Having said that, I could not give up gardening completely, so I needed to find another way to make my hands happy. Dirt under my fingernails makes my "happy" endorphins go crazy (in a good way)!
So the balcony is where all this happiness happens.
I have large Rubbermaid containers that I use for my tomato plant. Yes I have only one. We have been buying a cheery tomato plant every year since going to the balcony garden. Hubby and I have enjoyed breakfast on the balcony for at least 8 years now. Once my plant starts producing those lovely little cherry tomatoes, we can count on at least a dozen for each of us, every morning. There is nothing sweeter than a cherry tomato or two or a dozen for breakfast. So sweet and cool, even when the weather is downright blistering hot.
But, it's now October and our tomato season is officially over. I have cut the plants all back, picked off the last of the tomatoes even though they were green. In a sunny window, they will still ripen and the frost won't turn them into puckered up little balls.
So to ensure that I have some of these delightful tomatoes for next year, I am busy drying out just a few of the small tomatoes for seeds for next year. Would you believe I just harvested the last of these gems tonight? I did.
The other plant that I love on my balcony is an annual called Love Lies Bleeding. It grows about 6 feet tall and has these funky tassels that hang down. They are burgundy red in color and I love them because they are easy to grow. Even if I don't manage to save seeds (that would never happen), they do manage to survive our winter months. A small seed (and I do mean small) will easily become a mammoth plant in one season and when fall arrives, it is the one thing that will continue to bloom right until the first snow starts to fly.
If you like saving seeds, these ones are easy, easy, easy to save. Just cut off one of the "tassels" and put it into a paper envelope. In a few days, there will be thousands and thousands of seeds and some pretty red bits of flower as well. The seeds are shiny black and the chaff won't hurt the seeds. They dry out quickly and don't turn moldy.
Love Lies Bleeding Seeds, see how tiny they are?
Let me know if you have tried any of these or if I have tickled your planter's fancy to give it a go next year.
Happy Autumn and I'm already looking forward to next Spring.
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