good garden happenings

Well, clearly last week I put all of my annoyances against squash bugs out there for the world to see.  I think that my diligence on getting the eggs as well as the adults, well it has helped immensely.  Although I am not sure that I will get any mature fruit from these winter squash plants this year.  I am thinking of laying down black plastic and replacing all of my soil next year 😉  Regardless, I’m very excited to see what is happening in my garden now.  For the most part, nothing is edible but, it still makes me happy to look at!

I am able to take a couple green peppers each week, and my jalapenos are getting to be a good size.  I am thinking about freezing them for when it comes time to make salsa.  Can you freeze whole jalapenos?  Do you have to cook them first?  I think that I received a bag of frozen chili peppers from my winter CSA a couple years ago, so I think it is a possibility.  I would like to make sure that I use as much of my own veg as possible, it is a pride thing I think, when it comes to my salsa 🙂

My second planting of green beans seem to be coming right along.  Unfortunately I don’t have as many plants as seeds that I planted, but to see those little green beans, at least something is growing!  I still think that green beans are one of my favorite things to grow and preserve.  It is so easy to freeze these.  I know a lot of people don’t like to freeze things because of energy concerns, or the possibility of a power outage.  I guess I should have some of those concerns, but as long as I can make it into the winter (which typically starts in October), I should have no problems.

I have a TON of green tomatoes on my plants right now, and that makes me so happy.  What doesn’t make me as happy is the fact that I only planted 2 slicing tomato plants (brandywine).   I know I had planned to go back and buy more seedlings at some point…unfortunately that did not happen, and I know that my tomato loving family is going to have a hard time with only 2 plants…especially since those two plants are seriously struggling.  I think I need some sort of fertilizer.  The rain has done a number on most of my plants this year.

Lastly, I have these awesome sugar baby watermelon growing.  It is the first year that I have actually had fruit growing from the plant, which we plant every year.  Emma has a thing for watermelon.  I don’t know if it is because of the name of the plant, or if she just loves watermelon that much.  So does anyone want to place a bet on whether or not these will actually produce fruit we can eat?  I have to say that they have tripled in size over night, I think due to the extremely hot humid weather.  Not nearly as hot as the rest of the country, but 90’s is hot in Maine!

Linking up to Ginny’s Saturday Garden Journal the Barn Hop and Rural Thursday.