Bring out cher DEAD!

Well, technically speaking, you should be bringing out anything that's still alive or anything that might still have a fighting chance.  And leave the dead where it lies. 

Of course I'm talking about that last, big, round-up through the garden which very firmly closes the chapter on Summer.

Grab any tomatoes that might have avoided last night's frost.  Green ones are great fried, but they'll still ripen if you leave them in a warm windowsill. 

Take one more look at your bean plants.  This year we picked all the dried beans and will shell them to make soup or perhaps plant for next year's garden.  Will that work?

 Then pull all those bean vines and toss them over the fence for the sheep.

Sheep are almost as good at composting as chickens!

 

Sunflowers should also be drying now.  Cut the heads and bring them into the house to finish off.  Have the kids pull the seeds and definitely save these to plant next year!  I know this works!

Don't forget about your onions and carrots!  If they're like mine, they'll be buried under copious amounts of mulch and weeds.  But these babies are just bursting to get out!

And have pity on the poor cabbage.  Though the slugs sure did a number, I think it will still make a nice batch of sauerkraut.

It's always a good feeling at the end of the season to know that you did your garden proud.  You planted, weeded and harvested.  You froze and canned and snuggled into the root cellar enough to get you long into those cold winter months.  

So take a minute to congratulate yourself on another year well done!

And don't stress over those cherry tomatoes.  I don't know a gardener out there who can say that they've  used every one!  Definitely leave those where they lie.