Mists and Mellow

How did it get to be October so quickly? I am still in the garden, tying up the new raspberries and getting ready to plant garlic - and I think I am going to try fall sowing potatoes. Always something new to try! The rudbeckia I grew from seed this spring is really strutting its stuff at the moment. They are certainly doing better than the echinaceas, but of course they are perennials and the rudbeckia are not.
Another annual I shall certainly plant again is ricinus communis (Castor Bean) which didn't get as large as I'd hoped but still is making quite an impact.

The burgundy ones look the best but I like the red stems on the green ones. Those to the west of the house are big and doing well, but haven't produced seed, I suspect because they don't get sun until the afternoon. I hope to get enough seed from the ones in the photo to produce next year's crop! And speaking of seed, I am harvesting seed from Anne's giant bachelors' buttons (the ones I grew, I mean) to be able to plant them again. (*Update: They are Centurea Aloha alba - and there are 'rose' ones as well. Must find some. )I'll put them farther back in the border next year. They turned out quite tall.

The geranium "Rozanne" is in this same bed (and there's another one in another bed as well) and it has been blooming all summer and fall. It is certainly as good as everyone says.The cosmos are keeping on but man, did they ever get big as well! There are amaranthus in this bed too, but, unlike last year, they did nothing this time. Curses. I have some verbena "Bonariensis" here too, doing well. I actually saw some in parks in Dartmouth when we were there in September - catching on for municipal planting!!
I have harvested the cranberries in my cranberry bog - I think I counted 61 this year, up from 12 last year. And it's the big apple harvest I anticipated - we have had apple crumble and apple cake already, and they are only getting started ripening.The pruning last winter did no harm at all.