Garlic planting by youtube.com

Planting shallots by growyourmint.com

      ​I have some shallots left from this spring, so I will try this in my little front flower bed by the greenhouse.  See what happens.  I surely wish I had time to have a garden garden, but love to share with you.  Maybe after these knees get better I can have more time because I will feel better to get things done. 
 
Plant Garlic & Shallots This Fall   
Depending on your location, it's time to start thinking about planting Shallots and Garlic in your garden for a bountiful harvest next summer!
 
Somewhere in taste between Garlic and Onions but milder, richer and sweeter than both, Shallots add a subtle deliciousness to everything from eggs and vinaigrette to soups, braised meats and creamy sauces. And life without Garlic would be bland indeed. We all crave its zip and zing.
 
In most parts of the U.S., both Shallots and Garlic are best planted after the time of the first fall frost date. In fact, they can be planted up to and even into December. They both need just enough time to set down their roots and get established before the ground freezes for the winter. Start preparing your beds now, and planting your sets as the weather gets colder.
taken from  From Kitchen Garden Seeds
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net

picture from alltiptips.wordpress.com

         ​Signs of autumn are in the air. Anyone who’s sweated their way through a long hot summer might be ready for a change of season. What says autumn to you?
 
The September equinox arrives on September 23, 2019, but signs of autumn are all around us.
 
Sunlight
Have you noticed it’s darker now in the mornings? The sun is rising later—and setting earlier, too.  The days get noticeably shorter as it gets dark earlier each night. See your Sunrise/Sunset Times and Length of Day.
 
If you closely observe the Sun’s path across the sky, you’ll see the arc is shifting south.  Did you know that birds and butterflies migrate along with the path of the Sun?
 
Birds
Many readers report that their hummingbirds have left or are leaving for warmer climates as early as mid-August. Hawks, geese, and swallows (and butterflies) are migrating south for the winter.
 
Near The Old Farmer’s Almanac in New Hampshire is a mountain. At the summit, you’ll view kettles of hawks soaring in the sky. The hawk migration means that their food supply of frogs, snakes, and forest creatures is dwindling—a clear sign of summer’s end!
 
Some butterflies stay closer to home and begin to seek shelter for the cooler months. Try to leave some leaf litter for your beneficial insects!
 
Bears
 
Birds aren’t the only creatures hinting that cold weather’s coming. Our Almanac publisher saw a bear crossing the road in the middle of her walk! Late August to mid-September is prime time for blackberries. Bears are gorging to build up their fat stores before they hibernate.
 
Folklore says …
It is going to be a tough winter if bears are seen berrying.
 
Squirrels
If you walk dogs, you’ll be very aware that the squirrels are back. They’re collecting ripe brown acorns for their winter stash. Lots of seeds are falling now.
 
According to folklore …
If the oak bear much mast [acorns], it foreshadows a long and hard winter.
 
Plants
Of course, another way we know autumn’s approaching is to observe the plants.  Squash, pumpkin, nuts, and apples are ready for harvest. The other vegetables in the garden are slowing down, ending their cycle of growth. 
 
Acorns, pinecones, and Sycamore “helicopters” fall to the ground. Mushrooms and other fungi pop up everywhere.
 
Grass doesn’t grow as fast. You’ll also see morning dew. Fall flowers such as asters and goldenrods begin to bloom.
 
The leaves on many of the trees are starting to change color.  Observe the reds, oranges, yellows, and browns of falling leaves. Interestingly, leaves do not change because of cooler temperatures. Find out why autumn leaves change colors.
 
Weather
It’s not just the tree’s colorful clothing that changes. It’s our own!  Shorter days means cooler weather’s coming. The air begins to feel crisper, especially in the morning.
 
The air begins to smell a bit different.
 
The direction of the wind changes and windy days become more common. Hurricanes and tropical storms begin to happen.
 
