Task List for Fall

TAKE TIME now to check off the items below. You can look forward to a bountiful fall and a beautiful spring.
• Order spring-flowering bulbs for fall planting.
• Divide irises and other spring-flowering perennials.
• Keep planting short-season vegetables like peas, lettuce, radishes and beats for a fall harvest.
• Harvest and preserve herbs for winter use.
• Look for American goldfinches building nests as thistles produce down, their preferred nesting material.
• Watch as teenage birds begin to grow feathers that make them look more like their parents.

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The Taste of Home Cookbook

YOU'LL HAVE a wealth of information at your fingertips with our newest collection, The Taste of Home Cookbook. It’s our most comprehensive cookbook ever, filled with timeless recipes from trusted home cooks. Held in a sturdy, five-ring binder, the 674-page book features more than 1,200 kitchen-tested recipes and over 1,300 color photos. Every recipe includes clear, step-by-step instructions and nutrition information.

Plus, there are easy-to-follow reference charts and five indexes to make it a snap to locate just the right recipe. It’s a great go-to guide for your own kitchen, but it also makes a perfect gift for the beginning or experienced cook in your life. Find The Taste of Home Cookbook in stores nationwide or visit Country Store On-Line to order your copy today!

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Remember This Tip for Thistle

WHEN thistle seed (also called niger) gets wet, it cakes together and the birds can’t get it out of the feeder. To prevent this from happening, shake up the remaining seed in feeders before filling them.

Several times a year, you’ll also want to clean your tube feeders. Remove the remaining thistle seed, make sure the ports are open and let them air dry before refilling with fresh seed.

It’s important to store all birdseed in dry, well-sealed containers. Metal garbage cans, for example, will keep the seed dry and protect it from hungry critters.

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Do Shrikes Make You Shreik?

MOST BIRDERS enjoy all birds, but some birds can cause problems. For example, shrikes may prey on the other birds that visit your feeders. There’s not much you can—or should—do to stop this without hurting the shrikes. What you can do is provide more trees and shrubs near your bird feeders. This natural cover gives the songbirds a chance to escape.

While they may not be enjoyable, shrikes are birds of prey, and nature intended for them to hunt the kinds of birds that frequent your feeders.

Both of the North American shrike species—loggerheads and northerns—are carnivorous songbirds, equipped with hooked beaks and hawk-like eyesight. Besides songbirds, they feed on reptiles and amphibians, small rodents and large insects.

Shrike populations are in serious decline, so it’s in the best interest of these birds to protect them whenever possible.

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Taking Hold in Sandy Soil

EVEN if you have sandy soil around your home, there are plants that may do well. Look for drought-tolerant plants and water them several times a week to get them established. Once they’re well-rooted, they’ll tolerate the dry growing conditions associated with sandy soil.

For sunny areas, try some of the following annuals: sunflower, zinnia, blanket flower, cosmos, cockscomb, gazania (treasure flower), portulaca, dusty miller, dahlberg daisy, verbena and Mexican sunflower. And if you prefer perennials, try these sun-lovers: purple coneflower, black-eyed Susan, gayfeather, thyme, artemesia, perennial sunflower, yucca, sedum, Russian sage, potentilla and ornamental grasses.

It’s harder to find shade plants that will tolerate dry soil. But you can try perennials like deadnettle (Lamium), variegated archangel (Lamiastrum), lily-of-the-valley and coral bells.

Annuals such as periwinkle and the biennial Chinese forget-me-nots will also grow in dry, partially shaded locations.

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These Riddles Are Bloomin’ Hilarious!

THE FOLLOWING garden riddles were sent in by Josie D. of Downingtown, Pennsylvania. We had a lot of fun attempting to solve Josie’s clever stumpers and figured you would, too. All the answers are the names of flowers. If you’re completely stymied, the answers are shown below. Enjoy!

1. What a guy did when proposing marriage.
2. An udderly bad barnyard accident.
3. What John’s mom says every morning.
4. Sad Southern gals.
5. A country with lots of automobiles.
6. Groups of sheep.
7. Farm critter’s whiskers.
8. Keeps a woman warm.
9. Used for eating ice cream.
10. What you might call a lousy female boxer.
11. A child did this to a birthday candle.
12. Obstetricians are relieved to hear this.
13. Grows between mountains.
14. A man’s name and an old writing instrument.
15. What temperatures below 32° do.

1-Aster; 2-Cowslip; 3-Johnny-jump-up; 4-Bluebells; 5-Carnation; 6-Phlox; 7-Goatsbeard; 8-Lady’s mantle; 9-Coneflower; 10-Black-eyed Susan; 11-Bluet; 12-Baby’s breath; 13-Lily of the valley; 14-Jonquil; 15-Freesia.

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Small Trees, Big Harvest!

IN Ellensburg, Washington, William B. loved the idea of growing fruit but didn’t want to devote his entire backyard to fruit trees. “Then I discovered a French method called ‘espalier’ to grow apples and pears in areas with very little space,” shares William. “I couldn’t wait to give it a try in my backyard.”

William placed stakes alongside the young trees and stretched wires between them. Then he tied the branches to the wires. As they grew, he pruned and trained the trees to keep them about 5 feet tall.

“It took a few years for my trees to fill out, but now I harvest an abundant crop of mouth-watering apples and pears each year,” he says. “And I didn’t have to give up my whole yard to do it.”

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