TONIGHT IN THE GARDEN

We had some nice rainstorms this week and I’ve not been out to the garden to water since the weekend. So that’s what I did tonight when I got home from work, along with a general check and cleanup.

I collected more tomatoes, cucumbers, and Time Bomb Peppers. Even so, look at how many are still ripening.

I also trimmed dead or diseased leaves from plants. While I was gone, there was a heat wave here (same as in many other parts of the country) and Oscar just couldn’t keep things watered enough. By the time I arrived home, the mint, elderberry bush (which had flowers on it when I left, sob!), and comfrey had bit the dust.

I love how resilient nature can be. I didn’t give up on watering them and was gratified to see the elderberry bush had new growth along several branches. So, I trimmed the sticks that showed no signs of life.

The spearmint, which was a black mass of dead foliage, has new growth!

It doesn’t seem to matter how many times the comfrey dies. Give it the water it needs, and it rewards you with new growth.

I trimmed all the herbs and gave them to the chickens, along with a few tomatoes the bugs had gotten into and a cucumber that was overly scarred.

Road Runner was complaining that I wasn’t letting them out to roam. I groused back that he had failed as a rooster by not saving Chipmunk from whatever attacked and killed her. When I approached the run though, I saw that he had a large, tender-looking, bald patch on his back where the feathers had been yanked out. I took that as a sign that maybe he did try to help and apologized to him for the uncharitable thoughts I’d had toward him. No, the chickens still can’t come out.

About a month ago, the foliage completely died back on two pots of potatoes. That is the sign that they are ready to harvest. However, by number of days, it was not time! So, I determined I’d leave them in the pots until I returned from my trip.

Look what I found when I dumped those two pots tonight!

Aren’t they lovely? I will let them cure a bit before doing anything further with them.

By the way, running the tomatoes through the blender did speed up the dehydration process. I now have the beginnings of a supply of tomato powder.

What didn’t work out was the repair job on my farm boots.

The rubber edge had become separated from the boot in a one-inch section and my foot was getting soaked. Trying to be frugal and make it last through the end of the season, we repaired it by gluing the separation and duct taping the seam for extra security. Then we let it “cure” for several days. Sigh, that patch job only worked for one wearing. Tonight, my foot got soaked.

Oh well, at least we tried, right?