Tepary beans begin

I’ve been getting worried about no tepary beans, but I looked in my spreadsheet and the big harvest last year didn’t start until late September and went into mid October until frost. So I think we’re doing fine. These are pinacate tepary beans.

Weekend things

Texas mallow might bloom soon?
Goldenrod from Abby thinking about blooming too.
A pupa! I bet the Black Swallowtail.
Side view.
Tepary beans begin!
New crystals from Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge!
Closeup of two fancy selenite crystals.

Early morning to early afternoon

Briar wanted to go out around 4am. I found this nibbled out Bisbee red cowpea flower.
A pair of Red-banded Hairstreaks mating. They must have started yesterday as I can’t imagine they were flying at night.
Alright actual morning, the chewed up flower still opened!
A bit of rain seems to have the Bisbee red cowpeas really blooming!
A tepary bean flower!
She had a piece of grass on her nose, silly dog.
A break indoors. Gram’s really lounging hard.
A close up of this hard working kitty cat.
A geometrid moth trapped in the shower. I released it outside.
Front porch is boring. She sits next to more strawberry runners I’m capturing in dirt for a coworker.
A Pearl Crescent sits on moon and stars watermelon leaf which is speckled with “stars”.
A different watermelon flowering.  I forget which variety.
A jumping spider patrolling the cushaw squash vine
Briar investigates.
An American Bumblebee (Bombus pennsylvanicus) in the loofah gourd flower.
The volunteer loofah gourds are really framing the rain barrel nicely.
A different loofah individual has made itself a ground cover for one of the apple trees.
The whole front garden.

Foods

Garden green beans (blue lake bush) with tonight’s dinner.
Rice to go with tacos on weekend. Garden tomatoes.
Refried beans to go with tacos
Refried beans before any frying. Mostly black teparies, a few vaqueros. All the remaining from last year’s harvest.

A day without rain??

Dill seeds are developing.
A lightning bug rests on carrot leaves.
This pillbug (rolly polley) looks very fresh, perhaps it just molted? It’s on a dayflower.
The prairie is very lush and some of the tepary beans are sure climbing tall!
Beautiful fungi on woodpile.
Dog says things are okay!

Assorted day off activities and observations

Several strawberry runners took root so I snipped the runners.
I set out a tray of dirt to try to capture more strawberry runners.
The Chef helped me cut down the yaupon holly that was planted in a bad spot. It kept hitting the garage roof and gutter. Nine of ten water barrels are now in place for use!
Dinner… I made it this time. It includes a few of the new tomatoes (as well as a store tomato) and fresh garden basil and oregano.
Got mail!!
Drying coriander (the cilantro seeds) for later harvest!
Tepary beans reaching up!
Wild poinsettia (A volunteer).
The prairie and its rain barrel.
Rudbeckia is looking great.
A true bug.
Standing cypress about to bloom!

Little things growing

Some of tepary beans have started to climb!
Salvia coccinea seedlings emerge in an earwig-free environment.
Likewise, maybe the baby basil will have more luck away from earwigs.

BEAN CENTRAL HERE WE COME

A very kind friend came over this evening and helped us attach a 100 ft roll of welded steel fence to our new wooden backyard fence. Now all I have to do is clear more of the non-bean plants near the fence base, and wait a few weeks for the soil to warm up sufficiently for tepary beans. I might start some runner beans in the shadier areas so they stay cool longer.