Get ready to add a layer of clothes for a walk in the woods!  Add a soft blanket to the sofa.  Get cozy!
taken from https://www.almanac.com/news/editors-musings/blog-signs-autumn
 
Winter Weather
Weather lore holds that as the day lengthens, so the cold strengthens. This will be true from the U.S. Heartland westward to the Pacific and in the Southwest’s Desert and Pacific regions, but The Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts a warmer and wetter winter for most of the country. 
  
 Dear Winter Wonderlanders,
   This year, winter officially begins on December 21 at 11:19 p.m. EDT, when the Sun reaches its greatest declination south of the celestial equator. The days around the 21st may be the shortest and darkest of the year, but this means only that we’ll see more and more sunlight until the vernal equinox on March 19 at 11:50 p.m. EDT—the earliest in 124 years!
 
 This winter’s forecast may be welcome news if you like slightly warmer weather. We believe that warming trends will dominate in the eastern and northern parts of the nation this winter, with below-normal temperatures limited to the Southwest.
 
 You can expect below-normal precipitation in Florida and along the Gulf Coast area, as well as in Texas, Oklahoma, the Upper Midwest, the western Desert Southwest, central California, and western Hawaii. Elsewhere, precipitation will be above normal.
 
 As for snow, expect more than normal if you live in the area from the southern Appalachians northward through western Pennsylvania and across most of the country, including the eastern Desert Southwest.
taken from https://webmail.netins.net
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net

myrosevalley.blogspot.com

     ​I found this recipe about making tomato sauce in the crockpot.  SO I am asking any of you have done this?  I have a few tomatoes I would like to try this, and doesn't seem like alot of work.  Please share if you have tried this.  Thanks Becky
 
Crockpot Tomato Sauce.  Erin Huffstetler
 Enjoy homemade tomato sauce without all the work. This crockpot recipe requires no peeling, seeding, or coring, and tastes better than anything you can buy at the store. Just load all the ingredients into the crockpot, and forget it. No slaving over the stove required. You can use your sauce immediately or refrigerate, freeze, or can it.
■ Prep Time: 5 mins
■ Cook Time: 8 hrs (or more)
■ Yield: (4) 1/2 pints or (2) pints
 
Ingredients 
■ 4 pounds tomatoes
■ 2 cloves garlic
■ 1/2 large onion (chopped)
■ 1/2 teaspoon oregano
■ 1/2 teaspoon basil
■ 1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
■ 1/2 teaspoon salt
■ 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 
Preparation 
01Toss all the ingredients into the crockpot (the tomatoes can go in whole).
02Cover and cook on low for several hours, stirring occasionally.
03Once the tomatoes have broken down some, uncover; and continue cooking until you reach the desired consistency (expect it to take at least eight hours). The cook time will depend on how much water is in the tomatoes. If it's been a rainy summer, it'll take longer for the sauce to thicken. Paste tomatoes usually cook down the fastest because they have less water content.
04For chunky tomato sauce: pick the tomato skins and cores out of the sauce as it cooks. For smooth tomato sauce: run the finished sauce through a food mill. If you don't have a food mill, scoop the tomato cores out; then, give the sauce a quick spin in a blender or food processor.
05Pour your finished tomato sauce into jars, taking care not to fill past the headspace line.
 
To Can Your Sauce 
01Add one tablespoon of bottled lemon juice to each pint; two tablespoons to each quart. Modern tomatoes are not as acidic as they used to be, so this step is essential for safe canning.
02Water bath can pints for 35 minutes, quarts for 40 minutes. Refer to the National Center for Food Preservation to learn more about the current recommendations.
 
 To Freeze Your Sauce 
01 Allow it to cool.
02Then, transfer it to freezer-safe jars or bags, and place them in the freezer.
03Use your sauce within one year, for the best quality. Thaw it in the fridge overnight, or speed up the process by thawing it in the microwave.
Tips
■ For the best flavor, caramelize the onions and garlic in a bit of olive oil on the stove before you add them to the crockpot.
■ Do your tomatoes seem to trickle in from the garden? Just freeze them until you have enough to make sauce. They can go in the freezer whole, and don't even have to be thawed before they go in the crockpot. This is also a good way to go if you're short on time. Just freeze your tomatoes until you have time to devote to sauce-making.
■ Prefer to make your tomato sauce on the stove? Here's a step-by-step tutorial to take you through the process.
■ Have lots of tomatoes on your hands? Use some of them to make homemade tomato paste, tomato juice and salsa.
taken from https://www.thespruceeats.com/best-tomatoes-for-sauce-
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net

