Blooms & Garden Bounty

Hello, friends.  The garden has been getting busier.  Last week, I harvested yellow squash, zucchini, blackberries, mulberries, oregano, cabbage, broccoli, lambs quarter, and the first cucumbers.  Laundry was dried on the line.  A dozen kale volunteers were transplanted to their own patch in the garden. Volunteer tomatoes were transplanted to bare spots, mostly where I had planted chard, with no luck.  J put up string for the tromboncino squash, and a trellis and string for cucumbers.  New blooms in the wildflower patch include plains coreopsis, and black-eyed susan whose petals turn rust-colored towards the center.

I redeemed 2150 Swagbucks for a $25 GC, taking advantage of a GC sale and a 50 SB discount.  A double batch of hummingbird food was made, as I'm seeing more at the feeders.  As I'm typing this Sunday evening, there's none left in the fridge, and I need to make another round.  I used the Merlin ID app several times, and was surprised to see so many birds I had no idea were here.  Some new to me birds were different flycatchers, red-eyed vireos, and though I've seen indigo buntings in the area, usually along the fencerows, I've rarely if ever seen one on this land.  Now I understand the excitement people have over this app.  

I spent time in the pond garden Sunday morning, weeding around the orchard trees, and harvesting lambs quarter.  I noticed most of the potato plants were dead, and dug a couple of mounds.  After J got in, we dug the potato patch.  The potatoes hadn't thrived there.  There were fire ants in a couple of places, who love to eat them, as well as the usual roly poly's and other assorted critters.  I spread the potatoes out on the porch to dry, and believe we got something over 10#. I plan to weigh them before putting them into storage.  Our Sunday dinner was produce from the garden... broccoli, yellow and zucchini squash, cabbage and cucumbers.  We were noticing, while digging potatoes, that the onions looked like they'd soon need harvesting, so they may be next.  May you have a most bountiful week.