The garden looks great... Today I got more rows weeded and mulched. I also planted some replacement peppers where earlier plants have disappeared. I also weeded the center of the garden, which will eventually be surrounded by flowers and hold a table and chairs. The celosia and spider zinnias are gorgeous, but the weeds choked out a lot of the other plants. I weeded thoroughly and planted Amish Cockscomb transplants and seeds of zinnias, cosmos, four o'clocks, and nasturtiums. There are a few rows that are in need of weeding this week, but overall, the weeds are in check...
The good thing about all the rain we have had this summer is I haven't had to water at all. I measured 15.25" of rain during the month of June here at the farm. That is more rain than any other month since we've been here. The ground is still soggy in a few spots, but the water has been a boon to not only the plants in the garden, but the weeds... mostly grasses and thistle, really.
Today I ate the first ground cherries from the garden this year. Two years ago, I grew these little gems, and loved them. This year, I am growing a variety called Cossack Pineapple. These little ones aren't quite as sweet as the first kind I grew, but these little yellow fruits really taste like pineapple. Delicious. I just harvested cilantro for tonight's dinner. Even across the room, I can smell the citrus scent from those delicate leaves.
My knees are sore. My fingers keep cramping up from the hours I spent weeding today, but I am satisfied... Growing as much of our own food as I can is exhausting, but so rewarding... And we are in full anticipation of the first ripening tomatoes. There are about a dozen Taxi tomato plants with beautiful ripening fruit on them... perhaps in a week or two?
The pictures are: 1) Greasy beans spreading over their trellis. 2)Celosia getting ready to bloom. 3)The first zinnia. 4)Rows of mulched peppers, tomatoes, and tomatillos. 5)Tomatoes in flowers.
