Golden Autumn Day

Yesterday seemed like the perfect fall day.  It was sunny, crisp and still. I drove over to Hampden in the morning to meet a woman who owns horses, and I cut through the back roads in order to take in the autumn colors. The fall leaves are officially past "peak" (especially after that horrendous rain we had this week), but the trees are still so beautiful. It's a joy to be outdoors.

I met Deb over the phone recently when someone told me I could get some free horse manure from her.  I want to amend my soil before the snow flies so it's ready for planting in the spring.  My sister-in-law, Carol, has an amazing garden in New Jersey and she swears by horse manure.  I'm also going to mix in some compost that I have lying in piles at the back of my yard.  I started these piles 2 and 3 summers ago, knowing that eventually I would get some compost out of them!  Now, I have lots.

I spent a little time in the garden yesterday, gathering seeds.  I cut off a huge sunflower head, and I ripped out all of my bean plants.  Rabbits had wiped out all of my beans the year before.  I planted the 5 or 6 seeds that I had left in a container, which yielded enough seeds for this year's bed. And with my new fence up, I was able to grow 55-60 plants. These are black beans, by the way. It is my first experiment with beans.