It’s been a wild, weird summer here. While most of the country seemed to be charbroiled, here in the shadow of the Rockies, we’ve had cool, sometimes cold, rainy wet weather.
I put the tomatoes and peppers out in May, as usual, in little water tents, which saved them from the worst of the hail (I wish I could say the same for my house – new roof and a new window), but they were still slow to get going.
It’s now August and I’ve given up hope of any green peppers, my jalapenos are just now blossoming and my Poblanos have a few small peppers on them. The corn is looking surprisingly good. I only planted it to protect the tomatoes from the harsh afternoon sun, but it looks like they may give me some good ears, too.
The pumpkins have produced 3 or 4, absolutely no zucchini, despite copious blossoms, and the cucumbers are just starting to flower.
I counted about 30 large tomatoes on five plants. I suspect that will be all I get, if they ever ripen, before the first frost, which here can be as early as mid-Sept. Depending on how things look, I’m tempted to get frost cover, as the beds have hoops on them already.
In the front yard, the “Killing the Lawn ” project is a huge success. I literally spend about 30 minutes a week weeding the few weeds that break through. Spring cleanup takes about 45 minutes, maybe 90 minutes, depending on what I did in the fall. I have bees, earthworms, and birds galore. Waiting on my first hummingbird sighting this week. They usually arrive the week of my birthday, which I find delightful.
The good news on the weather front is our statewide drought is over for now. In the high desert, that can change in a couple of months. Fingers-crossed it holds for a few years.
I’m prepping a simple garden menu this week for company: Pasta Caprese, fresh baked bread, Palisade peaches and Key Lime Pie. I’ll post the recipes tomorrow.
Until then…
Don’t forget to check out my latest novel, Duxbridge Mysteries: Recipe for Murder
Annie DeMoranville 