The Jungle

I have succeeded in my goal to do absolutely NOTHING this week, except for puttering in the "garden" on the deck and taking several naps per day.

The torrential rains we have had this week have really gotten things growing on the porch. The tomatoes and peppers and eggplants that were hanging over the rail crying "Water!" when I got home, are now screaming "Enough!"

And the beans down by the driveway are doing their magic-beany thing:

I am going to be inundated with beans again. While I am contemplating filling the freezer with French filet-type green beans, I'm also looking at the available space in the freezer for said beans. It might be time in the next week or so to clear things out and make some room. Or fire up another freezer.

Because there are also going to be several thousand ziplock bags of berries to deal with. The blackberries down by the pond are daunting--it looks like I've got another summer of blue-stained fingers in my near future. While I despair at the labor-intensive chore of picking all those berries, I can't help but be thrilled at all the "free" food. And despite my protestations to the contrary, I will probably be making blackberry jam again. And blackberry pie. And blackberry cake.

I am also in the process of ripping out the peas, which all perished in the heat while I was gone. I'm actually thinking about planting some corn there. Crazy, I know. But I have the space, and I might as well use it. I can get a crop in about 70 days, I think. It also means I might have raccoons underfoot if I plant tasty corn. Or deer. But I think I'm going to try it, despite the likelihood of failure.

I also need some space for cucumbers, because Jean is coming in the fall for "Pickle School." I have seeded cukes twice, without success, in the raised bed. I may give it one more attempt before I give up and buy my cukes at the Farmer's Market.

In the pots on the porch, I will have the aforementioned tomatoes, peppers and eggplant, along with herbs, artichokes and nastursiums. The lettuce is not doing well--I think it's just too hot, and something is nibbling on it besides. Rabbits? Possums? I have seeded the hydroponic indoor AeroGrow in the house with greens and lettuce as a backup.

So, while it hasn't been a very productive week, it's been a pleasurable one.