    Picture from the old farmersalamanic. com 

picture from apod.nasa.gov

​I know this was last night, but we can see this moon all weekend.  BUT they are predicting rain tonight so we might have too many clouds.  If you missed it last night, maybe Sunday night will work.  This article has lots of interesting facts about the moon, so enjoy.  Again I can't believe it is Sept, harvest moon and where did the garden season go? 
This Friday the 13th brings the most famous Full Moon of the year—the Harvest Moon. It’s a great time to learn fascinating, little-known facts about our big ol’ Moon!
 The Harvest Moon shines Friday night!  (You’ll see it listed in many almanacs as Saturday because the moment of Full Moon is just after midnight in the Eastern Time zone, and in Greenwich Time too. But forget that. It all starts happening Friday night, not Saturday night.)
 
What is the Harvest Moon?
The Harvest Moon is not just a name like other full Moon names. The Harvest Moon, together with the Hunter’s Moon, are the year’s only full Moons that have official names.
 
Astronomically, the Harvest Moon is the full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox (and things really are being harvested right around now).
 
So, the Harvest Moon isn’t always in the same month. It can fall in September or October. This year, it’s September.
 
How to See the Harvest Moon on Friday the 13th
Start watching as twilight deepens on Friday.  You’ll see the Moon ascend in the east soon after sunset. On the next night, Saturday, it’s there again, perfectly full. On Sunday, you must wait a few minutes, almost for full darkness—but then up pops the almost-full Moon! See your local Moonrise times.
 
The full Moon appears to rise for several nights in a row!
This lunar phenomenon happens because the full Moon rises only 20 or 25 minutes later each night when near the autumnal equinox. Typically, the Moon rises about an hour later each day.  Read more about WHY this all happens in “Shine On, Harvest Moon!”
 
So you can see why this is called the Harvest Moon. Just when the farmer runs out of daylight to finish the harvesting chores, the full or nearly full Moon shines down from the sky night after night to help out with extra light. This doesn’t happen at any other time.
 
A harvest Moon!
 And on the mats--
Shadows of pine boughs.
–Takarai Kikaku (1661–1707)
 
Why Does the Harvest Moon Look Orange?
Nothing differentiates a Harvest Moon in appearance. It’s more of a lunar phenomenon.
Yes, this full Moon might look orange and enormous when it’s low. But all Moons do that. They look orange or red in color because your eyes are looking through a greater thickness of Earth’s atmosphere. They look larger when near the horizon because of what we call the “Moon Illusion.”
 
What about Friday the 13th?
Nothing makes a full Moon on Friday the 13th special except that it’s a fairly rare calendar coincidence since Friday the 13th only happens one to three times a year. The next full Moon on a Friday the 13th takes place on August  13, 2049.
 
Of course, if you’re looking for an excuse to have a Full Harvest Moon party, this could be it!  Read more about Friday the 13th folklore and origins.
 
About That Big Ol’ Moon
It’s a great time to learn fascinating, little-known facts about that sole sky-object that appears absolutely, perfectly circular. The Moon is out-of-round by just one part in 500, which is utterly unnoticeable. (The Sun looks round, too, but is rarely safe to look at.)
 
On just does one day out of 30 does the Moon reach its full phase—hardly the dominant motif of the lunar month. But this is the phase most favored by poets and artists. Garnering the lion’s share of lore and myth, it is endowed with supposed powers and abilities never attributed to any other phase.
 
A “full” appearance, of course, only tells us that sunlight then shines straight down on the lunar surface from our perspective; that our planet must be neatly positioned between Moon and Sun. If we sat EXACTLY in the midpoint, the Moon would lie in our shadow and be eclipsed—a phenomenon which will next be visible from the U.S. in May of 2021. But most months, the lunar orbit’s 5-degree slant makes the Moon pass a bit above or below the precise antisolar location.
 
