A Walk Around the Garden

It is so nice outside these days. I take a walk around the garden every afternoon when I get in from work. Today, I’ll take you on the walk with me.

Everything looks to be coming along nicely; except for one recurring theme.











These grasshoppers are quite the pest right now. I’m not sure that I have any allies to help me fight these pests. Their existence doesn’t seem to be doing significant harm (yet), but there is clear evidence that they aren’t harmless:


We’ll save that fight for another day. We have more pressing concerns. That darn basil needs pinching again. I need to harvest it; but fresh basil just doesn’t last long on the counter and I don’t have time to deal with it right now. So let’s get to pinching.


The tomatoes are coming along nicely; I’ve even got 10 or so baby tomatoes and tons of  flowers. With my frost date (11/15) just under a month away; I am unsure that garden fresh tomatoes are in my future. Maybe we should contemplate a way to protect the plants; we have mild winters (the cold isn’t really noticeable until December) .


The spring-planted peppers are starting to show their age; we may need to think about when we want to go ahead and pull them.


The fall-planted peppers are still itty-bitty

But they are loaded and I pull in 1-2 full sized  jalapenos every day.


The cucumber beetles showed up again a few weeks ago. This is the 2nd generation. They helped kill my squash and cukes earlier this year. Now they are back working on whatever they can find. Pests.


The fall crops are still a ways away. The collards look the closest to being ready.


This picture doesn’t show it well, but the artichoke have really taken off since the weather has cooled. I sure hope that I actually get some artichokes next year.


Boy do I love turnip green; a real southern staple.


But unfortunately, these needed to be thinned and they will need to be thinned again later.


I may not get tomatoes matured before the frost, but looks like I will have a boat loaded of fish (hot) peppers.