Last of the harvest

016, a photo by fiberbrarian on Flickr.

Here are the last of the tomatoes and cukes to come out of the summer 2011 garden. Forecast of 26' tonight. I picked everything that even looked like it was beginning to ripen but left the solid green rocks on the vine. We'll see what survives tonight. We're supposed to warm up and stay above freezing for another couple of weeks, but I'm done. Time to pull out the rest of the plants and switch over to bird feeders.

Sept. 11, 2011

Sept. 11, 2011, a photo by fiberbrarian on Flickr.

Another picture perfect summer day in North Dakota. Ending in a full moon.

Hyles lineata (white lined sphinx)

Hyles lineata (white lined sphinx), a photo by fiberbrarian on Flickr.

Just stunning. I flushed it when I moved a tomato plant to find any ripe tomatoes. Didn't really notice it until it was flying from salvia blossom to blossom, pulling out the pollen. A hummingbird! That's why I'd planted so many red flowers (salvia and tobacco), but then I noticed its antennae. Eventually it slowed enough that I saw at least four legs. That's when I figured out that it must be a hummingbird moth, something I'd heard about.

Found it on an NDSU moth page: Fauske, G.E. (Sept. 7, 2011) Hyles lineata (Fabricius 1775) in Moths of North Dakota: an online identification guide.
< http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/ndmoths/ >
http://www.ndsu.edu/ndmoths/ndmoths/names/7894.htm

111

One hundred eleven days until Christmas. Recent mornings have definitely been chilly but the forecast is for several days of highs in the 80s - even a 90' on Friday. And no rain. You know what that means? That my tomatoes are going to get thirsty! There's no way I can keep them watered enough to have their thirst quenched. I'll continue to try, but still.

Anyway. I admit I'm getting a bit tired of this summer stuff. I want a few months of cool, clear crisp air - falling leaves - nice sweaters. That's what I want.

But this is North Dakota. There's no telling what'll happen next.

Except that there're 111 days until Christmas. That's good enough for me.