So here it is, August 20th, and I'm still waiting for the tomatoes to turn red! Just as of yesterday, the one I posted a picture of a month ago started to turn orange, but there's still a gazillion that are starkly green. Anyone have any thoughts? I've read a hundred different theories -- some say they need warm nights, others that they need to be left a little dry, etc, etc. I can't do much about the night temperatures. We're already having nights in the 40's and 50's (I don't want to think about what that means for winter!). But I did hold off on watering for 4 days while the temperatures were in the mid-upper 80's, and then the one started to turn; but what about the rest? Even the pepper leaves were starting to curl. Guess I'll just have to keep waiting and dreaming of roasted heirloom tomato sauce and soup... or learn to like green tomatoes. By the time my tomatoes turn red, all the other complimentary ingredients will be done! (basil, cilantro, green onions are all peaking, spinach is already gone)
Cilantro in bloom -- the ladybugs love it!
Peppers are growing in full force. There's one sweet pepper I'm holding my breath on to see if it gets any bigger, but it might just be ready. Poblano's aren't far behind. (mmm... are you thinking chiles rellenos?)
I've got marigold plants scattered around the garden (you've probably seen them peaking through on a bunch of the pictures) and they're ginormous!! This is one of the first ones I planted outside in the spring -- for size comparison, the wooden plank beneath it is 10" tall. Anyone need some shrubs? I'm gradually taking them out because they're crowding some of the herbs and vegetables. However, the Japanese beetles apparently love them, so I'm glad they're distracting the beetles from attacking other plants. It's sad to see the marigolds get devoured, but they seem to just keep growing bigger despite.
Japanese beetles are feasting
This was my first attempt at Brussels sprouts, and apparently I picked the worst time to plant them... Instead of sprouting little heads, they're just shooting out leaves because it's too hot outside. =( I'll be pretty disappointed if we don't get any sprouts this year, because the plants have been taking up a lot of space in the garden.
Wedding season is still in full force. It seems that fall is becoming as popular as spring to get married now, so there won't be any relief until about November, when we'll start gearing up for Christmas Yule Logs (imagine a Santa's workshop setup with cakes, buttercreams and fondant decorations, and that's what it's like =) ). I'm still working on backtracking to get pictures of my cakes between June and July, but here's some most recent ones:
A birthday cake for some friends.
This was a 60th anniversary cake with black-eyed susan flowers.
A fancy wedding cake -- it's supposed to look like ribbons wrapped tightly around it, but it's kinda hard to distinguish from the picture.
Oh no, it's falling over! just kidding, not this time.
