Wait, you mean there are other vegetables? From reading this blog, you would probably think there was nothing but tomatoes...
But, no, we do have other vegetables. Lettuce is going strong at the moment, but a few are showing signs of bolting. This is one set of lettuce. Also a few late broccoli (which I think are ready to flower even though they are barely an inch in diameter) and some soramame (big beans?) which are being attacked by aphids (I have a close up photo of the aphid problems I will post soon, isn't it nice to have something to look forward to?) Our compost bin is on the left and the small mini tomato patch from yesterday's post behind.
These are other other lettuces and behind them, baby okra. And my husband is thinning! No really! Stop presses! It is a rare event indeed. I was watch a Desperate Housewives episode where Lynette and Tom go to a marriage counselor and she is upset that he is always good cop, forcing her to be bad cop. Well, that's what I sometimes feel like in the garden. When infanticide is called for, I'm the one who has to do the deed. Anyway, here he is, I made him thin his okra and cucumbers himself. These were okra seedlings from the garden store. Salad okra, green and red. I also have some seedlings I started, but haven't planted out yet.
Zucchini is going strong. I planted Black Beauty and Lebanese varieties, and so far the BB seems to be growing faster than the L.
These are the pumpkin seedlings my students planted. Jack o'Lantern on the left and Howden on the right.
Kabocha on the left, then Jack be Little, and Cinderella pumpkins. A few artichokes at the top and bottom. I planted two artichokes near the big tomatoes yesterday, and big pumpkins at the bottom of the embankment this morning. Jack Be Little mini-pumpkins are going to be on a trellis in front of my classroom.
And here are mystery pumpkins which were growing out of the mini-tomato plot. They are the most healthy of all our pumpkins, but we have no idea what kind they are. Last year we had Howden, Cinderella, standard kabocha, and a oval shaped gourd that didn't look or taste very good, but was strong enough to beat back weeds on the embankment. If these are any of the first three, we want to keep them, but if they are the steam roller gourd, we don't. Hmmmm....
Here are baby corn at the bottom of the embankment. We are going to try three sisters this year with corn, vine beans, and pumpkin.
We had lovely spinach, but Mr. Must-sow-all-the-seeds-in-the-packs planted them all at the same time and despite my most valiant efforts (spinach for every meal, including breakfast) most of it ended up going to seed.
Cucumbers... Mr-I-won't-kill-a-baby-seedling has an undisclosed number of these hoarded up in curious places around the garden. Oh well, when they are at their peak, we won't be here. If he wants to give himself the cucumber crud again, it is is his choice.
Carrots. He planted them in rows at least this time, but see what I mean about the thinning? I think I will have to give in and be designated murderer again.
Beans...
Onions, peas and potatoes. Just a few potatoes, because M hates potatoes and L is allergic. Well, I said, "Just a few potatoes, okay, honey?" See how he listens to me... I love potatoes, but cooking anything with potatoes means cooking an alternative for the girls. I don't love cooking. But I see a lot of potato cooking in my future. Maybe we should consider a third child. Pregnancy gives me major potato cravings.
The girls check out the potatoes. Do you think Daddy is going try to make us eat all of these??? You're lucky, you're allergic!
Whereas the black ones prefer to destroy one of our Rose of Sharon trees, oddly leaving the other three identical (well, except they have leaves that haven't been eaten by aphids) neighboring trees untouched...
Here are the girls feeding the fish which they caught from the river with my husband. The little fish (medaka in English?) are going strong, and the water plant that has pretty purple flowers in the summer is starting to get leaves.
This is my next project, the herb garden is in a dreadful state, the rosemary and lavender need pruning, the chives are flowering away, the basil patch-to-be is overrun with baby weeds and I haven't planted any basil yet, and the whole thing is dandelions and moss...
The girls spent most of the time while we were planted tomatoes in the west plot chatting with the lady who has the garden to the east. She lives downtown, but she and her husband have rented the plot next to us for many years.
And, the girls must have been charming because they scored a huge bag of sugar snap peas! I have been coveting their peas for the past week as ours are not quite ready yet. Hooray! Here are a few...
