Is it fall already?

It turns out that I really am the world’s worst blogger. I have many excuses and some pics so please forgive me. I got engaged at the end of June and Bridezilla channeled all my energy and computer time into planning the most special day of my life. But life in the garden went on as usual. Proof is below.

This pic is from July 9 and shows tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, eggplant. They were all delicious.

 

Photo taken on July 24

 

I bought 4 goldfish when I put the plants in the stock tank pond. I think I have about 4 million now. You can see one of the spawn in this photo. There is some strange genetic mixing experiment going on in there and now I have some striped fish and black fish and fish with different colored tails. I’m about to open a carnival game out back with fish as prizes. Come try your luck!

 

 

Photo taken on July 24

 

Here is a little glimpse of the lushness of mid-July. Pepper and tomato plants are in the background.

 

 

Photo taken on July 24

 

I can’t remember if I posted about starting peppers from seeds I picked up at the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University. Anyway, these peppers are NuMex 6-4 (or something like that) and they are major producers! I had my own little Hatch chile roasting fest one weekend morning.The freezer is full of roasted chiles, pastes, and salsas.

 

 

Photo taken on August 6

 

I went on the Wimberley Garden Tour with a friend who lives out there and we grabbed lunch at the Thyme and Dough Cafe on 290. There is a garden shop attached and the owner’s five year old son is a budding gardener. For a whopping 50 cents I bought a tiny little cantaloupe plant he had started from seed and planted it in the garden. I think we got a total of 6 beautiful cantaloupe from it in August and a few more are ripening on the vine as I write. The fall rains revived the plant and it flowered once again. They are so good!

 

 

Photo taken on October 5

 

I think this might be the last of the summer harvest. I went out to the garden the other night to grab a few okra pods before they got too big and stringy and found lots of peppers and a gorgeous eggplant. Neglect does a garden good!

Sunny days are here again!

Thankfully, blossom end rot seems to be a thing of the past. I’m actually not even sure that these are from the same plant as the sickly specimen I posted earlier (someday soon I’ll take pictures of the wilderness area that is the tomato patch) but they are beautiful and super tasty so that is all that really matters.

I think I might have to change the title to Mostly Bugs as I have encountered more than I care to and often stumble upon these little vignettes that poignantly illustrate the circle of life.

And then there are the mystery creatures like this prehistoric looking caterpillar found living on the lemon tree.

Tomato troubles

I picked the first large ripe tomato and this is what it looked like on the bottom.

What is causing this? Freak occurrence or something that will happen again?

Watery wonders

My usual morning routine includes a brisk walk around the neighborhood with the beast. He usually terrorizes a few cats, birds, and squirrels and I remark how I really should have my coffee before our stroll. Upon our return to the old homestead we usually take a turn around the garden to see what’s happened during the night. This morning was no different. The pond was pretty full from the rain and everything looked as it should.

So we went inside for coffee and to prepare for the workday ahead of us. Perhaps I dawdled longer than I should have choosing my outfit and savoring my coffee. I finally left the house sans camera and only thinking of the meetings ahead of me when I spotted a FLOWER in the pond. The first of its kind since buying the plant in March. It had bloomed in less than 45 minutes and was a beautiful shell pink. I took a quick pic with my phone knowing I wouldn’t be home until after it closed again. Enjoy!

Bug-o-rama

I think it might be time to come to grips with the fact that I don’t really have a garden so much as an insect amusement park. I’m way past the point of classifying them as “good bugs” vs “bad bugs” and have come to accept them as customers at each of my attractions.

We’ve got swallowtail caterpillars enjoying Feast o’ Fennel

There are multiple generations of what I think are leaf-foot beetles enjoying the heyday of the Towering Tomatoes with an occasional few dozen also visiting the Bucket of Death (not pictured due to gruesome nature). These guys might be the most intelligent insects I have ever encountered what with their attacking dives at my head and adept avoidance of the Glove of Doom.

Good times are here!

My long absence is due to lots of work and too little rain. When I wasn’t working,  I was holding a hose or moving a hose or trying to put two broken hoses together to make one sorta OK hose. It took a lot of time and it really wasn’t that fun so I certainly didn’t want to blog about it. However, one of the benefits of rising before the sun to water your garden or to go to work or walk the dog before you do either of the other things is that you get to see a lot of moths. I even saw what I later found out was a hummingbird moth or something like that. It was very cool and a little scary. I will research it soon. Anyway, the school year is winding down and projects are coming to a close which means a little more time to post some photographs from the last few weeks. Enjoy. Lots more to come soon because I am in the midst of installing an above-ground drip irrigation system (so relieved to not have to hold the hose anymore!) and because there is so much growing!

These strawberries have been delicious!

My newish Improved Meyer lemon tree conveniently positioned near the door. The blossoms smell divine!

Fresh peaches for cobbler!

We have lovely avian visitors to the pond every evening. Actually, most of them are horrible grackles or dumb doves and they have been ruining my plants and driving the dog insane.

This is what gardening is all about. Check out the growth since last September. I just looked at the photos and can’t believe the difference and I live here!

Femme fatale

It turns out that the tree I thought was a Mexican plum is actually a peach tree! I can’t wait for cobbler, fruit fresh from the tree, and maybe even preserves. I spread some mulch around the base of the tree and it is really loving all the rain. Check out these babies! Mmmmmm.

So you can imagine my horror when I came across the leaves below. What on earth was causing this harm to my beloved peach tree?

I went in for a closer look and saw these blooming beauties that had sprung to life after the recent rains.

They were rubbing against the leaves like some underage girls trying to sweet talk the bouncers on Sixth Street. Beware of the thorns of the femme fatale!

Mostly Mulch

Have you ever seen seven cubic yards of mulch? I hadn’t either and so I thought this would be a good amount to order and have delivered. It sat in the driveway for over a month. It wasn’t that we weren’t working on moving it; it is just that much mulch. The poor boyfriend threw out his back shoveling it and only later did we learn the difference between a long-handled transfer shovel and the short garden digging shovel we were using. The beds and paths are finally defined and the stock-tank is filled with water awaiting plants. Overall, the garden is quite peaceful and a HUGE improvement over the cardboard and weeds. That beautiful sculpture in the middle of pond was a Christmas present and it spins and bounces in even a gentle breeze.

Serious Snow*

Snowfall, let alone any accumulation, is a very rare sight indeed in Austin. The poor pup isn’t quite sure what to make of it.

The cabbage is snug under a peaceful white blanket.

I really can’t believe how much snow we had. I was at work during the snowfall so I didn’t get to see the garden in person. My nice boyfriend took these pictures after being sent home from the office at 10AM due to the weather! C’mon Austinites, it’s not that much snow!

* this snowfall happened on Tuesday, February 23. I’m not really into a posting groove yet so I’m a little delayed.

Belated Bloom Day

I know I’m a little behind the times here, but I was out in New Mexico for business on the actual Bloom Day. I got home after sunset last night and was so excited to see these Mexican plum (I think) blossoms on the little tree we inherited from the previous owners when I took the dog out early this morning. I love pink and these blossoms are fantastic! Yay, spring is HERE!!

Maybe tomorrow I’ll have some foliage shots