Garden de-briefing

I yanked out my big tomato vines last week; they were black and wilted, drooped over their cages, looking every bit how you would expect tomatoes to look after some hard freezes.  One of them never amounted to much, and only gave me a few tomatoes. The other, next to it, was quite large and gave me many good tomatoes, even with stink bugs ravaging it.  When I pulled it (with difficulty) from the ground I was impressed by its thick, strong root system.  I don't know if it was the cultivar, or the location, or the soil, or what, but I hope I can duplicate that next year.  I wish I could remember what cultivar it was.

Early last week I finished off the last of my fried green tomatoes, and they were very good.  My first efforts at making them a few years ago were only marginally successful, but I think I'm pretty good at it now.  It sure makes a big mess, though.

I think the only things that still look green are the lavender and the sage. If I can make some time, I still intend to dig up my glad bulbs for the winter; I'm sure it's not too late, and it needs to be done, but there are always some other projects that take priority.  That's made even more difficult by the facts that it's now completely dark when I get home from work, and on the weekends lately it's been snowing or raining.

I have compost I need to transfer to a small raised bed I made from cinder blocks; then I can put all my leaves and other compost over into the proper compost cage.  But apart from that, and cutting back some weeds from the back fence, I'll be mostly ignoring my back yard until March or April.