tragedy strikes!

i think the farm is sick :(
the cucumber, once massively productive, has decreased its yield (to a lot of yellow shrivelly cukes that die) and developed a ton of brown spots on its leaves.

the squash, although still massively productive, is suddenly yielding a lot of pale shrivelly squash that die, and developed a ton of white spots on its leaves.  it is also covered in ants, but i'm told they're harmless so i'm leaving it alone for now.  i bought ant traps, but i'm reluctant to put them out, i don't want to end up eating poison veggies.

i have no idea how to even begin diagnosing these problems, and i feel helpless and incompetent :(

well hello and welcome

went to check on the adopted tomato babies today, and wouldn't you know it -- we have tomatoes!!  on their exact 1-month anniversary of planting, too.  nicely timed!  my phone still can't sort out close-ups, but you pretty much get it.

also: freaky siamese twin squash!

farm to din in, well, let's say 10 min

this one is kind of a cheat b/c only the squash and herbs are off the farm (and i used the one pepper the gypsy sweet has been working on for the past 2 weeks, but it's lost on the bottom somewhere), but it's pretty and makes me happy, so here.

i used this recipe for the marinade on the veggie kebabs, and this recipe for the okra (first okra of the season!  i think i might have squealed when i found it at the market.  it's not that i find it exceptionally delicious, it's more that for about 28 years i was unaware of its existence, and then i spent some time being scared of it, so when i finally tried it (damn stuff kept showing up in the CSA box i was getting at the time), it was such a pleasant surprise to find it not totally disgusting, that now i'm kind of enamored with it).  so anyway, the veggie kebabs were fantastic, and the okra.... i gave to josh.  that's what i get for listening to bobby flay.

farm to din in less than 5 min

haay!

equal parts easy and delicious - that's what i call success.  i kind of winged the recipe, but it went something like 1. grate cukes (i used 5), 2. get some sesame seeds started toasting in a pan, 3. pour as much rice vinegar as you think will cover the cuke into a bowl, 4. add a splash of sesame oil, a pinch of sugar, a splash of soy sauce, a pinch of crushed red pepper, a pinch of dried ginger, and whisk, 5. smell burning sesame seeds, remember the pan, check and decide to use anyway, 6. toss everything together and ideally stick in the fridge for an hour or two.  i skipped the last part b/c i came home ravenous and wasn't about to wait an hour or two for anything, but it was still delicious and i'm pleased as pie that the biggest effort involved was stepping outside to harvest.

better luck to you, #4

planted the last of the tomato babies.  godspeed, #4.  it looks much healthier and sturdier than its fallen sibling, so fingers crossed that this one will make it.  i think i'll have to give up entirely otherwise.  a girl can only stomach so many dead babies.

elsewhere on the farm, the cucumbers are in full-on production mode.  i always thought that i could eat my weight in cucumbers, but now that i actually AM.... oof.  i wouldn't dare complain though, i love that i have a slow and steady supply, rather than buying a bunch at the market on sunday and then inevitably winding up with a handful of rubbery sad ones by the end of the week.  plus they are absolutely delicious, fresh as fresh can get.  lovin' it!

and finally, since after the fall of tomato baby #3, i now had an extra pot and soil, i decided to bring a new addition to the family: lettuces!  now i never have to leave the house for a salad again :)

harvest!

helloooooo dinner!

hellooooooo dinner!!

we made this recipe for dinner tonight.  any excuse to fire up the grill and use some farm veggies, really.  instead of mushrooms, we used squash from the farm.  i can't wait until the tomatoes are off the farm too.  anyway, it was super-easy to prepare, and came out amazing.  we forgot to put the balsamic in the packs, but adding it after worked just fine too.  result below.  admit it, you're jealous.

man down

tomato baby #3 didn't last long in the pot.  i don't know what happened.  i under-watered, i over-watered, june gloom, i have no idea.  that's what i get for getting pots instead of a third earth box, which is self-watering.  (but i think josh would have put the kibosh on excessive box purchasing anyhow)  maybe the baby never did recover from its prior murder attempt.  any way you cut it, it pretty much shriveled up within days of planting, and no attempts to revive it succeeded.  on the bright side, tomato baby #4, now the sole survivor, is looking great!!  strong and healthy and regal.  i'm a little reluctant to plant, given the fate of #3, but it won't stay happy in that little container much longer, so i need to get over it.

the adopted tomatoes, on the other hand, are quite the success story.  happily growing along.  need to install a trellis net soon.  and the arugula clearly survived its suicide attempt.  i haven't made anything with it yet, but i'm picking the occasional bite here and there, and it's proving pretty fantastic.  perfectly peppery at the back of your nose.  awesome.

in other news, the cucumber continues to climb like a champ.  it has now reached the top of the trellis.  curious if that means it'll stop growing now?  or maybe it'll just make its way back down.

it also made its first real cucumber!!!  (see rant about the joy of making things that look just like "the real thing.")  taste test for dinner!

and to conclude: squash like a muthahaha!!!

farm update

the squash has staged some kind of hostile takeover.  it's kind of obnoxious, and i worry that it's going to edge out the other plants.  sweet charlie, for example, hasn't produced any strawberries since the first three.  instead, he's just sending out these weird long feeler-like stems (in some cases several feet long) that creep all over the place (one seen hanging over the edge of the box here).  i'm guessing he's looking for more sun, but there's only so much i can do, with this unexpected squashsplosion going on.  i'm going to need to figure out something to prop the squash against before it tips the box!

also seen here: i planted tomato baby #3!  i would have planted #4 too, but i ran out of soil.  project for next weekend.

the upside to the squash takeover:  squash like a muthahaha!

the cucumbers are also climbing like it's a contest.  i can't believe how tall they've gotten in such a short amount of time - and no sign of stopping.  their little tendrils are amazing, grabbing on to things, wrapping tightly.  they've grabbed on to everything from the trellis string to the other plants, so i'm trying to keep them in check, but man are they fascinating as hell.

much like sweet charlie, the gypsy sweet pepper doesn't seem happy to be here.  it's still faithfully (albeit slowly) producing peppers, but it hasn't grown at ALL.  maybe the ties for the stake (that it totally doesn't need) are too tight.  maybe not enough sun (thanks, squash).  or maybe i just got a bum plant.  i really don't know.  i'm toying with the idea of taking it out and giving it its own pot, but at this point all the guys' roots are probably intertwined and digging things up will do more harm than good.  guess i'll just keep my eye on it.

oh, herro!

first harvest!

let's eat! :)
patty pan squash and pepper sautee (with fresh herbs) is twice as delicious when you didn't have to go to the store.  i probably should have waited for the little peppers to mature, but can you blame me for jumping the gun?
i also made a pretty kickass arugula and walnut pesto, but i didn't take a picture.