Clearly, the squash is out of control.

Behold the bean-and-squash tree!

Mr. Tomato Head

I think he needs a hat.

Harvest time can sometimes yield the most peculiar things, like this Window Box Roma that came with a little, um, appendage.

Take this any way you like.

All I want for Christmas…

…is this! Although since it won’t be in bookstores until February, a gift certificate will do nicely.

Gayla Trail is a fantastic and resourceful gardener, writer and photographer. I really enjoyed You Grow Girl so I cannot wait to get my hands on her latest  book. The timing will be perfect, too. Just when winter is at its bleakest, I can flip through those pages and plan our next season of growing.

Thanks, Gayla, for giving us all a reason to look forward to next winter!

Lady Bee Balm

This gardening season hasn’t been without its disappointments – lily beetles, the Attack of the Whatever-Got-At-The-Bush-Beans. But the fact that my bee balm is in bloom certainly makes up for it.

I purchased two varieties at the garden centre last year – “Jacob Clime” and “Marshall’s Delight”. They didn’t bloom last year, but this year they’re putting on a show (and surprise! They multiplied!)

What’s even cooler is that the bee balm I started indoors from seed two winters ago (possibly “Panorama” but I don’t remember) is finally in bloom. I’m getting only one colour, but it’s very similar to Marshall’s Delight – a vibrant magenta. I love how the blooms look like fireworks, exploding with fragrance.

These pictures simply don’t do my bee balm justice.

Worth the wait - bee balm I grew from seed almost three years ago.

A more luscious photo of bee balm (though, sadly, not my bee balm) can be found at one of my favourite haunts, You Grow Girl.

Peas please

We have about eight plants this year. Today I did the first and likely only harvest – about a pound, which was enough for a cup of peas. It saddens me that we don’t have more because they were delicious! Even the normally anti-pea kids enjoyed them!