It’s hot and dry and if I wasn’t watering almost every day nothing would be growing in the garden. But I’m thankful to be able to grow what I can. In our midwest, cattle farmers are selling off some of their herds because they won’t have enough food for them for the winter. And a huge river that supplies water and electric power to millions of people is getting dangerously low and may soon go low enough to not be able to supply anything to that huge area. Climate change is now an old word, and the new word is climate crisis, and we are surely in the crisis, all across the world.
My typical garden: growing tomatoes, some beans, squash, several kinds of sweet and hot peppers. And some gourds just for fun.
I tried something new this year: cantaloupes. My ground must not be right for them because I had 4 plants that were producing 3 melons. 2 melons looked good and were developing good. Then……………
There are groundhogs in the woods behind me but we haven’t seen any come down here this summer. But I think one did, because I don’t know if squirrels eat melons. I picked another one that was ripening because I’m going to eat that one, not any groundhog. I won’t plant them next year.
Tomatoes are doing good. I tried one new type this year, called mortgage lifter. It’s an old heirloom type and the old story to go with it is that it gets so many tomatoes on that you could sell them and end your mortgage. The plant is getting huge and has a lot of tomatoes on it. Hopefully I will have a lot to eat, freeze and share.
The little pattipan sqaush are doing good, after a month of smashing squash bug eggs. Each day after the blooms are done, I pick them and dry them in the house, to give to my chuckwalla lizard as a good treat in the winter when there are no other flowers.
No bees were harmed to take these pictures. The bees and I have an agreement: we don’t bother each other and we can all do our own work.
My small determinant tomatoes have been producing every day. I freeze most of them for in things in the winter. My old picking basket is useful every day for picking them and also flowers for my 2 lizards. They both love the blue chicory flowers and also nasturtiums that I grow for them.
I always say you can’t eat everything and some flowers are a necessary part of any garden. And gourds, which are just fun.
My little Geyri uromastyx and my red back chuckwalla Chuckie, are both happy that I can grow flowers for them to add to their healthy salads. I love my little lizards. They are both shedding now, and that makes them feel bad but is a necessary part of healthy lizard life and growth. Tony, you get to see close up pictures. 🙂
Their salads are pretty with flowers. And these flowers are good for them.
My dear old cat Belle is now 13, and still living a good life. She knows what to do on hot afternoons.
Oh I get older and life goes on and I’m happy for each day because Today is what we have. No one can know the future, so I’m thankful for good health, good family, and the ability to still grow things in the summer. Winter will come and it will probably be a hard winter, but we’ll still go along one day at a time.
I hope you have some flowers in your life, and lots of other things that are good and that make you happy, Today.
Sarasin's thoughts....... 
Wow…!! Your garden looks so beautiful and impressive. Glad to see all the plants are growing so good and I guess the groundhogs share my opinion. Those tomato plant are enormous. It looks like you have to but an extra freezer… 😉
Oh, and so glad to see Bell again, she looks very comfortable! Hope you can enjoy the rest of the summer and have fun in your beautiful garden. Seeing the beautiful flowers made me think of planting more flowers next year…
I have a big freezer so it’s ok. All those frozen tomato things, tomatoes and sauce, taste so good in the cold of the winter.
Belle and I are getting old, but it’s ok! It still beats the alternative.
More flowers for you next year, good. Enjoy your summer days too, and the neighbors’ pool. Remember to eat your chocolate. 😉
Hahaha… yes, I like this comment, especially the last line… 🙂
It’s so beautiful that you and Belle are still together and take care of each other.
She acts old sometimes and sometimes she acts young. Just like me!
GADS!!!
Gads, what does that mean? Did you like the lizard close ups?
Oh, they were, . . . . delightful; but a bit surprising.
I have not seen your posts in the email or feed. We apologize for not visiting. Saddening state, yet perhaps better than an ice age, I suppose. We had one of those a spell ago… I’m trying to be optimistic, okay : )
I’ve been a lazy blogger and not writing any blogs. I need to write more. The garden did good in the end, after lots of watering. Good luck to Murph, and you with all the vet issues.
