Ao5

After MANYMANYMANY itty cukes dying off (I had to hand pollinate them) I have a cuke worth something! This was a few days ago & it's even bigger still!!! I've also included a couple other pics- a caterpillar that was chowing on my mater plants!! Some of my green maters. What a yummy garden we've accomplished this year! Still so exciting!! *grin*

I have never in my life been able to grow a tomato plant from a seed. I mean ever. I have never managed to get a poor, leggy little specimen past the 2" point before it keels over & dies. Never to recover. Until this year. This is a black krim that I have managed to successfully keep alive. It started to get leggy, s o I figured my best bet would be to pot it in one of my kitty litter buckets, not imagining that it would actually grow. It did. And it did. And it is. A few days ago I cut the bottom off a pot, placed it around my very healthy krim to "add depth." You know when you buy a plant start of a tomato, it says "Bury 80% deep for stronger plant."? I hadn't done that. Thinking it would be compost fodder in due time anyway. So deepening the soil was the only clear answer I could come up with. It was too large for me to risk hurting the roots. So anyway, without further ado, I present my black krim tomato plant, grown from seed, by my very own hands....

I'm going to use this post to keep updating the harvest. I'll change the time stamp each time I do so it will be bumped to the top. Thought I'd catch everyone up to speed as to what we've picked so far: Started 6/13: 8 22 strawberries 1 jalapeno small handful sage 2 3 blueberries 2 maters, one was over TEN ounces!!! Doesn't seem like a lot, but it's more than I got all summer last year **rolls eyes**

One of my favourite toys: Remember this runt? Now: Which is now morphing into this (SQUEEEEE!!) My Mr. Stripey which I thought wasn't going to do ANYTHING (it was fairly dormant & actually turned yellow with some leaf drop too) has now quadrupled in size (SQUEEEEE!!!) A couple of my jalapeno plants, complete with peppers: My sage, which we also thought was a goner: Trying to root a strawberry runner: Um, I have no idea what happened, but I think I'm going to CRY!!!! STRAWBERRIES!! We've eaten FIVE so far (I know I'm a dork, but I have NEVER had a THRIVING garden before!!!) BEANS!!! All of it:

I never did post pics of my grapevine, orange tree or lemon bush. While I was at it today, I also snapped a picture of a baby-aby cucumber & a few other things. Lettuce in a dishpan Spinach in a dishpan Misc. starts Itty bitty cucumber Grapevine (All 3 pics I took turned out blurry. I don't know why) Orange tree My lemon bush stem Both of my citrus plants. Yes, that's a Folgers can (about 35oz). Yes, that's how small it is. No, I dunno when it'll fruit. Yes, I'm hoping in 1-2 years.

I just picked the first strawberry!!!! YAHOOO!!! It was so tiny, and I had to split it 5 ways, LMBO!!!! But it was so tasty!!! HEHEWHEEE!!! And yes, I forgot to take a picture, LOL

5/28: OK, went out today to water, had to weed a couple as well Lost another strawberry plant but I also have a small strawberry that is now pinkish- YAY I have about 5 more baby maters on 2 plants. Mr. Stripey doesn't look like he's going to do anything. I have about 7-8 basil plants up. About 1" tall now. My peppers are really coming along & my largest mater plant has a BUNCH of new flowers. 6/3: I have been so busy, still. Lemme tell ya, I will never buy mushroom compost again. All of the plants that I used that in have sprouted shrooms Otherwise, I have some itty bitty strawberries. The first is too seedy to eat, so we'll have to be patient, LOL. I rec'd my grape on Saturday, went to big lots on Sun & bought a huge pot for it. It's now in it. I planted more seeds in my mini-greenhouse & half of them have sprouted (mater plants of various types). Those were transplanted today. Also planted some lettuce & spinach seeds. Have small pot of l...