Summer Days, Summer Nights

Summer crops are doing much better than I'd dreamed. The tomatoes especially are nearly out of control. The late planting I did this year has had its obvious perks. I am not fighting squash bugs and aphids, and the late summer rains have freed me from nightly watering most of the time. I will have a traditional fall harvest, especially once the fall crops are in. I have never tried planting a fall crop before, but it would be foolish not to with our long growing season. The downside is that last year I had already harvested a significant amount of squash, pumpkins, beets, and carrots. This year I have only been able to enjoy greens and some herbs so far. So my focus is now on the distant harvest moon as I dream of the bounty to come.

The Year of the Tomato

Just got back to my garden after a two week visit to see my family in Missouri. Although, I hate to leave my garden, I love to see the amazing transformation that can happen in a small amount of time. Joseph did a great job keeping everything thriving and happy. I told him not to weed, and the wild ameranthus kept everything just shaded enough to not burn up in the intense New Mexico sun.

I first tried gardening, because I wanted to have my own flavorful tomatoes. There is nothing like it in the world. Grocery store tomatoes shouldn't even be considered the same thing. Unfortunately, I've never had much luck with them. Last year was my best year, and I only got about 40 tomatoes the whole season. I had a good feeling about this year, and I was right. It IS the year of the tomato. I left with some small, but healthy tomato plants (about 25) and was just hoping they would survive. I came home to 3 foot tall tomato plants with tons of flowers and a fair amount of baby tomatoes. The tomatillos are four feet tall, and on the verge of taking over. They will probably need to be cut back in the next couple of weeks.

Green beans, watermelon, and cantaloupes are all doing well, too. The only thing I am a little disappointed in is the cucumbers. They are small and shriveled. There's always next year!