Some of my garden flowers
Here we are, nearly in the middle of August! Abundance - Ripening Time is technically over tonight, but the abundance hasn't really come in yet.
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| Some early produce |
We've gotten a few squash and cucumbers, but certainly not been over run by them yet. We've also had a couple of bell peppers and one Asian eggplant.
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| Picking green beans |
Wax and green beans are coming along and I've gotten a few into the freezer.
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| First tomato! |
Today we had our first ripe tomato. It was delicious!
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| Chopped cabbage for the freezer |
The large cabbages have all been harvested and either eaten or frozen. I get smaller (tennis ball to softball) sized second crop heads after the main crop. I do this by cutting the main head off and leaving the stem in the ground. I then cut an "X" into the top of the stem. Soon new cabbage buds will grow around the "X". So, each stem will grow another 4-6 mini cabbage heads. They're just right for a single meal. We're just starting to use these now.
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| Preparing celery and parsley |
I'm still putting celery and parsley leaves into the freezer.
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| Half of my blue potatoes |
I've dug my blue potatoes. The reds mature a little later so they're still out there.
The garden is looking good right now. We just wish we were getting a little bit more out of it at the moment. Here's a sampling of garden shots from last week.
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| Corn and beans |
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| Beans and potatoes |
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| Sweet potatoes and beans |
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| Beans, tomatoes and cucumbers |
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| The flower section |
Remember, I grow nine different kinds of beans. That's why they're in almost every shot!
The weather here has been hot and dry. Our area is under a drought warning again this year. If this weather continues, at least the drying beans should mature well.
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| Deck work continues |
Bob's been working on the side porch deck. It's coming along well. I need to get the two posts on the connecting porch scraped and painted soon. Bob wants them done before he puts down the decking and installs the hand rails. I hope to start on that tomorrow.
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| Buttermilk Falls State Park |
On Lammas Eve (July 31) we went for a walk at Buttermilk Falls State Park in Ithaca. It's been so dry that the falls weren't much to look at, but the walk through the gorge was cool and nice.
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| Woodrow Chuck |
We had to give the boot to an unwanted guest this month. For years we have had wood chucks living under our sheds. We peacefully coexisted (with the aid of an Airedale and an electric fence wire). This year, one determined stinker decided it would rather live on our side of the fence. It barged through the wire, apparently ignoring the "zing" and began digging a new den next to our house foundation. One entire day it spent its "off digging" time sitting on our deck and basking in the sunshine on "Lunette's slope" overlooking our garden. I tried to chase it out, but it "dug in its heals" and wouldn't move. Even when I threw things at it! That was it! This critter had to go.
A licensed DEC animal relocator came and set two live traps for it.
Wrong place at the wrong time
The first and second night we got a racoon each time. Finally on the second afternoon we got the real culprit. All three were relocated. I presume to the nearby National Forest.
Yesterday I saw another wood chuck grazing outside of the fence. Hopefully this one will have better manners or will heed the shocks from the fence wire.
Well, that's most of the fun we've been having here this month. We hope that you're enjoying yourselves and are safe from fires and floods. (We know some of you are in those areas.)
Oh, just a reminder, if you want to see any of our back issues, just pick them up from the website menu list.
Till the next full moon,
Kathleen and Bob
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| Our wild blackberries |
