Colors Fade

​     Although it came remarkably late, we experienced our first hard, killing frost the other night.  Our annual flowers have mostly turned black, yet some remnants of summer remain.  Broccoli blooms crown the still-green plants with meals of fresh broccoli still on the plants.  Beautiful, hardy, red lettuce can still be picked and peas still bloom, but there is little chance they will mature.
     Many thousands of native, perennial plants are now snuggled into cold-frames next to greenhouses.  These will soon be insulated and covered to protect them from winter.  Hopefully they will re-sprout next spring and bloom.