Monday
Linda
Finally a day that is not so hot and humid that you melt like an ice cream cone in a little kids hand. The storm we had yesterday cooled things off for the time being, but the force of the wind and rain blew over the tomato plant cages. Hopefully the fruit has not been overly bruised. I was barely able to push the cage prongs back down into the ground.
The plants are loaded with green tomatoes and are heavy and cumbersome to deal with. I’m afraid I will need Sonny’s braun to properly set them. The lesson learned is that next year we need to use something better than cages and twine to support the plants. On the upside I was able to pick one Big Boy tomato and six plum tomatoes. They look pretty good considering they were at the bottom of the plants and were somewhat squashed when the cage toppled over. The string beans looked pretty pathetic today too. The hard rains beat them to death, but I think they will survive.
Zuk's and Taters
I also plan to plant another variety next year. These are called Tender Pods and if anyone has a suggestion on a better variety we would appreciate the comment. Preferably a stringless one. A few years ago Sonny and I planted string beans and they were like chewing hemp rope even after we pulled the strings off. We tried picking them at younger and younger stages, but to no avail. I don’t even think a goat could have chewed those things up. If we tied them together I believe we could have made a hammock. I checked the zucchini today also and found two nice sized ones. They were perfect in every way. No matter how many times you check the plant you are bound to miss one. There is always one hiding in the undergrowth. It becomes a mutant zucchini, large enough and heavy enough to use as a club.
The Club
They are frightening when you come upon them. If left to their own devices they would gobble up the smaller ones and rampage the garden. Well, I guess if they can have an Attack of the Killer Tomatoes movie they could have one of the Killer Zucchinis. Sleep tight tonight, lock your windows and doors. It’s out there, waiting.
Off-Grid in West Virginia 