In The Heat

The garden is taking this heat we're in the middle of in full stride. The beans have almost outgrown their teepee already (yikes!).  I've harvested two zucchini, a handful of broccoli, chives, green onions, lingering shelling and snap peas, tiny carrots, basil, oregano, and parsley. Every morning I ask the kids to go count how many poppies have bloomed. There are always a few new ones to delight in. The red sunflowers have begun to open and I think the yellow ones are close behind. There are tiny cucumbers waiting for me to pick a pickling recipe; do I ferment them or process them? The tomatoes are also getting counted frequently, usually accompanied by my caution of 'be gentle, please' or 'you can count them without touching them.' While I love everything in the garden, tomatoes are ultimately why I have a garden. They're my favorite, along with snap peas. Both can't be rivaled when purchased at the grocery store compared to picked out of the garden. When I start to get impatient about the tomatoes I have to remind myself that it's only the beginning of July. There's still a lot of summer for ripe tomatoes.