Sunday, November 27, 2005

Late Delta, Rome, NY


Late Delta, Rome, NY
Originally uploaded by tpl108.
No. Upstate New York is not the Grange and the Grange is not Upstate New York. Nevertheless...

Constructed in the early 20th century as part of an effort to ensure a constant supply of water to support barge traffic on the Erie Canal, Lake Delta covers a little more than 4 square miles. Built on the headwaters of the Mohawk River, five miles north of Rome, New York proper, the lake, which is held back by an 1,100 foot dam, has an average depth of about 23 feet. The lake bears the name of the town which was razed during construction. A 1904 USGS map clearly shows the town of Delta and the valley which now holds the present-day Lake Delta.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Killing Freeze Arrives on November 11, Ending Growing Season


St. Paul's Cemetery
Originally uploaded by tpl108.
On November 11 temperatures dipped below freezing for several hours, choking the remaining life out the grange, and marking the end of a productive and enjoyable season.

Over the weekend, I performed a few last chores out in the garden and will soon be making plans for the spring. The lettuce and spinach continue to grow and might make it to Thanksgiving.

Between now and then, photos not necessarily related to gardening or the grange will fill the pages of the blog, serving as reminders of warmer weather.

Sunday, November 06, 2005

Bright Colors and Freezing Nights


Autumn upon St. Paul's Cemetary
Originally uploaded by tpl108.
Aside from the marvelous fall foliage, it's been a slow week in the grange. Had plans to pull up the tomatoes and clean out the containers, but those were dashed given how busy I've been.

Last weekend, we harvested just about all of the lettuce and spinach and had a huge salad of mixed greens. It was tasty as all get out. As an experienment, we left behind a few leaves to see if the plants would keep growing. Sure enough, the lettuce and spinach bounced back and will probably provide at least one more salad.

Now that the season's just about over there are a few last items that need to be taken care of in order to put the garden to bed for winter. The garden bed needs to be weeded, the hoses taken in, tools put away, dead plants removed from containers, and finally, rinsing out old containers.