08/16/2022 developments of interest

Tuesday started off sleepy before work.
On my way out I saw the two leaf senna blooming for the first time! I’m so happy it’s doing ok. There is a second plant too but it has no buds yet.
The Chef and Briar picked me up from work. When we came back, we discovered Gram waiting.
He was waiting for his Doggie. “Hello Big Sister!”. Once she came back in the house all was well again.
Fajita salad by Paula and The Chef. I am informed there were garden onions and at least one garden tomato involved.
The first cushaw squash just keeps growing. We think it is almost ready as the rind is getting pretty hard now.
The purple beauty peppers are inexplicably red. I wonder if it’s too hot for the purple color.
The mystery pumpkin vine made a second bit of Halloween. It’s the slightly more yellow one above. The vine itself seemed to be dying of squash vine borers so we went ahead and removed it.

Catch-up on dinners

Couscous, roasted chicken, and roasted okra from farm share.
Noodles with sauce, I forget what kind, but it has garden onions and garden purple bell peppers in it.
Cheesy grits with farm share tomatoes, roast chicken, and roast okra.
Briar knows about the roast chicken. Mostly farm share veggies here, I can’t remember if garden onions involved?
Not sure if Shackleton is here for the chair or the chicken smells.
A veggie and chicken omelet with couscous and cilantro. Veggies included garden onions and garden purple bell peppers.

07/10/2022 purple

Paula tried one of our Purple Beauty Peppers and found it to be not very sweet, more green bell pepper taste still, and after looking online I think I picked them too early. Needs to be fully, deeply purple. I was worried about sunscald though (see the big tan area on the top one). They’ll still be good to use though.
The William’s Pride apple continues to get a flush of red. It’s hot out, me too!
I thought this grasshopper was really pretty. Not sure I’ve seen one like it before. We have lots of predator insects and birds in the yard so a few grasshoppers are no harm and lots of food for our other wild friends!
Zucchini begins.

05/30/2022 afternoon

A fleabane in the front yard.
Same fleabane, the leaves. This was in the lawn, so I need to decide if I will transplant or save seeds.

An Asian long bean from my aunt. Thanks to my aunt!!
Only one of many zucchini seeds has sprouted. I think they were too old. I will get new or save new next year.
Large leaf basil seedlings.
Purple beauty pepper has a flower bud!
Briar thought she was interested in my snack but it turns out broccoli isn’t her thing.
The swamp milkweed I just bought, receiving its afternoon sunlight.

No vampires

Paula noticed more spider mites on the indoor peppers so we did garlic spray on them. I’ve also recently added a sprinkle more fertilizer to the pots since the leaves are yellowing. Hopefully this helps.
Then we decided to garlic spray the remaining tomato plant. Its fruit still seems to be growing but all the leaves on top are just drying up, even with more consistent watering. However, it’s growing new stems from the base. Not sure what the deal is.
In the backyard, Viola bicolor have flower buds.
A ground bee or wasp has a nice burrow near the potential greeneyes seedlings.

Peppers in the air

Purple beauty bell pepper in top planter and chocolate bell pepper in bottom planter. The Chef kindly hung the planters for me.
A broader view, with a dwarf tomato below.
The right side of the doorway had the other dwarf tomato, an extra purple beauty bell pepper, and the basil, along with my hat and some gardening tools in a basket.

Home for the weekend

Since the days are still warm, I’m bringing the basil and peppers and sometimes if I have time, the tomatoes (but I was rushing this morning) out for maximum sunshine.
Another tiny spider on the outside work bench!

Wet bumblebee and other things

Last night, brought in dwarf tomatoes and purple and chocolate peppers since temps forecast (and did reach) into 40s.
On Thursday night, before another night rain, Paula and I planted more wildflower seeds. Mom sent these Yellow Puff seeds. We scarified them by scraping their hard coats on the concrete patio.
On Thursday morning, I saw this very dew-drenched bumblebee. I was hoping it might be a two spotted bumblebee but I think the yellow on its abdomen was just clumping together with the dew??