Garden Post - July 2014

I'm sitting here typing in the middle of July.  My schedule has unexpectedly cleared.  I've declared a sick day because of a child diagnosed with walking pneumonia.  Fortunately, swimming lessons have also been cancelled because...get this...it's too cold!

Has my calendar malfunctioned?

It is currently 61 degrees outside and starting to sprinkle.  Heavenly.

It seems like a good day to provide a garden update.

The first big event of the season was the harvesting of the cabbage.  This is my son's entry into the Bonnie 3rd Grade Cabbage Program.  His isn't as big as some of the monsters they feature on their site, but we went ahead and picked his because we thought it would start suffering in the Oklahoma heat.  Who knew how mild this summer would be?

Our other big harvest was the onions.  Onions continue to be our most successful crop.  We've already eaten a significant amount of these, so this picture reflects a depleted supply.

The tomatoes are starting to come on strong.  We eat several daily and I've canned four pints (which I know is paltry to big-time gardeners).

Our okra is also starting to produce.  Of all the vegetables in the world, okra is the only one my kids eat enthusiastically.  It's hard for our three little plants to keep up with the demand.

After we pulled the onions in late June, my husband planted purple hull pea seed in their place.  This was somewhat of an experiment because it past the typical planting season.  The plants seem to be doing fine so far.

The other vegetables growing in our garden are lettuce (also a little late for that, but it looks good), asparagus, jalapeno peppers and anaheim peppers.

Besides providing us with delicious, fresh food, this little suburban plot of ours brings us a lot of joy.

I also want to feature some of our flowers.

Last year, my mother-in-law gave us sunflower seeds.  I realized that the sunflower is the happiest flower of them all. I loved it in full bloom, and the birds enjoyed its seeds in the winter.  This year, I ordered a different variety that produces more than one blossom per plant.  The blooms are smaller, but I love the multiple blooms and variegated petals.

My mom gave me a sackful of gladiola bulbs this spring.  They are starting to bloom.  This gorgeous flower is on my short-list of favorites.

Finally, one of the kid's violin instructors gave me some milkweed seed.  Milkweed is the host plant for the Monarch butterfly.  I'm keeping a close eye on these to see if we are attracting any butterflies.  They are just starting to bloom.

Thanks for taking this tour of our gardens.