Beckyberries

Today we picked the first two ripe Beckyberries.  They are still my favorites.

We're about to leave for a week-long RV trip.  I hope we don't miss all of them.

Blueberry Cage Revision

Once again the birds are finding their way into the blueberry cage and not being able to get out.  So I've opened the bottom on the long sides.  Now the birds can get in easily, but it's mostly towhees and doves, which aren't much interested in the berries.  And they can get out, too.  The birds that eat the berries mostly come in from above, and they are still blocked.

So far I haven't noticed any bird damage, but it's still early.

Loganberries

This morning we picked the first loganberries.  I combined them with some raspberries and strawberries, and we had them on our oatmeal.  Loganberries are a cross between and raspberry and a blackberry.  Very tasty.

This morning a squirrel sat on the back of one of our deck chairs and ate an unripe strawberry.  I guess he didn't care for it, because eventually he dropped it on the seat and left.  Maybe he'll leave the rest of the berries alone.

Strawberries

The strawberries have really hit their stride.  Today David picked nine and a half pounds.  I made shortcake, and I'll freeze the rest.

Another Try at Cucumbers

My cucumber seeds never came up (I guess I need to start them ahead indoors).  So I went looking for plants.  I found a bush type at Home Depot, then found 'Marketmore 97' at Winco.  So I've planted three Marketmores and one bush.  I'll see how they do.  Actually, I'll probably pull at least one of the tall ones, because four plants is way too many.

I also sowed the second planting of 'Provider' bush beans. 

I've had a couple of spots of leaf miner damage on the chard, but mostly they look great under the netting.  We had our first meal of them today.  The beet greens have also been attacked, so maybe I should cover them, too.

Roses

I'm really not much of a rose person, but I have two that I really love. And they're both blooming now.

The first one is Lillian Austin.  David gave me this rose when we got married, and it's moved with us several times.  It has also 'died' twice, but both times I had started a new one, so I've never lost it.

My other rose is The Oregonian.  There were lots of roses here when we bought the house and this is the only one I allowed to stay.

Both of these roses are tough and totally disease free.  And they both smell divine.

Projects

The blueberries are starting to get some color, so it was time to cover them.  Thank goodness for zipties!

So far I've been going out every couple of days and patrolling for leaf miners in the chard.  Now they are covered with fine netting (from the fabric store).  Assuming I haven't trapped any of the flies inside, I should have lots of nice clean leaves.

We're getting lots of strawberries now, so I've removed the netting.  The squirrels can still steal one now and then and we won't notice.

And lastly, I've noticed that the peppers and aubergines are looking a bit pale.  So I put about 3/4 of a cup of alfalfa meal around each one and scratched it in.  Maybe a little nitrogen will give them a boost.  I suspect the leaves I turned in just before I planted them are stealing nitrogen as they break down.  I guess I won't do that again.