Farm Fresh: Preparing for Frost

 There was a frost warning for Friday so I quickly completed our annual fig tree insulation ritual.  

I pruned out a number of branches before I tried to get the fencing around it. It grew tremendously well this year, but I know from past experience that the outer branches won't survive unless they are well insulated. Here it is before pruning:

Here it is after I took out all the outer branches and cross overs. The idea was to create room for the maple leaf insulation to get around the scaffolding branches.   

Two years ago we put all the fall leaves in the main garden. Last year we put them in the high tunnel.  This year, I decided we should put them all in the orchard, both for nourishment and to try to kill most of the grass with leaves and mulch.  The kids had to help rake and take leaves to the front orchard instead of their usual Saturday cleaning chores. 

Levels of enthusiasm for this project varied considerably. These leaves were very wet and heavy-- good for composting. Hubby will come behind with the tractor and bag more of them up when they are dry. 

My new little Brown Turkey fig tree is going to be the guinea pig for an experiment.  I planted it next to a south facing wall in the nook near our chimney.  I want to see whether the ambient heat and windbreak will be enough to keep the branches alive overwinter.  (If it fails, the branches will die and the fig will have to regrow from the ground again.)

Those lovely flowers around the base are a perennial that my French host sisters gave me. Behind them are some shasta daisies that should also be beautiful next year. 

The Pawpaw trees grew well this year though I doubt we will have any fruit for at least another year. 

Deer ate my hostas. So frustrating. I'm a little annoyed that my guard dogs let this happen. 

I put the sides down on the high tunnel. 

I gathered many of the pumpkins -- some went into the high tunnel for a little more curing. 

Some I left for the cousins to pick as part of the Halloween shindig:

Some I brought into the kitchen for baking treats.  I love how much meat is in these sweet potato pumpkins.

While I cleared the ground in the pumpkin patch, I found 4 praying mantis nests in the weeds.  I tucked them in along the fences.

The sweet potato patch is on the agenda for later this month.  I want to give the frost a chance to sweeten them first.