July 25

Wow, it didn't take them long. The mints have grown back! And I've got two baby loofahs that are growing fast. Unfortunately, the fungus is really hitting the cucumbers hard, hopefully the spray I got for that will arrive in time to save them.


Meanwhile, basils seem to have dominated this plot.


And unfortunately, the tomatoes don't look too hot anymore.


The peppers are having a second big wave of growth and fruit though! The jalapenos are actually hot this time. I put two into some cornbread just now and was eating a bunch as I was chopping it up, leaving me with tingly lips. Yum! Even the habanero is finally producing!


The herbs are sprawling too and spilling over the edge of the wood like I'd hoped they would.


The corn is all dried up, but the greenbeans are making up for it.


And here is the asparagus looking super lush. The cypress vine should be blooming pretty soon. I spent like half an hour detangling it from the asparagus and winding it back up the trellis right before taking this picture.


Here you can see how out of hand the tomatillo has gotten. Then there is the mystery grain, and last, the lemongrass is finally forming a big clump like lemongrass should.


Future butterflies on rue! I wish the first two pictures hadn't come out so unfocused though.


A couple of pictures of the same plot from the back. The watermelon is succumbing to disease, and you can see tomatillo flowers. It's halfway up the trellis.


The swiss chard is almost as big as it was before I harvested it!


And lastly, two more pictures of the mint plot, with closeup of the two mints.

July 22nd Harvest!

Harvest time for the watermelon and canteloupe! I actually cut the watermelon off the vine a few days before after being paranoid as to whether it was ripe or not. There was no spot on the bottom to become yellow, but it did have a tendril near the fruit which had dried up completely and the thump was hollow. The canteloupe was already mostly separated from the vine, I think 3/4 of the way around is the rule of thumb.


Haven't opened the canteloupe yet, but it smells very melon-y. It was hot and we needed some watermelon so...

Wow, that was a yummy watermelon! Sweet but not mealy and just enough for two people.

And the loofah is ready! It has turned brown and very light so I looked up how to harvest it. It's pretty easy, just hit against the ground to make the end fall off and seeds start pouring out. Then roll it on the ground to loosen the skin and peel it like a boiled egg. Easier said than done, but it was still pretty easy. Then rinse the loofah under hot water and let dry thoroughly in the sun and it's ready for use! Apparently you can get the color to be whiter by dipping in a bleach solution, but I think the natural color is fine.

June 27th

I found a pretty caterpillar on the parsley!


The plot with watermelon and canteloupes is looking nice. Especially with the mystery grass (corn?) in the foreground. I've even got a watermelon and a canteloupe developing!


Fluffy asparagus.


The corn is defintely done now. I'm sad I didn't get any edible ears.


I harvested the chard and this is what's left.


Basil!


A bunch of tomatoes ready, which I harvested and you can really see that the peppers are all getting lush again. Even the habanero is growing now. The tomatoes became more pasta sauce of course.


I finally had to put a support on the loofah, it's gotten so big and heavy. Oops, I left one of the cucumbers on too long and it got bleached. I tried eating it but it was too bitter. Also, the mints got cut back again, even harder this time. Even though it's peppermint and not spearmint, I made Pudina (Mint) Potatoes from the fresh leaves. Wow, I never thought mint would go with potatoes but it's really nice this way! Looking for recipes to use up mint paid off!