While I haven't posted much this summer, its because even though I am lazy, I still have too much work to do! ;-) But I want to update the garden info, and I promise soon I'll find some more good links with garden hints.

Firstly, even though slugs have been a problem throughout this hot, dry summer, I am still getting more veggies than I can or will eat. Some surprising failures (almost total for lettuce, which I usually have plenty of) and successes (corn is at least 8ft tall, but ears are small - it's flint corn, anyway - just an experiment). Tomatoes (started by a talented friend) have gone nuts in the recent heatwave and I'm enjoying them daily, and soon have to get to canning. That's a Cherkokee Purple heirloom pictured above. Delish!

And some plants have done well, for a certain definition of well. The cabbage (below) is bigger than I ever got (credit:rabbit poop!) but the slugs had a field day (not a biggie for me; I hand chop anyway...) And I finally got beans to sprout, but it'll be one soup batch (which is okay, since I am so slow to eat them)

I'm finding that weed companions are helping, as long as I keep them in balance (and, yes - that's a challenge). Despite the slugs, I'm continuing with mulch in order to keep weeds from winning. (I do a slug patrol and have no problem grabbing a handful and practicing my long-shot projectile hurling.) Oh - and I do regular slug egg patrol through the winter (they love to lay under paving stones) but I'm still quite overrun. Next year I think I'll try to figure out what they like best and use that as bait/fencing...I was really surprised to see they LOVE citrus peels, which I toss out to repel cats.

Anyway, I'm pleased with this year so far, and I feel like I'm learning more each year about my individual plot of land and weather patterns (I've noticed my bees aren't flying just before a storm hits - a good heads-up!) So things could be worse, and I'm grateful they're not!