Let the Harvest Begin!

It's been awhile since I last posted. We were gone for a week, and when we got home, my garden was in need of some TLC. We've been hit with some pretty high temps (90s), so plants were wilting even though our neighbors were watering regularly while we were gone.

The first thing we got to pick were the sweet peas. The plants were loaded!
We picked about 8 lbs! I blanched them and froze them for use later on.

My squash plants weren't doing so well. There were lots of large squash that had already passed their most tender state. I picked them and chunked them so the plants would start blooming again. Because of the heat, the plants were stressed, which is bad because it can lead to a multitude of problems like bug infestations. I found a bunch of squash bugs had invaded and were feasting on the blooms. Not cool. So a few days ago, I was out there with a pair of pliers, squeezing the bugs dead and tearing leaves off the plants to get rid of the eggs. If anyone out there has had the same problem, I've read that killing the bugs by hand is the most effective way to get rid of them. Also, spreading wood ashes around mature plants seems to deter them. I'll try that and get back to you.

We also found some taters! My neighbor gave us some sort of buttery variety as well as purple potatoes. They're delish!

Our corn looks fabulous: tall and full of silk. I'm hoping that we don't end up with worms in the ears, since it's been so hot. I remember as a kid we'd shuck corn and have to shake the worms out--we used to call them cut worms, but I don't know their proper name. Am NOT hoping for a repeat of that!