Fall Garden

When I was a little girl, my Grandpa often said this little poem to me: "Mary, Mary, how does your garden grow?"  I thought of that as I was gathering pictures for this post. Things are fading in the garden this time of year.  Most of our flowers have quit blooming but there are still some new things popping out and a few others are giving us a second round of blooms.  Here's a few pics of what things are looking like in our yard.

Our garden is mostly flowers, but we are still getting a few tomatoes.

The morning glories were so slow to bloom this year, but finally they're blooming!  

 

These are called Fall Crocus. They send up green shoots in the Spring then completely die back until Fall, when these beautiful purple blooms pop up.

In the back by our storage shed, the phlox are looking kind of sad, but are still blooming.

Next to the phlox are these asters which are just starting to put on a show!

The spirea and the daisies are blooming for the second time.

The sedum are turning pink!

The hydrangeas are still blooming.

The ferns are starting to get yellow.

The woodland garden is going strong.

In this bed there are hardy cyclamen blooming for the first time this year.

This is a new path Bob put in our side yard, and he's been busy planting new things along the edges.

This is another new area that Bob put in last Fall.  It's hidden away in a back corner and it's fun to walk back and see things growing.

We have a lot of hosta's, a plant that grows well in our shady yard. This one is called an Empress Wu, one of our favorites because it's so big.

This is called Joe Pye Weed.  It's another one that pops up and flowers in the Fall.

The roses are blooming again after taking about a month off.

and the mushrooms are still popping up all over!

Last, but not least is one of my favorites - the cosmo flowers. These also bloom at the end of summer.

I'm enjoying each of them for as long as I can!

Friday Funny

 

Cooking Thursday

Our church loves potlucks!  We had another one last week and I made something new. Meatballs are always a favorite and when I saw this recipe, I thought it would be a nice switch. This one is hot dog bites with a yummy BBQ sauce that starts with your favorite sauce and is made even better.
I made a double batch and came home with a completely empty crockpot. These were a hit, and would be perfect for your next big gathering!

BBQ Hot Dog Bites

2 packages hot dogs, sliced or may use mini dogs
1/2 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1 tablespoon honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir together the 1/2 cup BBQ sauce, melted butter, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Stir in hot dog slices till coated.
Place in shallow roasting pan and bake for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and stir in the second 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce and honey.  Bake for another 15 minutes, then broil for 2-3 minutes until hot dogs start browning.

May serve at this point, or place in crockpot on warm until serving.