Happy Labor Day! Boy, is it humid today. In fact, temperatures are expected to be in the 80's all week long. I spent some time this morning working in the garden, but then quickly realized that the effort was not worth the sweaty discomfort. I guess mother nature is trying to tell us that on this holiday, it's better to sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
This past week, I harvested all of the delicata squash. Our vines succumbed early to bacterial wilt, and as a result, didn't produce very well. While the cucumber beetles weren't too terrible this year, I guess some squash plants are more susceptible to infection than others.
Our summer harvest is starting to wind down a bit. Our tomato plants, zucchini and cucumbers are still trickling in, but not to the extent of earlier this month. I was a bit late to start my fall plantings so I have a feeling we'll be experiencing a slight hungry gap this upcoming month. Luckily, we have quite a lot of veggies stored away.
Last weekend, we also picked the last of the peaches. Soon I'll do some summer pruning and then hope for another great harvest next year.
We've been picking quite a few peppers lately. We generally roast our poblanos to use in a delicious
Roasted Corn and Poblano Soup. And I've been using Hungarian Wax peppers in my homemade tomato sauce. They are also excellent for making fresh hot pickled peppers.
Earlier this summer, I bought a columnar apple tree from Home Deport because it was 50% off. I got one apple from the tree this year. As expected, the taste wasn't all too great. (It tasted just like a Granny Smith.) However, it's definitely an interesting looking tree.
It took all summer but we're finally getting decent sized carrots from our spring sowing. The kids have been picking and snacking on them as they go about their business.
I can't claim credit for this harvest, but my neighbor gave us some outstanding looking pears from her young tree. Neighborhood fruit trees are the best! We shared some of our peaches earlier this month and received some of these beautiful pears in return. If only more of our daily transactions can happen this way.
I also have to mention that these pears are huge! I placed them all in a paper bag to ripen up.
This is my meager melon harvest this summer and I only have myself to blame. I planted the vines too close together and neglected them all summer. The variety is 'Collective Farm Woman'. It's a small honeydew type melon. I'll have to try harder next year.
Lastly, I took down one of my runner bean teepees and collected quite a few fresh beans. I think I read somewhere that the beans were also edible. Now I just need to figure out what to do with them.