We are finally entering the fall season!  I love the summer, but also love to experience the changing of seasons, especially Fall... with the cool, crisp air and the opportunity to wear my favorite scarves that are beautiful shades of orange, red, yellow, and brown. There are also the enchanting smells of pumpkin spice and the gentle sounds of the wind in the trees and the leaves dropping. And let's see, what else? Oh, a new chapter for seasonal gardening - the chance to finally grow Coriandrum sativum - aka cilantro!

Outdoor Salad Bar - photos by Al Alvarado

In my last MG garden blog, I wrote about my excitement about planning for the new season and escaping to the nursery to purchase seeds and starts for a new winter veggie garden.  Now, a month after planting everything, I have the broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, leafy greens, and herbs in the garden that are well on their way through the growth cycle.

My favorite is the salad garden, which is doing great! I am excited to have a ‘salad bar' growing right outside the kitchen door. As seen in the pictures, I have quite an assortment of leafy greens and herbs that are ready to pick for the perfect salad. This garden has a smorgasbord of kale, mustard greens, swiss chard, choices of buttercrunch and red leaf lettuce, many varieties of spinach, scallions, chives, and once again – cilantro!!!