Slacker-blogger returns

Take-2.
Spent time writing a blog and then when I hit post, it errored out and now I have to do it all over again. ARG.

Anyway, it's been almost a year since my last update (ee gads! Really?!?!) There have been lots of things going on, busy busy. Kids are growing like the weeds in my garden, as they are apt to do. Baby-boy is wanting to walk but he doesn't quite have it yet. Loves to watch mommy in her garden. Older darling girl would rather eat mommy's plants than help weed. lol. How many kids do you know that will eat herbs and green beans straight from the garden?

We have expanded the garden patch. (Thank you Hubby!) Due to the serious heat this summer, we also installed a tarp over the garden to help mitigate some of the heat that is burning up my veggies.

Those weed-like straggly things in the back are my tomatoes. The heat hit them hard but they are still green stems, so I think with the rain, they will come back to life soon.

Massive pile of oregano, 3 types of mint, an eggplant, 2 types of basil and 2 kinds of peppers. Off in the back left are a bunch to small cucumber plants.

Green and purple beans, chives, strawberries and a dying rosemary.

So far I have only been able to eat the herbs as nothing else has matured enough to eat. Tried a radish but is was REALLY sharp.

The new garden addition:

Radishes, sage, cilantro and fennel/coriander

Tomato sproutlings and watermelon

For the past year I have been trying to grow a papaya tree. I've tried seeds and bought 2 trees on separate occasions but they all kept dying. I was ready to give up and the green goddess came to my rescue. I would say that papaya started growing spontaneously but what really happened is I got a new composter and gave away my old one. In the place of the old composter, I suddenly had things sprouting up:

This is my pumpkin-papaya-dragon fruit plant!

The pumpkin has completely taken over the entire corner here and you can see the papaya in the middle with the dragon fruit behind it.

I also found a second papaya growing in the front yard in the same place that I had tried to plant trees two different times. Each time they died and composted the dead plants. Apparently, there must have remained something dormant underneath.

But come on! Coincidence or what? lol.

This weekend I will take some pictures of my orchard and share some bug stories.