What a mess -- or is it?

Now that Thanksgiving is in the past, I'm no longer working long, long days at the bakery. It's amazing how many people want pies for that holiday (and how many people show up or call on the 23rd trying to order a pie!), but things are back to normal now. We peeled so many apples, it's crazy. Since the organics bins were filled to the top, I brought home four big boxes of peels on Tuesday (or was it Monday?):

Not wanting to make the trek back to the compost pile in the dark, I just left them on the driveway. I knew I would get to them on the holiday or over the weekend at the latest. Somebody got to them first!

Some Fall Color

Things are so busy right now, writing these blog posts gets a lower priority -- hence the skipped days. It's a bit disappointing as I've been so good with daily posts for so many years (then weekday posts), but it can't be helped.

That being said, here are a few things that have been catching my eye lately in the garden and around town. Starting with those fallen leaves and bamboo. What a great color combo!

Pecans!

Last weekend I visited the small pecan farm that supplies our pecans for the bakery. McGraw Hilltop Pecan Farm is located in St. Charles county, and they grow some of the most delicious pecans that we've ever tasted!

Here's what I saw on this beautiful autumn day, as the nuts went from tree...

Bananas and Beans

One last look before the freezing temps come in at the bananas and beans in my garden this year.

By bananas I mean Musa basjoo, the hardy banana that I mulch each year and which comes back bigger and stronger each growing season.

Wednesday Vignette: Aw nuts!

I don't think there's more I can say today...

...than "Aw nuts!" It actually makes me feel a little better saying that (out loud -- it's kinda fun).

More wondering...

Yesterday I wondered about apple storage, today it's about a plant ID. In downtown St. Louis there are a couple of old churches that we pass while walking to the hockey arena. Both have quite nice little gardens, and this one contains an interesting Alocasia:

Roses, canna, butterfly bushes and more, but this is the plant that caught my eye.

Thinking about apples

One of my tasks at the bakery each morning is peeling apples. I peel between 30 and 100 apples a day depending on needs (usually closer to 30), so I think about apples a lot.

One practical concern is their firmness. Sometimes the apples we get are quite firm, but others are rather soft (almost too soft to use our peeling gadget). The majority of our apples come from Chelan Washington, and usually from the same grower it seems.

New trellises

I've been working on a trio of trellises for a client. Thought you'd like to see what I came up with, even though they're not for my own garden.

The construction was a bit more of a challenge than expected, but luckily there was no pressing deadline and I could take my time to figure things out.  (If you follow @nimblemill on Instagram you will have seen a few of these already)

Your bamboo is telling you something

Most people who plant running bamboos don't realize the extent to which they spread in a single year in the right climate. Here in St. Louis the Phyllostachys species can send a rhizome 15' (4.5m) in one growing season, so rhizome pruning at least once a year is essential!

Luckily there are signs your bamboo gives you that things are happening underground, little reminders to get out the spade and chop some rhizomes.

Monkshood, the last blooms of the year

In my garden the last plant to bloom has one of the prettiest flowers: Aconitum or "monkshood".

I've only been growing this for a few years, and it's in a tough dry spot under the sugar maple, but it blooms reliably.