Marigold Potager

10/11/2026

https://marigoldpotagerdiaries.blogspot.com/2026/10/tidbits-of-inspo-7.html?m=1

Well... Happy Thanksgiving! This is what our place looks like (well, much of it has melted already, but still...) today. Very wet and heav...

10/11/2026

Well... Happy Thanksgiving, eh?

It's not cold out, as you can see from the still blooming impatiens, lol, but it sure is yucky.

This will melt away and we can get back to garden and yard clean up after the weekend, but sure is different than years past. My first Thanksgiving, I was still picking cucumbers on this day!

10/09/2026

Well, hi there. How is everyone?

Here are this week's 5 Things Friday... actually on a Friday ; )

1. Isn't it lovely outside? I am just loving the colours all the golds, oranges, and bits of red. We don't get a whole lot of red on the prairies, but some.

My neighbour's elm tree is all yellow. The other neighbour's ornamental apple is shades of orange and red. Shrubs and hedges are ablaze with colour. Everything is just stunning.

2. My muckle plum is the prettiest tree! Cannot wait till it gets bigger. It has pink flowers in spring and then has all these lovely fall colours. It does not make fruits so no messes to sweep up. It is also a small tree, under 15 feet tall and 10 feet wide. In other words, is the perfect tree for urban lots ; )

3. We have snow coming this weekend, just for a day or two. Long enough to mess with people's Thanksgiving plans. And to make us have to hurry with the garden clean up.

We lost the last of the tomatoes last week, while hubby was on a fishing trip, but everything in the greenhouse was fine. Was out there harvesting peppers and tomatoes so we can clean out the greenhouse next week, get it winterised.

Just the natural progression of things in fall. Next week, the weather will be fine again, lol, so we'll be back at it.

4. How is your Thanksgiving looking this year? It is one of my most favourite holidays of all. Great food, family, and fun. No gifts, no drama, just giving thanks for and with family.

If you are on the prairies, drive safe! We are having our dinner on the Sunday, so by then the weather should have settled. Tomorrow is supposed to be the worst day with rain and wet snow, meaning slippery roads.

5. If you are still in the midst of garden clean up, last mowing for the year, harvest... well, you are not alone. We are still very hard at it. Emptying beds, weeding beds, getting ready to plant garlic next weekend.

We hope that we can get a few yards of compost to top dress the beds, before they stop for the year. Some years, they quit as soon as frost or snow comes...

Unlike the island, where one can get bagged manure or compost, it is much harder to come by here...sure do miss Buckerfields!

It will be what it will be. No use fretting about it! We had a very odd weather year so are grateful for all that we have been able to put away for winter (to can and freeze), for the flowers and beauty in summer, for being able to feed the birds and bees.

I will be very sad when patio season is well and truly over... but for now, grateful.

Happy Thanksgiving, friends! Hope your weekend is perfect ~ Tanja

09/30/2026

Well, that is probably it for my dahlias this year. Outer leaves and tops got frosted. I only got to see two flowers on this big guy (5 feet tall!), but it is simply loaded with buds just about to open.

Sigh. Makes me wonder if dahlias are even worth it here, as they bloom so late in summer. The days are lovely but the nights are in single digits. Was zero this morning.

The smaller dahlias, pompoms and buttons, bloomed most of the summer, though. Maybe just not worth growing the dinnerplates....

The red flowers in the back are my cannas. They were mislabelled, were not supposed to be red, lol. It was one of those weird garden years. Thank goodness for next summer, eh? I am already planning!

09/26/2026

Well, hi there! Happy Saturday.

We had to do some running around yesterday, so no time for catching up with you all. Therefore, here are this week's 5 Things Friday, on a Saturday morning.

1. I am still not fully weight bearing on the new hip leg, but was able to get out there and wash up the summer rug so it can go in storage, tidy up the patio, and wash the windows.

I wash these back of the house windows all the time! They get so dusty. I am hoping once our new trees grow big and tall, they will help to cut down on the dust. I assume that all this dust comes mainly from the fairly busy road behind our house.

2. It is starting to look and feel like fall now. Is funny, a week ago, we were sitting outside and looking about. Very few trees had started to yellow. My brother was over for the family dinner and commented that most all the trees out west, at his farm, were already yellow and how far behind ours are. I think that is because his trees are mainly poplars, they are the first to drop (along with aspens as they are in the same family).

Anyway, I digress, as I always tend to do.... Today, just a week later, a whole lot of trees have started to colour up for fall, and some are even dropping leaves. Amazing how quickly it all goes, eh?

3. We are making salsa today with our own homegrown tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic... just about everything, except the tomato paste. Our fridge, countertop, and table top are covered in tomatoes! No pic, sadly.

