What Is So Rare As A Day In June!

Now that June's almost over, I realize that I have been neglecting the blog. Since our tornado a street over earlier this spring, and the cleanup next door from a 50-year-old oak being split by the wind, requiring it to be taken down, things just seemed to settle into a dull roar of mulching, watering, picking, canning, etc.

Sounds like I am bragging because this has not been a good gardening year for a lot of people around here. There was so much rain this spring that the gardens were just too wet to get in and get planted. This is where our preparation last fall and winter paid off. We had spaded/tilled the different plots and spread mulch. This spring, everything was ready to plant by just raking the mulch off to one side. Also, J had built 20-something cages from concrete foundation wire to stake our tomatoes, squash, etc. That was such a help as staking with wood stakes in the past was huge labor. He installed landscape timbers along the pole bean rows and ran lengths of that wire along there. Wonderful! Wish we had done this sooner.

We planted 20-something tomatoes, hoping to get enough to can this year. Last year was a bust on that. The one-gallon plastic jugs installed beside each plant have made watering/feeding so much easier. Our pole beans are okay, considering too much rain, but I am having plenty to can. So far this spring, I have canned 26 pints and will have more tomorrow. That is besides having plenty for family, neighbors and our consumption.

The cranberry beans are just about ready to gather. So pretty. This year we tried baby lima bush. If they mature all that have bloomed, we will be calling in help. The Christmas butter beans were planted a little later, but they are blooming now. The yellow squash looks a little "peaked," but the zucchini is beautiful. We steamed a large one for dinner tonight. Delicious. We're trying eggplant this year for the first time in many years, the regular large type, and the cute little Japanese variety. That may be my favorite, because it is so easy to cut into circles and grill on the stove top griddle/grill, my newly acquired pet. I have found out that the small yellow squash is so delicious baked, so I shall be trying that with the eggplant and zucchini. Did I mention the cucumbers? Egad. Did I mention okra? Egad again.

All of this and keeping the hosta, roses and other little things tended has kept me pretty busy. That may slow down for a bit, because there is a probability that I will be having a mastectomy for recurrent breast cancer very soon. (I am just almost 10 years out from a lumpectomy.) Anyway, it is my big plan to get well very soon and get back to my routine. Can't afford to lose any precious time with all those veggies beckoning! Wish me luck.