Storms and a Few Flowers at the End of June

Big storms rolled through the area yesterday bringing much needed rain after a prolonged period of dry. I was really happy, as I have always felt that no amount of hosing will ever replace good ole Ma Nature letting loose a deluge on the garden.

The clouds were cool....

The lightening bolts striking into the ocean, angrily breaking the heat wave we have been sweltering under.

Meanwhile, the flowers are doing the end of June things...the Black & Blue Salvia is waiting for the hummers....

The Hibiscus is outrageous, despite the Japanese Beetles having a feast on the leaves...

The riot area of the garden...disorderly, floppy, blooming every which way....I love it....

                                                 Tomorrow is July 1...how the heck did that happen...

Saturday Miscellaneous

A cherished lazy Saturday in the middle of many comings and goings. Happy to have GoddessSupport back from too much travel...packing our son off for a week away next week. Little in the way of gardening after a week of brutal heat and alot of work on big projects.

This tomato in a pot on the deck is a winner...an orange cherry, it has the best flavor, and the moment it's ripe, I pick and eat it! Not one has made it into the house.

We spent the day on the beach and what a terrific day it was...rolling waves perfect for just laying on a boogie board and the water temperature was an unbelievable 81!! The osprey were fishing and surely jealous of the kid who landed a good sized cobia off the pier.

We were lazy floaters.....loving life....

We returned home to a great dinner of grilled grouper. And this is what I did with my patty pan squash...bacon, onion, garlic, scooped out squash, Parmesan cheese, Italian herbs, s&p sauteed and stuffed, put there little hats back on...baked ~30 minutes...they were great! They have a sweet kind of nutty flavor. I would make them that way again... I think sliced think in a casserole with cheddar cheese and bread crumbs would work well also... So success there...glad there will be more! (And Arizona Garden Goddess will be so proud that I got GoddessSupport to eat squash!!! Yeah me!!!)


BUT The peppers...I thought were Italian ...were HOT HOT HOT HOT.... not good for the inside of my mouth!!! Definitely NOT Italian...hmmmm Oh well...

Today's Harvest...

My first ever cantaloupe! Also....Italian red speckled beans, Italian, Serrano and jalapeno peppers, green peppers, patty pan squash, lemon cukes, Mr stripey and another Cherokee purple tomato....lots of good eatin in that tray!

At War With the Hornworms!

But first...I am still stuck on my crazy coneflowers...who are turning somewhat risque looking...but it's all birds and bees isn't it?

OK...now on to the horn worms. I happily go to see what's going on in the garden before scooting off to work and I was screamed with horror when I saw that ~1/3 of the leaves had been eaten off the Mr Stripey tomatoes by two FAT FAT FAT horn worms who I could swear smirked at me! I quickly declared war and since the recommended squishing is not my cup of tea, I retrieved a plastic drink bottle from the trash, snatched the offenders from my Mr Stripey's (of course with a gloved hand) and dropped their green butts into the bottle. I left the sealed bottle near the tomatoes as a warning to the other hormworms...eat my stuff and the same fate awaits you...death by plastic drink bottle...(insert evil laugh here!)

Here is the bottle- see the offenders in the bottle....ha!

On a much more pleasant note...I picked my first Cherokee Purple tomato and at it warm with salt for lunch...it was incredible...and made me forget the whole worm trauma.

Lastly, the okra is flowering and fruiting.....cool!

Father's Day in the Garden

First...homage to my Dad...oh how I miss him! It's been 4 years almost to the day since I last saw him and nothing is the same without him. Happy Father's Day to my Dad and GoddessSupport!

Yesterday I picked my first Pattypan Squash...isn't it perfect?!?!?! I love the shape and the soft green color.

I feel happy as I approach the garden and see this view...

These coneflowers are "becoming" their fullest version of themselves.

The ditch lilies have morphed into doubles....hmmmm.

This guy has a thing for landing on rocks and stones.

One of my favorite pictures of the year...the light was just perfect...

Maria's corn doing it's thing!

My cantaloupe now has soft green webbing..it's size compared to a quarter....it's neighbor coming along.

More watermelons....

I would conservatively estimate about a hundred Roma tomatoes on these plants...

Bloom Day...Sort Of

I know a purist would stick to flowers for Bloom Day, but what the heck- my garden is eclectic and so is my Bloom Day!

As you enter the fenced part of the garden, the Mr Stripey tomatoes are quite happy across the lane from the volunteer dill just out of range on the right.

For some reason this Zipper Spider thought the celery was a great place to start a zipper...he was there yeterday but had moved along today...

This part of the garden will be a jungle by August ...I suspect with no visible paths....there are about 7 or 8 baby watermelons already! Luckily I am a big watermelon fan.

I love the cherry colored Yarrow against the Bright Lights Chard...add a little fallen over Bee Balm just for messy effect.

GoddessSupport spied this Eyed Elator (Click Beetle). I have since read that they like to munch on carrots and beets. My beets are about quarter sized so I will have to keep my eye out. I have a second sowing of carrots that have just sprouted. One, yes one, sprouted from the first, so I tried again...so look out Mr Elator!

Assassin bug...eat all the Japanese Beetles you like and we will peacefully coexist.

Baby Spaghetti Squash with Flower.

Yellow Woolly Bear Spilosoma Virginica Caterpillar...turns into a tiger moth, later

Baby Pattypan Squash with Blossom...

There are about 5 ears of corn developing so far!

My best Dragonfly pic yet, I think....I like the sun on his wings.

Lots of figs.

Corn and tomatoes and Bee Balm in the sprinkle....there really hasn't been much in the way of rain.

That's all for today!

Just Call Me the Mulch Goddess!

I think I have mulched my brains out....or very possibly sweated them out! But I am sold on the many benefits of mulch...the instant beautification for one. But mostly the weed blocking is the best thing going.

Before starting, a small harvest this morning. Cukes are a daily treat now.

During one of my rehydrating breaks, I grabbed my camera to see what I could see...

...or who was seeing me!

A baby watermelon the size of my thumbnail...

My second cantaloupe about chicken egg sized.

My Italian Speckled Red Beans are doing great!

This Coneflower is about 7 feet tall!

Baby Lemon Cucumber...

Unknown bug in a Balloon Flower.

All the Roma tomatoes are making lots of fruit! Got to buy some jars this week.

Mulch, mulch, mulch, mulch, mulch..... back to mulch, mulch, mulch, mulch.