Still, the full Moon always floats close enough to that opposite-the-sun location to exhibit several logical consequences. It thus makes sense that the full Moon:
•Rises as the sun sets
•Sets as the sun rises
•Is highest when the sun is lowest (at midnight, or 1 AM during Daylight Saving Time) 
•Is the only phase never seen in daytime
•Is the only phase that is out all night long
•Is the only possible phase that can be eclipsed
 
Pretty amazing, huh?
By the Light of the Full Moon
The Moon is one of only four celestial objects that can cast shadows on Earth (the other three being the Sun, Venus, and the rare fireball meteor).
 
Still, the Moon is NOT a good reflector of light. In fact, it’s awful. On average, its terrain reflects just 8 to 13 percent of incoming sunlight, which matches the darkness of asphalt. By comparison, Earth reflects 35% of the sunlight hitting us, while shiny Venus reflects 76%. If a moon-sized Venus sat at the Moon’s distance from us, it would appear seven times more brilliant than the full Moon, enough to give us a blue sky at night.
 
Very few objects in the known universe are duller than the Moon, which looks bright only because it stands against the even darker background sky. But it would become no blacker if some ambitious real estate developer paved its entire surface with asphalt and turned it into an enormous parking lot.
 
Still, the Full Moon dominates the night with a brilliance that is surprisingly difficult to pin down subjectively. Since no direct comparisons are ever possible, it’s no wonder that a survey showed people almost always incorrectly guess sunlight to be between 50 and 200 times brighter than full moonlight. This is understandable because a moonlit beach or snowy countryside can seem positively brilliant—bright enough to read by. Yet the truth is that the sun is 450,000 times more luminous than the full Moon.
 
Sizing it Up
Measuring the apparent size of the full Moon produces another surprise: Its disk is far smaller than commonly remembered. Asked to put a value on the moon’s dimensions, most people guess that a line of 30 to 50 full Moons stacked like zeroes would stretch from the horizon to the zenith straight overhead. Doesn’t that sound about right? Ready for the true figure? It would take 180 Moons to fill that span. To completely fill the sky, 105,050 Moons would be needed. It’s much smaller than we imagine.
 
Moon Weather
The air nearest to the ground experiences a worldwide monthly warming of about 0.04 (4/100) of a degree Fahrenheit during the period from 5-8 days after the full Moon. This tiny monthly temperature rise is still not understood, but may be caused by the moon’s hot daytime surface throwing infrared heat our way, like a bathroom heater.
 
In addition, there is a statistically greater probability of cloudiness, storminess, and rainfall around the full Moon than would be expected by chance. This effect, too, has not been fully explained.
 
Touring the Zodiac
The average full-moon interval of 29.5 days, known as the synodic month, typically delivers 13 full moons each year. There are also 13 constellations that the moon routinely occupies, including the “forgotten” zodiacal pattern of Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer and a few others, too.
 
We’ll witness its penchant for wandering into strange neighborhoods this very weekend. On Saturday night, the Full Moon starts out in Pisces, but crosses over into Cetus the Whale in the wee hours before dawn. 
 
On The Far Side
Even the most ancient cultures noticed a strange and unique phenomenon: The full Moon always displays the same features. The same lunar face is always aimed in our direction. There is no other body in the universe that forever shows us just one of its sides.
 
So there exists a lunar hemisphere eternally unseen from Earth. Until October 4, 1959, when the first Russian spacecraft flew around to the back side and transmitted its images, all we could do was guess how it would appear. Virtually everyone assumed the far hemisphere would look a lot like the one we see. As usual, we were wrong.
 
The distant hemisphere appears entirely different. On the near side, huge, ancient, frozen lava flows are the most conspicuous features visible to the naked eye. In contrast, the far side almost totally lacks these maria (lunar “seas”). See the Far Side of the Moon.
 
