The temperatures are soaring this week, but for the most part this summer has been quite comfortable (at least compared to the past several summers). Our garden has been producing tomatoes, cucumbers and okra on a regular basis for weeks now. The okra has been slow because it especially enjoys hot weather. So in that sense, this week of hot temps is a blessing.
The first round of green beans I planted ended up being some sort of pole bean that I was not impressed with. I ended up pulling them out and have now replanted green beans. I'm hoping for a decent crop so we can get several quarts canned to enjoy this winter.
The last two years my tomatoes have seriously struggled. This year, I made sure to plant them in a good spot and gave them plenty of calcium to help avoid blossom end rot. So far so good! I've canned 18 pints of sauce and 7 quarts of tomatoes - that should be plenty for one winter for us. The leaves are starting to curl on several of my plants. If it was earlier in the season I would be worried, but since I have more tomatoes than I know what to do with it seems like maybe it's time for the plants to dial down their production.
The chickens are everywhere! The young ones are just about as big as our older hens so telling them apart takes a bit of effort. The young ones are starting to lay their first pullet eggs and we've even gotten a couple green eggs! I'm very excited to see what kind of variety of eggs we end up with.
The few flowers I have this year are doing well. Thankfully zinnias are reliable for color and cheerfulness all through the growing season.
Mr. Harold has had a really hard time lately. He spent a full week at the vet and is still working hard to get better. His "innards" don't feel good and are very sensitive. We're feeding him lots of small meals of rice/potatoes and browned hamburger and lots of medicine. We've got our fingers crossed that he starts to gain more weight.
I didn't snap any photos of the cats, but all 11 of them are doing well. It's quite a herd that trots around the yard, tumbling and chasing each other. Mama Chuckles is the queen bee, but her son Fancy and grandson Alfalfa are right along side to lend a hand with all the younger kittens.
Hey Tina! So, I sent you an email yesterday about your kitchen island. :) Hopefully you got it And now...you said you canned tomato sauce. Could I get your recipe/instructions? I've never done sauce but would like to this year and I'm about to have tomatoes coming out my ears! :) Hope you're doing well!
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