Monday, September 12, 2022

My Autumn Garden

 


Mid-September and the garden glows with colour. Dahlias, zinnias, rudbeckia, and roses continue to produce bloom after bloom. Cafe au lait, the creamy dahlia in the centre of the image above, is a late bloomer, but well worth waiting for. Bees continue their work, although they are a bit slower to get going in these cooler mornings. 

We went for a walk around the bog yesterday afternoon and oh, how dry it is. No visible water, and the waterfowl have taken themselves elsewhere. Skies have been muted with smoke, giving an eerie light to the days, and most colourful sunsets. These days feel suspended between summer and autumn, as if waiting on the brink of a change. 


I have so enjoyed the fresh peaches this year. I made a fruit salad, slicing the peaches into the bowl so the juice dripped into it. Tame blackberries grow across our neighbour's fence, big and juicy. I pick a few late strawberries and raspberries every day or two. One trick I learned many years ago from a friend, is to add a bit of vanilla extract to a fruit salad. The fragrance is heavenly, and the fruit flavour is enhanced. 


Hydrangeas are turning different colours - some pale green, others pink, or pale blue. A few fresh blooms remind me of how they looked while we were gone. 


Another peach treat was a Peach Crumble Tart. A partially baked crust lined with peeled and sliced peaches, then topped with a simple crumble of butter, flour, and sugar, with a bit of almond extract, baked until golden. That disappeared in a hurry! 

This morning a little wind stirs the leaves and will hopefully blow away the remaining fire smoke. 

Is September golden for you this year? 

30 comments:

  1. Dear Lorrie, Your flowers are so pretty and the fruit looks scrumptious. I am amazed at how different our seasons are. Most of ours are gone and the garden looks as though it is ready for her long nap. The peonies were finished the first of June and I must begin to cut them back. Wishing you a lovely week!

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  2. Haven't your Dahlias done well! So many of mine were eaten, but two are still fowering, one of which is Cafe au Lait. It is a very impressive plant! I'm wondering whether it's worth keeping what remains of the Dahlias now.
    Your crumble looks very delicious.

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  3. It still feels and looks like summer this far South but the temps are just a wee bit 'less hot'! lol We're doing some extra cleaning so that helps!

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  4. Beautiful flowers!
    It is a wonderful time of year, except for the smoke. Yuck.
    Take care!

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  5. Your Dahlias and Zinnias are very pretty. The Peach Crumble looks delicious. I've had a hard time finding really good peaches this year.

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  6. Leaves are beginning to look spent. So sad…

    The tart looks so good as does the salad.

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  7. It's pretty green yet. My! Your berries and peaches look marvelous.

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  8. Your autumn flowers look beautiful.

    We had pink hydrangeas that bloomed in late June/early July. A late bloomer still has some pink blossoms!

    I'm keen on your peach desserts!

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  9. Baking season begins when the leaves begin turning. Beautiful flowers

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  10. This time of year is always wonderful for flowers and fruit. Your peach crumble looks so good. Love, love fresh fruit salads too. Your middle dahlia in the collage reminds me of Cafe au Lait. I had ordered one, but it didn't grow in the garden. The dahlia company is going to replace it with a new one next spring. I hope it is successful as I love it.

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  11. Your dahlias are beautiful. Such variety! I'll have to try adding vanilla to fruit salad. It sounds delicious.

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  12. Your peach crumble tart looks delicious and quite pretty! Thank you for the tip to add vanilla extract to a fruit salad. I'd never have thought to do it, but it can't be bad!

    Ahhhh . . . so much beauty lingering in your garden . . .

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  13. Here it is still very hot inThe south west around 40 degrees. Here we had 27 yesterday and while we were away they had one week of rain, so the grass is becoming green again. We also have fires starting again in the south west. Next week will be wet but cooler nice Normandy weather! After all that heat. Your flowers are beautiful and the peach crumble gave me the idea to bake one. I also add vanilla sugar inThe fruit salads. Today I am going to get a dit from the kennel!
    Have a good day.

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  14. Those flowers look glorious. So much colour to enjoy. Sounds like you are definitely getting into the swing of autumn. Still very warm here. B x

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  15. Hello Lorrie, September is an attractive month here in Australia too, because Spring is here. Your Summer flowers are stunning, particularly the Cafe au lait bloom. Fresh peaches are rare for us, and it must be fantastic to put them in a fruit salad. It looks absolutely delicious with the berries, and I might try the vanilla trick with my own fruit salads which are rather more tropical in content. Peach crumble looks mouth-watering too! Enjoy.

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  16. Your September garden is providing a lot of color and beauty.
    Your fruit salad and Peach Crumble Tart both look delicious. I am now intrigued by that simple idea of adding a touch of vanilla to fresh fruit. I will be trying that one. The peaches here have been so sweet. Our kitchen counter is currently loaded with them. I sometimes think about baking them into a pie, but they are so delicious eaten fresh, that I haven't felt the need.

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  17. It does seem like "on the brink of change" here, Lorrie. Or maybe it's just our cool spell that will end soon. Your garden flowers are lovely! I've heard that the cafe au lait dahlias sell out fast and should be ordered early. I'll have to remember your hint for vanilla extract in a fruit salad. I'm up for putting that in anything I can. Oh, the buttery goodness that comes across the screen from your Peach Crumble Tart!

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  18. You still have so much beauty blooming in your garden. It looks wonderful. Your peach crumble tart looks so delicious. This would not keep very long in our home.

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  19. Lorrie - my garden is not glowing; other than the Aster and Russian Sage, most of the plants are well into seed stage. In your collage, my favorite is the flower in the upper right corner. The fruit salad and the tart look mouth-watering!!! It is very smoky here, with no wind and not a lot of precipitation in the forecast. This smoke may be hanging around for a while. Sigh.

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  20. Your colourful dahlias are splendid! Here in Finland the autumn colours on trees and shrubs have started to show up - and it is finally raining!

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  21. I’m catching up with your wonderful trip, Lorrie. I so enjoyed scrolling through your photos and reading your posts. Still, there’s nothing like getting home again and living the comforts of home. I’ll bet that peach tart was amazing!

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  22. The colours in your garden this September are gorgeous. Lots of colour is missing from my garden as it is still recovering from our long very hot summer with minus rain.
    Here there is just a small hint of Autumn on some trees and we continue to enjoy warm balmy days.
    I really like the idea of a touch of vanilla extract added to a fruit salad - sometimes the simplest of additions can add so much.

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  23. I love the autum feel even in your post. I ahve also enjoyed peach pies this year and plan to make one more to freeze. Your tart looks delicious!

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  24. I love the autum feel even in your post. I ahve also enjoyed peach pies this year and plan to make one more to freeze. Your tart looks delicious!

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  25. Such gorgeous flowers, Lorrie, and what delicious treats! Your photos made me smile happily on a gloomy autumn evening. It's raining and it's dark but trees and shrubs with some yellow and red leaves already give their magic light.
    Stay safe and well!

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  26. Thanks for the pointer on the vanilla extract for the fruit salad. Never too old to learn something new. Your Autumn flowers are absolutely beautiful!

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  27. Your flowers are beautiful, Lorrie!

    And that peach crumble looks divine!

    Have a great weekend!

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  28. Your peach crumble looks amazing!

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  29. Gosh, our flowers are all nearly done. Just the hibiscus. I am happy to see yours! Your climate is so different than ours!

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  30. Your flowers are beautiful.

    All the best Jan

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