Calendula & Zucchini

This morning I harvested zucchini and calendula flowers in addition to the usual collards, lettuce, and herbs from the garden. The zucchini plant needs trimming because many of it's leaves seem to wither when they get tangled up with the other limbs of the zucchini plant. I used some twine to tie the tomato plants to their staking posts and trimmed their leaves back. There are many small green fruits appearing on most of the tomato plants. There are three cucumbers growing. The teepee trellis is working wonderfully so far for the two cucumber plants that are climbing it. Occasionally I have to move them away from the neighboring tomato stakes and tie the cucumber vine to the teepee. I haven't seen any peppers yet and I'm looking forward to trying some from the seed grown plants. We are experiencing some high temperatures (mid 90s) today and I'm hoping we get the rain tonight and tomorrow the weathermen have been promising.

Clockwise from the top: Calendula flowers, Collard greens, Zucchini, Lettuce, Nasturtium flowers & leaves, Parsley, Sage, Lovage, Basil, & Thyme.

I'm planning to use the calendula petals (top of picture) as a garnish for food since they are edible. They don't have much flavor but they do have a pretty burnt orange color to them. I'm also interested in using them in rice dishes to see if they impart their color. The nasturtium flowers (bottom of picture) are pretty topping an omelete in the morning and add a spicy flavor. I've also used the nasturtium leaves (zesty flavor) inside an omelete usually accompanied by swiss chard and/or collard greens and of course cheese.

Thunderstorms and Spiders

Today within 2 hours we received over 2 inches of rain and we're expecting even more rain. I'm hoping this translates to greener leaves and better tomatoes in the garden. In the last couple of days there has been an increase in the variety of insects in the garden. Some red mites on the Brandywine tomato leaves one day was followed by the appearance of cobwebs and spiders the next. I'm thinking the straw provides a good home for predator (beneficial) insects. The swallowtail caterpillar is missing from his favorite dill plant and to my relief he is not on the adjacent collard greens; I didn't want to have to touch him, it's kinda gross.

Harvested today: Salad Bowl Lettuce, Baby Butterhead Lettuce, 2 Kohlrabi bulbs (which are now pickling in the fridge) and enough Kohlrabi leaves and Collard Green leaves for omelets.

Rain & growing garden

Weather reports have been promising rain for many days now; finally, the weather delivered us some rain last night. The picture shows my giant measuring cup (which I use for gardening and garage stuff) full of rain water that fell overnight; four cups.

Overnight rain water from the storm

The garden is growing. Everyday I visit, it seems like something new is popping up: sage, thai basil, regular basil, chamomile, American Flag leeks, parsley, zucchini and of course weeds (mint, grasses, corn speedwell). Marigolds have yet to make an appearance. I wish the scallions were growing more vigorously. The cilantro seems to have grown more aggressively after these last humid hot days and acidifying the soil nearby. Nasturtiums, shallots and spinach seem to be growing better now. Danielle's Jalapeno plant is growing new leaves (it's gotten over the transplant shock). My other transplants (eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, calendula) haven't grown or look sickly.

The Porto Rico Sweet Potatoes came by mail and are now sitting in some water rehydrating. I plan to plant two this afternoon in the empty spaces above and below the eggplants.

Planted more seeds: Lettuce, Parsley, Marigold, Spinach & Calendula. Planted two sweet potatoes.

Rainy day

Current & Future Plantings

I shredded up brown paper bags & cardboard to mulch around shallots, onions and carrots

Water is still collecting in my "walkways" even after I put holes into the boards

Rain water passing through where my Broccoli Raab and some radishes are planted and passing through to the "walkway"

Cilantro plant from Behnke's that survived an aphid attack (lower left) and first "walkway" with some water build up

Rain water is slowly coming over the top of the sides now instead of flooding from the top. It's definitely better. I'm very lucky that cilantro likes it moist.

An improvement but some mulch is still entering the garden (not too bad though)

Some seedlings started appearing near where I planted Collard Greens. They must be from whoever had the garden last year.

I moved the seedlings (we think they are Fennel or Dill) to where I planted my own Dill seeds... Thinking I'll move these somewhere else though... probably near the Sage

Pictures at sunset right before sprinkling of rain

Baby Butterhead Lettuce from seed

Random lettuce that popped up (We think it's Salad Bowl Lettuce).

Cilantro seedlings that survived the small flood (I guess they are too close together)

Radishes (large leaves) & Carrots (teeny tiny leaves at right)

Broccoli Raab (left) Butterhead Lettuce (center) & random lettuce from previous tenant (left)

Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi up close

Onions (back) Oregano (left) & Rosemary (right)

Strawberry (I think) plant from previous tenant

Calendula seedling transplanted

Heavy Rain & Plot 29 Pictures

So we had heavy rain earlier this week that submerged my cilantro plants under a fast moving stream of water.

Plot 29 (before storm)

Calypso Cilantro Seedlings (before rain)

Radishes

Scallions

Collard Green Seedlings

Baby Butterhead Lettuce Seedlings

Broccoli Raab Seedlings

Plot 29 during storm

Plot 29 cilantro seedlings submerged =(

Plot 29 with some new wood to protect from water (left)