Just another day in the garden

Friday evening we woke in the middle of the night to the sound of thunder (close!) and rain on the roof.  In the light of day, the rain gauge revealed that a much needed inch of rain had fallen. No matter how hard we try, our watering efforts are never as effective as a good soak from Mother Nature. The plants have perked up. The veggies are growing like mad.

Yesterday I was mostly focused on getting green beans and beets processed and ready to eat, then putting up another batch of berry jam. Today, I took a closer look at the rest of the garden. Oh, my! The cherry tomatoes needed tying up. Two of my roselle plants had fallen over. The shishito peppers are ready to harvest, with one plant so overloaded with fruit it had fallen over on its side!

I got busy and picked the peppers. This is my first year growing shishito peppers. Last summer, they were all the rage, and for good reason. Oh my gosh, they are tasty! Officially classified as hot peppers, they are actually not hot at all ... except when they are! One out of every ten or twenty will be a bit spicy ... just enough to get your attention. Anyone for a little "Russian roulette" at the pepper platter?

No need to remove the seeds from these peppers. Just throw them, whole, onto the grill or into the skillet. Char-grilled or blistered with a little olive oil and sea salt, they make an awesome appetizer or unusual side dish. Can't wait to dig into our first batch!

Next task ... shore up the roselle. I carefully placed large tomato cages around the plants, taking care not to break any branches. I hope that will provide strong enough support in the long run.

Then, my espaliered cherry tomato plants needed some attention. What a mess! Fortunately, I was able to get them under control. I trained them up and across the plastic fencing, tying as needed. We've been enjoying the black cherry tomatoes, with plenty more to come. And finally, some little green tomatoes on the sun golds.

Once the urgent tasks were complete, I accomplished the daily picking of beans and cucumbers. I finished as the first hot rays of sun came over the tree tops and into the garden. Perfect timing!

Coffee First ... then the Garden

It's July, and it's hot and humid. When it comes to garden chores, the best plan is an early morning plan. As soon as I get up, I pour myself a big steaming cup of coffee. That's right ... it's already brewed and waiting. Rouse the Spouse spoils me that way :-)

Properly fortified, I head to the garden. The blueberries are coming on strong. The prolific green beans (rattlesnake pole beans and jade bush beans) were picked yesterday, but the beets need to be harvested today. A few cucumbers hide under their vines but cannot escape my eagle eye. It's a race with the sun. As soon as it peeks over the trees, it's quittin' time!

This morning, Rouse the Spouse did the blueberry picking. I pulled the beets and did the initial clean and sort of the roots and greens.

Then, into the kitchen to prep and cook (under pressure) the beets and yesterday's green beans. Then, prepare a batch of blueberry jam. Ooooh! The larder is looking better every day!

Mother Nature will take care of it... right?

Rouse the Spouse generously informed me that I would be in charge of removing the stinky, dead snake from the bird netting. Oh, no. Is he kidding?! I saw a vulture checking it out today. Maybe he will take care of it? But, no ... the place is too sketchy for a vulture. No way to relax and enjoy a good meal. No easy escape. The vulture passed us by.

So I went out to look at the poor snake, impossibly tangled in bird netting. But, wait! Even without the help of Brother Vulture, Mother Nature was taking care of business. The Blow Flies had already congregated, intent on laying their eggs (aka maggots) which would eventually hatch into very hungry larvae that consume decaying flesh. Beside them, a mass of dramatically colored yellow and black American Carrion Beetles were getting on with the business of laying THEIR eggs. Interesting factoid: In addition to eating the decaying flesh, carrion beetle adults and larvae eat maggots and other insect larvae that are competing for the same fleshy food sources. Look out flies!

I'm ok with this. I may have to put up with a little smelliness for a few days, but I'm grateful for the natural ways in which our earth very efficiently takes care of the unpleasantries of life.

The Daily Picking

I picked the garden this morning until the sweat dripped off my nose. I took that as a sign ... finished!

It was 11:00am. The sun should've stopped me at 10:30, but so many blueberries! And two beds of green beans that had to be picked. Plus, I just KNEW there was a cucumber or two under that heavy vine cover. Now for a tall glass of water and recovery in the blessed air conditioned house.

bountiful counter-full

Human Error Strikes Again

We lost Zebra, the presumptive rooster, last night. Got distracted at the wrong time and failed to close the green zone off from the larger chicken yard. Dammit! Assumed raccoon attack. Nothing left but the feathers.

Do not look if squeamish or tender hearted!

Bird netting saves the blueberries for human consumption, but not without a cost. Things can ... and DO ... get caught up in it. We were sad to find this black snake fatally ensnared. Sorry for the loss of this magnificent creature.

First Black Cherry Tomatoes

Almost waited too long to get this first bunch ... a couple have already split!