Love it when we can use our own homegrown ingredients! Our little granddaughter is a chips and salsa fiend, so we are going to triple (maybe quadruple) the recipe so we can pass some on to her momma.

My Friday night guilty pleasure is a plate of ooey gooey nachos with a whole lotta salsa and sour cream ; )

4. I saw my first butterfly of the year the other day. One single butterfly only this year. That is so incredibly sad, eh? Just goes to show how many people are using pesticides still. Kill the caterpillars, you also kill the butterflies.

Remember that those so called 'safe' 'organic' pest sprays are still going to kill everything, including ladybugs and their larvae.

This bothers me more than I can say, so I am leaving it at that.

5. I have been collecting seeds, too.

White cosmos only (now that I know the others will all be some shade of pink) for now. I may pick some of the really dark pink ones and see how they come out next year... Will see, as I am doing a mostly all white garden theme, next summer.

I have also saved some of those fantastic tall marigolds. They are a bee magnet in the tomato bed and greenhouse. No wonder we had a great cucumber crop this year (all grown in the greenhouse).

The zinnias and calendula were a big bust this year. Ugly, small, not thriving... meh. So I will be ordering from other suppliers next year and not saving any of my own seeds.

The sweet peas, though! I only had luck with one of the three batches I planted out. Our spring and early summer was weird, really cold and wet. The ones that grew well were the ones I spent a bundle on, so I am pretty happy about that. They are called 'Miss Piggy', not a great name for such lovely flowers! They are white with a hint of pink in each blossom. And they smell amazing!

That is it for my thoughts and catch up this week.

What are you all up to? Garden clean up? Harvest? Making sauce or salsa? Saving seeds? Patio and deck clean up? Putting away summer 😭, as I am?

Have a great weekend ~ Tanja

09/24/2026

While I am on my sunflower kick (hah!), I thought I would share this for any local peeps who might be wanting to do a maze... or take family photos with sunflowers.

An organic sunflower maze (not corn!) in Bowden. The last day open for this year is Sunday though, so you gotta get out there over the next few days.

Our last 4 patches of sunflowers are looking Amazing this week! Sunday September 27th will be the final day of our season!

09/23/2026

Saving your sunflower seeds this year?

When the seeds are black/grey if you rub the front of the flower and the back of the head is yellow, your seeds are ready for harvest.

You can remove the head at this stage and leave it to dry even longer.

I do not save the seeds, but I do save the heads for the birds. I either hang them on the fence, or lay them out on the railing (usually the little ones from the multi stemmed sunflowers).

The nuthatches and other little birds, love the multi-stemmed sunflowers.

09/20/2026

Some fall inspo for you gardeners and bakers : )

09/18/2026

Well, hi there. How is everyone?

We have sunny weather and 22 degrees. This after two weeks of cold and miserable. Mid twenties coming! This is what I was hoping we would get for fall weather.

Here are this week's 5 Things Friday. Things on mind at this moment, with no bearing on anything at all ; )

1. I have been able to go down to the patio and enjoy the lovely weather. Tried to take a few pics but man, she is sunny out there. Sunny pics are not usually the best pics.

I am just glad that I can maneuver the stairs fairly well and quickly now, weight bear on the leg with the new hip. Still battling the sciatica, so that is a whole thing in itself.

2. We have been watering and watering some more. It is so dry here! Even drought tolerant plants, like the echinacea, are drooping in the dry weather. Sunflower leaves hang limply but soon perk up with a splash of water at their roots.

3. The amount of buzzing going on in the yard is incredible! All the flowers are full of bees and hoverflies, even the wasps are out and about... and so far, not being pesky. Though we know that time will come.

I just sit at the patio and enjoy the action! Nothing makes me happier than knowing that my plan to feed the pollinators and the birds is fruitful. I still don't have as many birds as I would like, but little by little!

4. I have posted a few pics of some of my hanging baskets and window boxes. Taking pics before hubby takes them down and they end up in the green wheelie bin.

That petunia has thrived on neglect and bloomed endlessly all summer long. While it was not my favourite petunia ever, much too bright and flashy, it required no deadheading, no pinching back, just looked awesome all season long. Just as last year, I was super happy with the performance. These new petunias are just the bomb.

I have added a few pics of last year's petunias at the end of the season, just to show you that they were equally impressive... probably even more so. Let's see what I come up with next year, eh ; )

5. So... are you taking notes? Making plans for next year? This is when I get all excited for the next gardening season. I can see what worked, what did not, what I want to do different, what to repeat...

A new journal is on it's way to the house so that I can take notes and plan for the 2027 garden.

Best of all... I should be doing well with two brand new hips, a whole lot less pain!

Happy Friday! Tanja