Even more tri-colored mums.

Today's Journey Joys: A nice southerly breeze in the heat, hydrangea, peony, and hosta transplanting, weeping willow starts in a jar, learning to make bread and butter pickles with our abundance of cucumbers, lettuce starts hanging-in-there in late summer's heat, caramel cinnamon pancakes with new friends.