These are a few of the lunar oddities that may spring to mind when we see this weekend’s Harvest Moon, as it pops above the eastern horizon at the very beginning of the night. 
taken from https://www.almanac.com/news/astronomy/astronomy/full-harvest-moon-rises-friday-\
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net

picture from incrivel.club

     ​     Sorry I didn't post yesterday.  It was my birthday.  I had a good day.  But being 9/11 it is a hard day because of what happened 18 years ago.  So thanks to all that sent me birthday wishes.  It helped.  I have been not feeling the best the last few days.  Going off pain medicine is hard, and hope it continues to get better.  I think some of you know.  30 days ago, I had the right knee replaced.  In January I had the left one.  So it is coming along but seems longer than 30 days taking care of it.  Just stiffness in the knee but no pain which is good.  I haven't forgotten about that pain either.  So here is today's blog writing.
    
Spider plants produce a rosette of long, thin, arched foliage that is solid green or variegated with white. These easy-to-grow houseplants look especially nice in a hanging basket and were a favorite in Victorian-era households. Here’s how to grow spider plants in your home!
 
During the summer, spider plants may produce tiny white flowers on long stems, as well as baby spider plants (offsets) called “pups.” The pups look like tiny spiders, hence the plant’s name!
Spider plants are known for their air-purifying ability, though a large amount of plants is required to truly reap the benefits.
 
Planting
•Grow in a soil-based, well-draining potting mix. Spider plants like even moisture; they don’t like to be too dry or too wet.
•Keep plants in bright to moderate indirect sunlight. Spider plants do not appreciate direct, hot sunlight, which can burn their leaves, causing brown tips and spots.
•Spider plants grow fairly quickly and can easily become pot bound. Plan to repot a spider plant about every other year.
•Spider plants can be grown outdoors as annuals during the summer. They look especially good along the edge of a container or bed, as long as they are kept out of direct sunlight.
 
Care
•During initial growth, water occasionally; once fully developed (within one year), water moderately.
•In the spring and summer months, keep the soil moist to encourage growth. Do not let soil dry out too much.
•Maintain average room temperature and humidity. Spider plants prefer temperatures between 55 and 80°F (13–27°C), which makes them a great indoor houseplant.
•Fertilize up to twice a month in the spring and summer, however, avoid overfertilization.
•See more Houseplant Growing Tips.
 
Pests/Diseases
•Spider plants are prone to tip burn, which can be caused by dry soil, low humidity, or a buildup of salt and chemicals that are found in some public tap water. Keep the soil slightly moist. Avoid watering with fluoridated or chlorinated water and cut off brown tips if they do occur.
•To get rid of the brown discs on leaves, use your fingernail to scrape off the brown residue every few days.
•Mealybugs
•Scale
 
Harvest/Storage
•Healthy spider plants may eventually produce “pups,” which are offshoots from the adult plant that can be removed and replanted to start new plants. For the best results, allow pups to reach approximately two inches in diameter before removing them from the mother plant. 
Alternatively, set the still-attached pups into pots of soil placed next to the mother plant. Once the pups have rooted themselves to the soil, they can be cut loose from the mother plant.
 
Recommended Varieties
•The most common varieties are the variegated forms: ◦‘Vittatum’ has green foliage with a single off-white stripe down the center of each leaf.
◦‘Variegatum’ is the inverse of ‘Vittatum’, with an off-white stripe running along the edge of each green leaf.
 
•Solid green varieties are also available.
 
Wit & Wisdom
•Spider plants also go by the names “airplane plant,” “ribbon plant,” and “spider ivy.”
•Spider plants are originally from South Africa.
•Keep spider plants on your desk to reduce indoor pollutants.
taken from https://www.almanac.com/plant/spider-plants
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse, Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net 

picture from you.tube.com

     ​    I love doing this blog page because I learn something every time I post.  Surprised lilies come up in the late summer or early fall and they need to be planted in the fall.  So I called by broker Leo Berbee Bulb Co out of Marysville, Ohio and they are sold out all ready.  So next summer we will have them here for you to plant because there are more than the light pink ones that we have seen grown for here in all the years we have been gardening.  Pink, yellow, and red....I must have these. Also you can plant in the fall is fall crocus, which will come up the next fall.  You will have to wait one whole year for them also, but what a lovely surprised to have plants blooming when the rest are not blooming so well.   I know you will want them too. 
 
