Garden Report - Week Ending May 29

Developments this week, in pictures!

...so named because she's about the only one in
the family who eats them...

There must be 8 - 10 cantaloupe out there.

These are the things that failed miserably last year,

so Henry didn't plant them again.

Ah, the joys of composting!

*****

Yes, it's a very small carrot, but it's a carrot!

*****

I have dearly loved my radishes, but they are so hot 

nobody but me will eat them. It's a good thing 

they are so photogenic, right?

*****

Say it with me....

TENDRILS!!

*****

I am pretty sure these are black bean blossoms.

Henry would know for sure.

He's asleep on the sofa.

I will not wake him to ask.

I have already asked him.

4,238 times.

But I keep forgetting.

So. 

I only took this picture because these are his 

favorite blooms out there right now. 

One does one's best to keep the farmer happy.

*****

But the biggest news out there this week....

~~ Ta-da!! ~~

Henry's Mother-in-law's tomatoes!

Garden Report (and more again) - Week ending April 30

This is going to be one of those quick and dirty blog entries, by which I mean I'm patching this stuff together, and goodness knows that the usual incredibly amazing photography and writing to which you have become accustomed is just going all out the window.


Please make sure you read the sarcasm in that. But I digress.

Early in the week whilst out on a walk 

I spotted a whole bunch of these.

I spent a fair amount of time after snapping this photo recalling with great fondness how much fun we used to have smashing these things in one another's faces when we were little. Do children do that any more? Or have we mostly ChemLawned them out of existence? It made me nostalgic for the old days on Montezuma Road, where we burned the soles of our feet on the hot asphalt so they'd be tough enough to play kickball or Swing the Statue in yards full of stickers. Gosh -- does anybody even have those in their yards anymore?

In this fit of good-old-days-itis at the earliest opportunity I marched Rosemary out to our fence, plucked honeysuckle off the vine, and tried to educate her in the fine art of stamen removal so she might taste the nectar therein. We will try that again later. Right now, she much prefers the taste of rocks from Pop's garden.

She also prefers having her very own camp chair. 
It's a Lucas thing. 

But you're just here for the garden stuff, right?

Here goes!

And in a moment of pure bliss, I pretended like I was a farmer, too...

***

Oh. And I probably should mention here that beginning on May 3, 2011 at 7 a.m. there will be a really amazing man 

helping run this operation.

Gratitude doesn't even begin to cover it. 

By the way... feel free to click on the pictures you want to see better. They get bigger.

And when you want to get back to the blog, you just hit your back arrow.

I do not charge extra for this helpful advice.

If I have misidentified any produce, it's not my fault. 

A certain farmer was too busy getting ready to go out to celebrate to make sure I had everything right. 

But I love him better than hot radishes anyway.

Henry's Garden - RIP

There hasn't been a garden post in a while. Things have really come to a halt out there over these past few weeks, and it wasn't looking all that pretty so I figured I'd spare the pre-eulogy.  But it's done, now, and so it's time to look back.

So, here's how things went:  some things just did not do well at all. The squash were the first casualty, which broke my heart.  Melons were a bust (cantaloupe came in, but were tasteless).  Beans just didn't quite do their thing.  Eggplant were marginal, cucumbers were awesome, and the tomatoes kept the Farmer very happy for a sufficiently long period of time. Green peppers just didn't happen, but the radishes were amazing while they lasted.

But the biggest surprise to me was the okra.  I have spent most of a lifetime avoiding it whenever and however possible.  It got to where  Henry was picking a basket of it almost every morning, and I just couldn't bear not figuring out how to use it.   Henry started out frying it up, but it has been a hot summer, and who wants to do that regularly in the heat?

Then I ran across a place on the internet that said steaming it just to doneness created a whole 'nother dining experience, so I figured, "Why not?"

Oh. My. Goodness.

Love at first bite, people.  My life has changed.

I learned some other things while Henry's garden 

went about its business, 

things I want to share with you.  

1.  Something is always happening, even when you can't see it.

2.  Farmers are just little boys 

all grown up,

 looking for some dirt in which to play.

3.  Even the best farmer in the world can use help sometimes.

4.  Rain helps everything grow.

5. There's a whole lot of excitement in pretty things that spring up. It's easy to be dazzled, and we enjoy admiring beauty.

But it often happens that when beautiful things are free from spending so much energy on being noticed they are finally able to reveal their hidden gifts and best fruit.

6.  Some days, just showing up can make somebody's day.

7.  When you've been married a long, long time to your best friend,  gifts from the heart trump gifts from the wallet every time.

8.  And finally, there comes a time when it just seems all 

the good stuff is over....

But guess what?

I looked at the garden this morning and saw some flashes of color. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, so I walked through a misty rain to take a closer look.

And I got my final lesson from the garden.

9.  Easter happens around us, all the time.

Morning Glory!