Garden Update

Lettuce:

The lettuces are not actually making the "heads" as advertised. It is ok, I am getting a lot of nice leaves, I pick a few and put them on sandwiches - but I think I'm going to have to cut the stuff down and just make one salad from what is there, because I don't think it will survive my absence. That is ok. This is one of those "things I did wrong" things, but I'm learning and hopefully next year I'll have more success.

Peas:

Sugar Snap. That is all you need. Sugar snap peas. They make peas. They make edible pods. You can pick the damn things right off the vine and give them a little wash and just eat them like a carrot -but they taste NOTHING like carrots, they are sweet and crunchy and totally YUM. I will plant at least twice as many seeds next time.

Beans:

Some of the beans runners have reached the top of the trellis. There are lots and lots of tiny purpley/lavender flower buds on them. I also have 2 actual beans. One is about 4" long, the other is about 1-1/2" long. However, if the flower buds are any indication, I will have more than plenty of beans in a few weeks. This I count as a huge success.

Peppers:

The standard sweet green peppers are not doing all that well. I have a few very small ones, and I'm thinking maybe I should pick them now and use them in an omelet or a pepper & egg sandwich, and see if that eggs on the plant to doing some more growing and blossoming.

The "banana pepper" is growing like gangbusters. The stems are about 2-1/2 feet tall, and they're making baby peppers. They are SO cute! Squeeeeeeee cute. I picked one that was about 5" long and had stopped growing any bigger, I will cut it up and put it in that salad that I'll make from the lettuces. I would certainly grow these again if they turn out to be tasty and all.

Basil Plant:

Still not dead.

Squash:

This is a straight-neck yellow summer squash plant. The plant is doing quite well, it is making a lot of "male" blossoms, I am hoping for "female" ones in the next couple of weeks. Not quite as thirsty as the tomato, and growing in the same pot with the cucumber - but looking quite dapper and healthy.

Cucumber:

Ok, this is SUPPOSED to be a "bush" cucumber that you can grow in a pot, but the darn thing is sending runners out all over the place. I keep having to nudge them around so that they don't take off and invade the neighbor's yard. Lots of blossoms, no baby pickles yet. Still, seems to be doing well.

Eggplant:

Since I moved this into the sunniest part of the deck, it has just done wonderful. The plants grow slowly, but each and every one of them (there are 4 in the bucket) has a small lavender colored flower bud on it. Crossing my fingers that this is good.

Tomato plant:

The World's Thirstiest Tomato Plant is thriving - but although there are a lot of flower buds, none of them are opening up. And I can't do that paintbrush thing that TFWY said to do, because I can't see any flowers to play "bee" with.

Other than that, and the fact that it seems to suck up water like a wet-vac, it's the most vigorous-looking tomato plant I've ever grown. I think next year I'll plant a different variety, however.

Photos will follow sometime when I can rememember to take some.