Here is a quick quiz about Surprise lilies. 
1. You plant them in the fall for them to bloom the next fall season.  True or false You should get this right.
2.Another name for surprise lilies is Spider lilies because that is what the bloom looks like.  True or false
3. They only come in pink color.  true or false You should get this right.
4. The bulb is a small bulb but it is related to the amaryllis.  true or false
 
Plant Fall-Blooming Spider Lilies, the Lycoris Surprise Lily   By Jamie McIntosh  Jamie has written about gardening and special occasion flowers since 2011. She has years of experience in caring for flowers and plants.
 
answers to your quick quiz
1. true
2. true
3. false
4. false  I will have tricked you they are related to the amaryllis but like that bulb they are large. 
 
One of the drawbacks some gardeners have with lily varieties is the lanky foliage they’re left to deal with when the blooms are gone. What if you could have all of the beauty of the lily blossoms, without the gangly foliage? Surprise lilies are named for their sudden appearance in early fall, when they spring forth from the ground without any prior noticeable growth to announce their presence. In fact, some new homeowners are indeed surprised when they return home one day to find a stand of flowers (planted by the previous owners) where there had been nothing in the landscape before.
 
An Amaryllis Cousin 
The botanical name Lycoris sounds lyrical in itself, but gardeners have bestowed many common names upon this fall favorite, including hurricane lily, naked lady, magic lily, pink flamingo flower, resurrection lily, spider lily, and surprise lily. Surprise lilies are part of the amaryllis family, and you will see similarities in the appearance and growth habit of the flowers. Like the amaryllis, the surprise lily sends up a flower stalk at a different time than it produces foliage. In the case of the surprise lily, the foliage appears in late winter, when the gardener may not notice the growth or may mistake it for daffodil foliage, which it resembles.
 
Is Surprise Lily Right for Your Garden? 
Depending on the variety, surprise lilies are hardy in zones 5 to 11, but some may exhibit marginal hardiness in zone 4. Surprise lily foliage is approximately 18 inches tall. The autumn blooms appear on stems that range from 15 inches to three feet tall. By the end of spring, the surprise lily foliage will be dormant, and there will be no sign of the plant. In late summer or early fall, rigid stems bearing approximately five trumpet-shaped flowers per bulb appear in the garden. The blooms last for about 10 days.
Planting the Surprise Lily 
Order surprise lilies in the fall, to be planted with other spring-blooming bulbs like tulips and daffodils. Surprise lilies are long-lived perennials, so choose their site carefully so you won’t have to dig up established clumps for relocation.
 
Surprise lily bulbs are large, similar to their cousin the amaryllis, and may reach about two inches in size. Choose the plumpest bulbs to get the best flower show in the first season. If you're dividing bulbs, you can replant smaller bulblets, but they may not flower for a year or two. Plant the bulbs about four to six inches deep in full sun to partial shade; slightly deeper if you’re planting them in a zone they’re marginally hardy in.
 
Surprise Lily Care 
Surprise lilies are low maintenance flowers. They don’t need any fertilization, and they don’t even mind unmulched soil. The unusual growth habit of surprise lilies helps them thrive in areas with rainy springs and dry summers, so they do not need any supplemental irrigation during their dormant period. In fact, excessive summer watering can cause the bulbs to rot.
Over the years, surprise lilies will multiply to form colonies. You can divide these colonies for yourself or a friend by digging up the bulbs after the fall blooms have withered. Replant them immediately so they can establish a healthy root system before the ground freezes.
 
 Garden Design With Lycoris 
As much as flower gardeners don’t like looking at plain foliage for months on end while waiting for blooms, sometimes the opposite problem can be just as awkward. The tall stems of surprise lilies have no green foil of foliage to frame them so they appear, well, naked, as the name implies. You can soften the stems by over-planting them with low growing annuals that will provide a dressing to soften their bareness, including easy flowers like globe amaranth, million bells, and sweet alyssum.
 
