Even interplanting with annuals didn't bring more than 2 honeybees and only one bumblebee to my veg. garden. The most consistent pollinators are carpenter bees. But, they have trouble landing and clutching pepper blossoms.

The pepper plants had plenty of blooms but no peppers until I went out there and stuck my little fingertip into each one and tickled it. No kidding, it worked for all but the blossoms that bloomed too long and pollen wasn't viable.

So sad to see that news story about the big cargo of honeybees escaping a tractor trailer that flipped over.

My interplants were mostly Strawberry Fields gomphrena. It's very pretty to see their bright red heads among a green sea of vegetable plants. Some decided to climb up into the tomato cages to lure the hummingbirds but give no nectar. Gomphrena likes it dry and well drained so they aren't competing for soil moisture with the producing vegetables. The red globe tops reached up to 4' here and there. Little punctuations of color.

Looked so pretty I'm going to try it next year and remember that spicy dark basil that is a continuous bloomer needs a 3ft x 3ft space all it's own or it topples and continues to grow and bloom (and block the walk path between rows). And, forget planting stevia. At least planting any more than one plant. The peppers didn't like it for a companion. Eggplant just ignored it and happily set too much eggplant for one person to use. Oriental eggplant was as good a producer as Black Beauty(standard) but it doesn't take to refrigeration very well before it softens and discolors. If you cut it you have to fry it up soon.

Somebody smack me if I ever plant another grape tomato plant. My compost pile is studded with baby grape tomato plants. Geesh, every seed must be viable. I bought 2 plants and up come another 7 or more from the 2013 garden which were volunteers from the 2012 garden. Huge things that crawled up the clematis vine into the arbor and intertwined with clematis and the attack of the giant cucumber plant from the other side of the arbor. It wasn't hot enough or dry enough for these arbor climbers that were against a solid brick wall in full sun. None of them would give up and die. Even the clematis put out extra blooms in July and again in Sept. Under the arbor a jungle of plum/grape tomato plants fronted by 6 boxwood basil (I really had planned to get in the ground).

Lovely , well behaved , small and fragrant. Boxwood basil is extraordinarily drought resistant having to compete with all the plants around and near it as they shot their roots through what little holes are in the growers planting cups. If you want a mini-edging hedge these would be my recommendation. That's my summary of garden 2015.

What luck and results did you have this hot and dry summer?