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Yep the tomato plants are taller than they've ever been but they were stunted production wise by the extreme heat so early. Wish I had thought of putting up the canopy sooner.

I have a new picture of the church garden but haven't uploaded it yet. Those plants are beautiful.

My pepper plants are doing that...they are tall but only making flowers now. They are usually short and full of small peppers by now....I might trim some flowers to boost them.

Sunny has your weather been weird this season? I think my tomato plants got heat blasted early on and it messed up their growing cycle. The flowers would be yellow in the morning and burnt to a crisp by the afternoon. That stopped once I covered them but it may have been too late. I did have a few big, beautiful tomatoes that I was waiting to ripen but a big, old deer decided to take a chunk out of them. I'm bringing them in a little green now. I can't complain though because we've had plenty to eat. I won't have any to can this year and I haven't had any to share, except 2 or 3, but that's ok. People can grow their own stuff if they really want it I suppose.

I guess Sherri, we have heat that is unbearable...to us that is. We had a month of high temps with only 2 days of rain....my yard is a crisp.

Sorry for both of you. The heat is more severe here in S. Missouri. as well. I guess growing tomatoes here is going to be more of a challange. I

We do not have the bunnies or squirrels to deal with though.

We'll probably never get heat like this again. We usually have the hottest temps in August for a week. I hope it doesn't get hotter now that it is here

I will hope for you that you the hot weather does not return.

I'm too lazy to look back but I think I posted how my squash wasn't doing well at the beginning. I think it got heat blasted too because the seeds I planted later have done ok. The original squash plants are still out there and producing some but they're not nearly as productive as the new ones. It's like the heat stunted everything. Too much too fast.

I'm getting a little okra. I'm having to save up though to have enough to cook.

Gee Sheri, it's feast or famine there isn't it.

I have yellow bush beans almost ready to pick

Okra..how do you fix it Sheri. My aunt used to roll it in cornmeal & fry it but it was not slimy like when I grew my own & tried to fry it--

Junie I slice the pods and either roast them in the oven after rolling in olive oil or coat them with a little flour and fry them in hot grease. Either way is good and takes close to the same amount of time.

So speaking of the second planting of squash that was producing so well, the raised bed it's planted in is flooded because it's rained so hard for a couple of day. That can't be good :)

sounds like less trouble to roast them in the oven..thanks for the idea.



probably not good, but since it is a raised bed, surely it will drain quickly, right ??? I hope you do not lose the plants.

And you're right Junie. The water drained out and the plants aren't hurt and the squash was ready to be harvested.

Cooking the okra in the electric frying pan is just as easy as doing it in the oven. The work is having to cut it no matter which way you do it. Not sure why your okra was slimy after frying or roasting. Mine is crisp.

There are a few farmers markets in the area. I will try to find some and give cooking it again a try. I know I loved my Aunt's Okra.

I have never even seen an okra.

Sunny you made me laugh. Never thought of okra as having a singular or plural tense.

Is it okra's or okra?

I've only heard okra but we cook a "mess" of okra. So I guess plural is a "mess". Cooked a mess last night as a matter of fact.

Here is what the internet says,,,

Okra plural
The noun okra can be countable or uncountable. In more general, commonly used, contexts, the plural form will also be okra. However, in more specific contexts, the plural form can also be okras e.g. in reference to various types of okras or a collection of okras.

but I have only heard it like Sheri just explained.

We say 'mess' as well without the plural name for the item

We"ve had some cooler days and everything is looking good.

Not sure why some of the pictures didn"t show up but I can"t make them delete either.

Sorry about the picture mess (not to be confused with the mess of okra)

I"m already deciding what to plant in the spring. The potatoes did ok in the raised bed but since I can get a bag for$1.00 at the farmers market I"m wondering if they"re worth the trouble.

Well as for potatoes...when we lived in the farm I planted enough to have potatoes for my family of 4 until January. I think home grown tastes better. Now, I did dry them well in my picnic table. Then stored then in trays and boxes (boxes were lined with newspaper) in my basement. Also the potatoes did not touch each other. The trays did not make it all 14 years that we lived in IL. ( they were the kind of trays that the bread delivery guys use)
I miss those days. I hope to at least grow tomatoes next year...

Sheri, what kind of heirloom tomatoes do you grow ? I have tried to grow them 2 different years with no luck...

I grow Cherokee Purple. They are my favorite tasting tomato. The problem with them is that once they are ripe they go bad in 4 or 5 days so they need to be eaten or canned quickly. See the star on the bottom on those tomatoes? Pick them as soon as that star appears and bring them in to let them ripen inside. The taste is the same and they won't split.

Thanks for the advice..But I have tried 2 or 3 times to grow Cherokee Purple. The first time what few tomatoes there were went bad before they were ripe. The 2 nd time there was 1 tomato and it turned half red & rotted. Is there some trick to it ?

Cherokee Purple sort of look rotten when they're completely ripe because of the dark color. Maybe they just don't grow well in your area. I grew Abraham Lincoln's a few years but just didn't like the taste enough to keep growing them. Pick your tomatoes earlier and let them ripen in a window sill or in a bowl with bananas. Ask the master gardener at Lowe's or whatever store you have there. Cherokee Purple keep a tomato shape for the most part too. Some of the other heirlooms look more like a pumpkin and aren't good for making tomato sandwiches unless you like a bunch of small slices.

I have never seen the purple here....but this heat has my Scotia Girl variety getting red on the vine. That has never happened before. Usually the only tomatoes to ripen on the vine in this area are the cherry tomatoes.

I did plant one purple pepper plant this year. I figured if it grew I would save seeds...and to my amazement there are purple peppers. I love to try new things/veggies.

Sunny can you grow the yellow or striped or chocolate looking tomatoes? How about colored peppers? Next year I"m going to try some dry beans. Not sure what kind because I don"t like red or black ones.

Look at this lovely spider with a squash bug in his mouth. Love it.

YAY for spiders....and one less squash bug !!!

next time you pick one take a picture of it and show me please...perhaps I did leave them on the vine too long\. I know I love the taste

Creepy spiders...I'd rather have the squash bugs

Sheri, I'm not sure exactly what kind of tomatoes would grow....we never see any variety except for the basic. The purple pepper was a new kind the nursery decided to try....depending on the Summer's we have, maybe we'll see more things to try out. Beefsteak tomatoes will only grow here in a green house.

At lunch today I was thinking how nice it is to walk to the garden and get the stuff for a salad. Would love to have a large hoop house.

How true. It is a wonderful feeling indeed.

This has certainly been a strange growing season for me. Usually at this time of year everything is winding down but the tomatoes have had a resurgence and they have hundreds of blooms. (I'm eating a Cherokee Purple with an egg right now) and the second planting of squash is doing well. I'm wondering what I'll do for a fall planting. Anyone every grown butternut squash? Is it a fall crop?

Here is my spider having lunch but this times he"s having a bee 🐝 which is sad but on a happier note I didn"t see any squash bugs today.

Scarey...

Yes scary. I do hope the spider finds he prefers swash bugs to bees...

I plant Marigolds in my garden...it seems to help with bugs. As they die back, I clip the flowers and break them open and sprinkle it around. Marigolds stink like skunks