Garden Friday

frat party on loofah flower

Welcome to Garden Friday,
where we're gettin' our buzzzzz on!

The veggie garden is enjoying some mid-summer growth.
Rain has been sparse over the last few weeks,
but we're hoping that will be changing in the upcoming days.
We could use a good drenching.

The cucumbers are responding to the heat
by climbing up our wiggle sticks.
There's something so refreshing about cold cukes in a salad.

The leek that were planted in March
have filled out the container.

Some are even showing seed heads,
which usually signals harvest time.
This weekend I plan to pull one up
to see if it's ready for eating.

The Yukon Gold potatoes will be harvested this weekend.
The leaves are turning yellow and getting floppy,
a sure sign that they are finished growing.

white sweet potato bed

The white sweet potato bed is filling in quickly.
For some reason, I'm not having as good growth
with the regular (orange) sweet potatoes growing in their crate.
Traditional sweet potatoes have always been so easy to grow,
and I'm not sure what's causing the problem.
It sure can't be lack of heat!

Another heat lover, the loofah is scaling the gazebo trellis.
It is constantly covered in pollinators.

For some reason, this is the only gourd I've found on the vines.
It's gaining size with no prodding from me,
but I'm not sure why it's the only one.

Okra is another crop unbothered  by the steamy temperatures.
Here, some grow in our newly created raised rows.

Others are doing well in the straw bales.
The one thing that's great about the straw bales,
is that they retain the moisture when watered in.

The butternut squash seems to double in size each week!

pumpkins

A few watermelons are on their way up the arches and looking healthy.

The drying beans have not been too successful,
but this Whipple bean plant looks like it may actually produce something.
Exciting!

Along with the veggie garden,
the flowers are painting our homestead in a gorgeous array of colors.
This is our mailbox bed,
which was heavily seeded early in spring.
Most of the seeds didn't germinate,
but the tithonia on the left does not disappoint.

This calendula is a new-to-me plant this year.
The blooms are both yellow and orange,
a dynamite combination!

The pollinators have been all over the salvia, sunflowers,
tithonia and zinnias.

It's been thrilling to see the increase in the amount and variety
of butterflies we've seen this year.
The butterfly bed we put in last spring is really paying off.

With a profusion of blossoms
and home-grown produce,
every day is filled with blessings.

May your day be filled with blessings of your own.