Surprise! Surprise!

Several years ago I spotted this pink lily blooming in the wetlands near the bottom of our driveway.  I made a point of noting the location and when the green leaves showed the next year I dug it up and moved it to our sign at the end of the driveway.

This year the green leaves came up just fine and then died down but I let the bed there get very weed-filled and the mower guys whacked the weeds back so I thought any chance of having lily blooms this month was unlikely.  I did pull the weeds and heavily mulch the bed and I was rewarded last week with the shoot coming up.  I'd seen others in the neighborhood blooming so I knew it was time.  And now mine is in full bloom.

Can you spot the pink in the woods below?

The original is still sending up blooms.  

I may just have to dig it up next spring and move it somewhere it can be seen better.

It is a surprise every year.

A Fellow Blogger Needs Your Help

Susan of Squash Blossom Farm and her husband Roger have a Kickstarter campaign to raise $25,000 to put in a commercial kitchen into their barn to expand their operations of their farm.  Read about it here.  They live in Minnesota and have been farming only since 2008.  Here's what Susan writes on her blog:
"In September 2008, we dived into our dream of creating a small, sustainable farm.  Neither of us has previous farming experience, but we have enthusiasm and many ideas for this little 10-acre farmstead."

This is the final week of the Kickstarter campaign and if they don't get pledges equalling the amount need they don't get anything.  Give their campaign a look by watching their video and then open up your heart (and wallet) to a fellow blogger.

 P. S. She has some lovely thank you gifts if you do pledge.

August Vegetable Garden Status

The garden has been producing as these photos will attest to.

But I had let the weeds grow and the tomato plants flop and the blueberry bushes die so it was time to tackle that garden this morning.

Here are three before photos.

These are two blueberry bushes against the fence that are doing okay, not great but I'll let them be for now.  The one on the left did produce this year.

Below can you see the dying blueberry bush at the corner of the fence?  That one and the one on the left have been pulled out.  I was surprised how easy that was and how few roots they had.  You can see how the crab grass has taken hold despite the mulching.  

This yellow tomato has been a disaster so it and the one next to it are gone now.

My volunteer from the squash family is a pumpkin.  It's mingled with butternut squash that I planted on the fence but the pumpkin has more fruit.

Here's the start of the after shots.

Tomatoes tied up better but I will be placing an order for more tomato ladders.

Below the cane fencing is where I planted snow peas.

Blueberry bushes are gone and so is the crab grass.  I think I'll measure for more raised beds.  My hopes for blueberries are mostly over.  Not sure why that spot did not work for them.

In front of the cucumbers I've planted tatsoi.

The garlic bed got spinach and mesclun seeds.

At the end of one of the tomato beds is pak choi seeded.

Tomatoes looking better for the staking.

Lots of green ones yet to ripen.

Basil and peppers by the gate.

Another Day of Bounty from the Garden

Two fairly skinny cucumbers.  I gave away 5 yesterday to staff in Dan's office.  Then he requested an appetizer for tonight of cucumbers on cream cheese crackers.

Basil went into a glass of water to keep close by.  Nothing like fresh basil.  There may be pesto in my future.

Four lovely young zucchinis will be eaten tonight.

The first large tomato and I don't know if its a Goldie or a beefsteak.

Here's the bottom view.

And another of the same type but something else took a nibble first.

Finally the rest of the tomatoes for today and one sweet banana pepper.

Still to come in the garden: other pepper varieties, butternut and delicata squash and a volunteer pumpkin.