Summer Flies

I guess the summer months are more about doing than they are about documenting what we're doing. Given the choice of getting outside or sitting down at the laptop---getting outside wins almost every time. Today with heat indexes into the 100 degree range, I figured it might be a good time to catch up.

I see it's been a month since I last wrote. That hardly seems possible, but we've managed to squeeze a lot into that time. Mostly family events around the 4th and golf trips, another round of window replacement at home, movies, concerts, and the daily good fun of working out in the yard and garden.

It's been an interesting summer in the garden. Some plants have flourished. I don't think I've ever harvested so much lettuce from such a small plot. What a treat to bring in a fresh basket of greens every night for dinner! Other plants have been a disappointment---not seeming to like the swings in temperature and all the rain. I'm still looking for my first taste of green beans (maybe later this week) and several tomato buds have fallen off without setting fruit. That certainly isn't from a lack of bees. They seem to be in abundance this year, as well as toads. Everywhere! I'm afraid I take out several every time I mow the grass.

There's so much basil I'm thinking we should have some pesto soon. I have enough Italian parsley for the neighborhood. But I continue to struggle to grow cilantro. What's the secret?

Of course, that's the fun of gardening. Never quite knowing how things are going to turn out every year. It's just when you think you have it all figured out, that Mother Nature throws you a curve, and you realize you're not as smart as you thought you were.

Thank goodness for the old reliables--like purple coneflower.