We have been having temps in the mid-80s, which is better than the 90s we had in late July, and much better than the overnight temps in the 50s we had a few days ago. This is corn growing weather!

Our heirloom blue popcorn started to tassel and form cobs this past week.

If you look closely you can see the wooden support grid Michael made for the popcorn. We have had some amazing storms blow through…which lodged the corn when it was about half as tall as it is now. Michael stood it back up and built the grid between stalks. It seems to give the stalks sufficient stability to withstand wind and rain.

This is Michael in the garden less than a month ago.

Some parts of the garden have been more successful than others. The onions will be huge.

The garlic is small this year. Snow in May didn’t help.

The cucumbers are going into full production. We still have peas, which is unusual. They don’t normally like warm weather.

Michael made me a cardamom black currant coffee cake for my birthday. Yum! We will have elderberries and apples for jelly fodder this year, but the plums and apricots suffered from the late spring.

The milkweed is just a bonus. Michael tended this patch of black raspberries and we had several quarts over about a month. Never enough to make jelly, but plenty to eat with cereal or ice cream.

Michael has done most of the gardening this year, as I’ve been doing some work I may actually get paid for…eventually. I have to support our unsustainable farming practices somehow! It does mean the weeds have gotten a bit out of hand.

Quack grass. I hate quack grass. It will grow right through onions and potatoes. Grrr.

The pickles will be ready by tomorrow. Pickles. We love pickles.

There is always more to be done here than there is time to do it. In a way, this is a good thing. We are never bored! And we can go at our own sedate pace, knowing that things will all work out, one way or another. In the meantime, we really are having fun. Every. Single. Day.