I cut a bouquet of sweet basil today. Andrew converted it into a batch of luscious pesto, then used it to sauce up a spaghetti squash he received as part of his compensation for work done all day Friday at Hickory Mountain Farm.
I spoke too soon in my last posting. The long beans are actually still producing quite well. Those plants do tolerate heat and drought. The little bit of watering I've been doing must be good enough. I love those beans stir fried with garlic in olive oil until tender, sort of crispy, and sprinkled generously with salt.
The bed of salad greens are not looking so good. The radishes are developing nicely, but something has been gnawing on the roots. Squirrels? They've been leaving enough for us humans, though. The lettuce has shriveled up - again. The spinach is non-existent. The arugula, beets, and chard are hanging in there. We need some cooler weather ... and some rain ... and fewer bugs.
The bed of cooking greens, on the other hand, are looking pretty delicious, despite little insect induced holes here and there. The chickens sure do like them! Those yard birds have trimmed back the plants all along the edge of the bed as far as they can stick their heads in through the plastic fencing.
The little butterflies like these greens, too. Lovely to look at flitting about, but not such a good omen for the success of my greens crop. If I were following best gardening practices I would have covered my newly planted green seeds with floating row cover as soon as I sowed them to protect them from such pests. I've never done that, but I can see the value of it. Heat, drought, bugs ... so many challenges for these young seedlings!
Today I ordered new seed (lots of greens and other fall/winter crops) and a 50-foot roll of lightweight agricultural fabric from Johnnie's Select Seeds. I'll get Andrew to help me get more seed in the ground, and this time I'll do it right!
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