Last week of July! Garden check-in

Well, long time no blog. It takes a lot more time to put together a blog post than I ever realized. I imagine I will have more time for this in the cold months, when I'm cooped up indoors dreaming. But the pictures won't be as fabulous.
I picked the first cherry tomatoes last week, and this past weekend saw the first harvest of green beans, new potatoes, and peppers. There are TONS of weeds, but I'm trying to do what I can. For the most part, things seem to be doing OK in spite of the weeds; important stuff, anyway. There are a few failures to discuss. The broccoli and cabbage, which never grew that much to begin with, were way to small to compete with the weeds once they started really growing. I pulled them all this weekend, and will try to plant some for fall this coming weekend.
The beets are also not a success. Only about 5 or 6 seedlings have survived to date, and they are still very small. I will throw some more seeds in that row this weekend, also. The first round of peas is done, and the climbers will be ready by this weekend, I think. I hope to get some more planted this weekend for a fall harvest.And, the corn, *sigh*. I just can't grow corn, I guess. Every year I try, and I have yet to harvest one ear. This year, at least, the plants are still alive, but they don't seem to be growing. They are still about knee-height, if that. I know they are probably the most weed-choked, and are suffering from it. Oh well.
How about some pictures?
The view from the entrance. Yes, there is a garden in there!

The cucumbers will be here soon!

 The peppers don't seem to be as robust this year. Each plant set on fruit early on, but they show no signs of flowering any more, so I guess I'm only going to have six home-grown peppers this year.

 The climbing peas:

 The potatoes, which I still never hilled.

 Cherry and slicing tomatoes:

 Sad corn:

 The Potimarron squash (also known as Red Kuri) started blossoming this weekend:

The string beans looked a little forlorn after weeding, but they are a tough bunch:

 We picked several the day after weeding:

And the Jacob's cattle are looking good too:

 Here are the carrots in the foreground, and the parsnips in the back. They look good, but I really need to find some time to thin the carrots.

 My garden helper is not amused. I should be playing with him, not all this dirt!

I also found some spare time (ahem, called in sick to work) to go to our favorite local pick-your-own farm:

It was the very last of the season for the strawberries, but they let me scrounge around. I couldn't bear the thought of going a whole year without homemade jam. Of course, I haven't had time to make jam, so these beauties are now waiting patiently in the freezer for their day. I will probably do it during the first pickle day, when the canner is already out, and the kitchen is already steamy. Someday, I hope to be able to get my berries in my own yard, but, unfortunately, my berry bushes only provide me with handfuls here and there, never a large quantity at once, which would be needed for jam.

We got a glimpse of this handsome guy this weekend, chilling out in an old tire:

It was a glorious weekend, with my sweet children and an excellent book. I'm reading Lucy Maud Montgomery's selected journals, and I'm really enjoying them. They combine so many things I love: history, first person narratives, Prince Edward Island. They are really very good, and I can't believe I didn't know that they existed before!
Until next time!