You can also plant surprise lilies in the middle of the flower border, where they will peek up between plants past their blooming stage for some color in the fall garden. If your surprise lilies end up looking awkward no matter their placement, don’t hesitate to cut them for the vase, where they sometimes stay fresh over a longer period than they do in the garden.
 
 Lycoris Varieties 
Whether you favor pink, white, red, or gold, there's a surprise lily that will shine in your landscape.
■ Pink surprise lily, Lycoris squamigera: The hardiest and most common, with pale pink flowers
■ Red spider lily, Lycoris radiata: Red surprise lilies are only hardy to zone 7
■ Red heart lily, Lycoris sanguinea: An orange surprise lily
■ White surprise lily, Lycoris longituba: Hardy to zone 5, large petals resemble Asiatic lilies
■ Golden surprise lily, Lycoris chinensis: Somewhat shorter but hardy and vigorous with bright yellow flowers
■ Traub's surprise lily: An exquisite gold variety from Taiwan for zone 7 gardeners
■ Electric blue surprise lily, Lycoris sprengeri: Somewhat misleading name, as flowers are more pinkish-violet than blue
■ Peppermint surprise lily, Lycoris incarnate: Not common in trade but worth seeking out for its deep rose and white striped flowers
■ Modern Japanese, a red flower introduced to the trade in 2013, is the closest you can get to experiencing flowers and foliage at the same time. As an early September bloomer, it's one of the latest to bloom, but produces foliage in late September. Recurving narrow petals and extra long stamens resemble the bloom of the Gloriosa lily.
 
taken from https://www.thespruce.com/plant-fall-blooming-spider-lilies-
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net

picture from believegrowshine.com

       ​WOW fall like this morning, but then there is a warm front coming thru with humidity and warmer temperatures.  Summer like for a few days coming up.  All of that will bring some rain.  We are having rain now at 9:30 AM on Monday the 9th.  We can use it and the farmers will be glad to have the rain to finish up their crops.  It will not hurt the garden either.  So with your plants unfortunately you have weeds, so here is a posting about what to do with the weeds in your garden?
 
How to Prevent Weeds   By Marie Iannotti
  A better idea than pulling weeds is to keep them out of your garden in the first place. You can't stop every bird from dropping a weed seed here and there, but there are several things you can do to limit the number of weeds brought into your garden and prevent weeds from getting out of control.
Tips for Limiting Weeds in the Garden 
■ Border patrol: Inspect all new plants for hitchhiking weeds. The longer a plant sits in a pot at the nursery, the more likely a weed seed will settle in and germinate. Make sure you don’t plant the weed along with the plant you’ve bought.
■ Don’t disturb: Keep cultivation to a minimum. There are always weed seeds in the soil, but many will not germinate unless they are exposed to sunlight. While some scratching and cultivating of the soil around plants are good to keep the soil from compacting, frequent cultivating just leads to more weeds. You are better off applying an organic mulch and letting the earthworms do the cultivating for you.
■ To till or not to till?: For years tilling has been recommended for clearing a new garden bed. Tilling is a quick way to break up the soil and incorporate some of the green material into the bed, but you’ll never get rid of all the existing plants that way. And just like with shallow cultivating, you are also turning up buried weed seeds that will sprout now, with exposure to the sun. If you do choose to cultivate, it’s easier to do when the ground is damp, but not too wet or the soil will stick together.
■ Cover up: Mulches are still one of the best ways to keep weeds from taking over your garden. Mulches, whether organic or synthetic, will smother weed seeds while cooling the soil and retaining moisture. Remember that mulches will also smother seeds of self-seeding plants that you might want as volunteers in your garden. If so, don’t mulch until later in the spring, when you can see which young seedling you want to keep and which should be weeded out and covered.
taken from https://www.thespruce.com/preventing-weeds-
till next time this is Becky Litterer, Becky's Greenhouse Dougherty Iowa beckmall@netins.net 

picture from wikipedia.org