Gone Feral In Idaho

We harvested the peas. Sugar Daddy and Lincoln turned out well. The Sugar Pods went bitter and mealy way to fast, I think we'll pass on those next year. Cosmos I added duck weed to help shade the water while the other plants get bigger. We had a nasty scare with Ich and the fish, we lost at least 5 of them, but with treatment and time, the survivors are better. The Triumphator Lilies are in bloom again and smell wonderful. Honey Bunch Orange Icicle Carbon White Queen Mortgage Lifter is starting to show some color.

I've found that I really drag my feet on a new post if I don't have any of my own photos. I've been meaning to address the garden plans for this year and I don't have any examples of what I consider a reason to grow. I might be a jerk, but when we plan on growing something, my rule is that if it is good and easily procured at the store (cheap) but difficult to grow, we don't grow it. Brassicas are on that list due to my awful attempts at dealing with aphids. Brussels sprouts were a huge space waster considering they were covered with aphids with all but non-organic pesticides. Should I eat the store bought ones? That is a great question, but not one for now. I had a n interesting talk with a pathologist that will only eat organically grown meat, just to avoid those nasty neurological wasting diseases we've heard about in the past. I digress. My goal this year is to continue my delicate new love affair with the tomato. I am a born tomato hater. They are full of ...

This little gem is a yellow wonder alpine strawberry. They are creamy white with yellowish-green seeds and creamy flesh. No wonder you can't sell these at the market. They are so soft, they melt in your mouth. I bet they would turn brown quickly with bruising. I've read that they have a bit of a pineapple taste, but this one was deliciously tart with a creamy mild aftertaste. It is definitely a strawberry and was worth all the fuss of growing them from seed. It looks like we'll have just enough to snack on all summer unless they don't like the high heat.  Here's one that is almost ripe. The Sea Breeze strawberries are going nuts! I wonder if it is because we grew borage next to them last year and there are a bunch of borage volunteers growing up with them this season. Apparently the birds don't notice the yellow wonder alpines, and I can see why; they fruits grow on perfectly down-turned stems that aren't visible from above.  I helped Kyle build a strawberr...

We are still getting lots of tomatoes and the peppers are really starting to ripen up for us.  The two long ones are Carnival Salsa Mix from Burpee seed.  They are a perfect flavorful mild salsa pepper.   We got our first two ripe Burpee Zavory mild Habaneros as well.  They are a beautiful orange/red and sure are a true mild Habanero.  The two peppers diced with seeds and spines added a nice flavor to our fresh salsa. 

We visited Ethan and Marybeth yesterday and got to take a peek at Ethan's garden. He has Roma, cherry and super steak hybrid tomatoes, a Brussels sprout, basil beans fall broccoli, fall peas, and corn in this full-packed garden.  We enjoyed some fresh bruschetta, really enjoyed it with garden tomatoes and herbs.  

Emily started GFF and here's two Tomato Fails: Squirrels found the few bedraggled Black Krims.  I'm leaving this plant for the squirrels so they leave the other one alone.  This one has no new blooms on it anyway.   Reminder: don't cut your tomatoes very thin when drying them, we didn't even get tomato chips.  We had to rehydrate them just to get the paper thin disks unstuck from the trays.  

Let's see, we have cherry, roma, Super San Marzano, and beefsteak tomatoes, cucumbers, a giant zucchini, a sweet bell pepper, and a Giant Marconi pepper, two crooknecks, and a strawberry.   I heart Kyle. I used these guts that were ripening on the sill with others and spent three hours making tomato sauce for eggplant parmesan that we'll prepare later.  With these guys below: I'll post some pics of the dish when it's done and we've reviewed it.  With us luck!

Of all things!  One of the poor bedraggled Black Krims set new blooms.  Wow, nature is one tough mother!

I know the composition isn't anything special, but I was about ready to throw the new camera to the curb even though I could never afford a new one.  I even asked  Rot  what sort of camera he used hoping he'd tell me he was a pro photog and got the heartbreaking response that my camera with a Leica lens is way fancier than his.  O.K., so I have a terrible eye for photographs, but I have inspired vision for them.  That is the ultimate frustration.  Anyway, here is a glimpse of what is happening in our kitchen today (the shop/garage has been too hot for props) so we have a slice of life at the Feral household with tomatoes drying in the dehydrator, two witch heads that I pulled ping-pong ball eyes out of because they were substandard, a plate with new ones, and some fresh green beans from the garden. Ta Da!  I think I'm starting to figure out low light shots!  A  Gorrillapod  is now on my shopping list for long exposures.  D...