Well, that is okay. It is good to see you pop up. It takes so much time to water and tend to everything, it is no surprise you’ve not blogged much. Thank you so very much, I think we’ll be needing luck.
I’ll be working on one.
Also, we grew mortgage lifters, the name is no joke, is it?!? Overly optimistic the first gardening year, we grew cucumbers, yellow wax beans, blue lake beans, mortgage lifters and much, much more. Ya know, beans are wonderful and time consuming little pleasures. We had pounds and pounds to can from the two rows of them alone! Murph loved being in the garden as I toiled. He also enjoyed some beans. I know you grow food for the scaly darlings, do you experience, as we have, only a small window for harvesting before caterpillars, or something gets them?
Yea we have worms that get in cabbage and collards here so bad that I stopped growing them a few years ago. For my lizards I grow mustard greens, nasturtiums, chicory and arugula. We have a short growing season but it gives me some stuff that’s different for them, stuff I can’t buy at the store. I give them dandelions and their greens too. Now I started growing some things in the kitchen, trying it, to see if I can grow enough to supplement the stuff from the store in the winter. I only have one to feed most of the winter, my chuckwalla, cos my uromastyx sleeps for about 3 months. But Chuckie is a big boy and wow he is an eating machine. I love it that he keeps me entertained in the long winter, while she takes her big nap.
Mortgage lifters, oh yea, and they are good too. I will definitely grow them again next year. I had plenty to freeze, eat and share. The core isn’t bad like some big round tomatoes either. That’s the best tomato!
Something gir our nustard greens quickly, but I didn’t consider the rest. And, Murph likes arugula. Thank you. Wait, earlier I had his name wrong… I forgot it was Chuckie. I’m so sorry, it’s been so long & and both been busy it seems. Wow, she’s a sleeper! I’m glad you have Chuckie. Does she seem to remember everything when she awakens/is she groggy?
That’s ok, you read about a lot of reptiles. Lots of uros sleep 2-3 months. I hate it cos I miss her. When she wakes up she’s ok, wakes up hungry and ready to get on with life, lol. She remembers me and walks right on my hand, etc. so we don’t lose any trust. I like that.
Only Copper entered deep brumation a couple of years, but it wasn’t that deep. I can only imagine how much you miss her! That is so sweet, my gosh she seems so sweet! You are such a loving mommy and she feels it.
I do miss her. I go past her house many times a day and look in cos sometime she get up for maybe half a day. She is the sweetest gentle little creature. She’s been asleep now for about 2 weeks. But Chuckie doesn’t brumate and he helps to keep me entertained over the winter. He is very entertaining!
🥰 I experience them through you, the way you speak of their personalities and show their cute, sweet faces.
I enjoy them both so much. I’ll be writing another blog just about Chuckie shortly.
I look forward to reading it!🦎
I’ll write it soon. It’s fun stuff.
We tried growing some tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers and cauliflower this year. Every time I saw a flower turn into a fruit, it reminded me of your blog posts, and the joy and satisfaction of eating home grown produce. Fall is in full swing and winter will follow. Hope you are keeping warm.
That’s so nice they reminded you of my garden. I hope the things you grew did well. It’s cold here now, fall and heading for winter. And my garden is all done. But I was able to freeze a lot of things to eat in the winter! I hope you are keeping warm too. Winter will be long, and boring. 😒
All grew well except the cauliflowers. We probably planted them a little late in the season or perhaps it was just too hot. They heads turned purple and did not grow much.
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Cauliflower is very hard to grow and needs just the right temperature and to be planted at just the right time. I tried some a few years ago and gave up. Lots of good gardeners can’t grow that at their location. But everything else grew good for you, that’s great! Things you grew yourself just taste better.
Good to know about the Cauliflower. I am not an experienced gardener, so I will perhaps stick to the tried and tested tomatoes, zucchini, herbs and cucumbers for a few years.