I’m ready for a new month. A new groove.

We had rain this morning, but turned out pretty goo the rest of the day. I went grocery shopping this morning but worked in the garden quite a bit this afternoon. I am still digging holes and amending soil. Sweet potatoes don't need great soil, but this old man cant dig my hard soil in October. It's hard enough to dig early spring when it is damp and the winter freezes have loosened it up, but after it has been flooded, driven on, and baked, it's hard to get a fork in.

I have places made for 9 more slips, which will bring my count up to around 230, if they all live. I may not get any, I have planted the 230 in about the same space as I planted 108 last year. I have never planted this densely before. I will be happy with smaller potatoes, the larger ones are hard for, old sore hands to work with.

I am so tired, I am just not the man I use to be.

Here is a picture of the part of the south garden I have been working on. I am about to stop working on this part of the garden, other than watering and weeding. I got the last row of sweet potato slips planted yesterday, you cant see them, but they are to the right, this will make 150-165 sweet potatoes in this garden.

The row of peppers (dark green) are some type of sweet peppers, bell and 2 different types of pimentos, there is 20 to 25 of them. the pale yellow/green peppers are 11 hot peppers that were left sitting in the 6 pack in the front yard till they almost starved, but I though that with a little TLC, they would pull through.

This is my north garden, it is really a mess. I hope to start on cleaning this one up next. All the rain that we have had has really put me behind. When I get the 9 slips plant, that I have sitting in 5 gallon bucket get planted, I will have 65 sweet potatoes in this garden, along with about 2 dozen peppers. They are 5 egg plants out there also, but I never do well with egg plant. I have never cared for them, so my interest in growing them had been low.

This is the pasture garden, it has just gotten away from me. It is a new garden with un-amended soil, and had been too wet to do anything with. I have 2 hills of cantaloupe, 2 hills of crimson sweet melons, 5 tomatoes, 6 hot peppers, and 4 fruit trees. I doubt that you can see any of them. I think that I will just spray it to kill the Johnson grass, then till and plant peas for a cover/manure crop. I already have more garden, and other work than I can do. I also have 12 trees in the lawn that need trimmed, and the brush burned.

Larry that is so much space. I went in to the garden to harvest greens and basil ended up out there for over an hour. I pulled all of my onions except for two pots that are still very perky. I put them in a crate and they’re in the shed with the door open to get airflow, but I have to work through them and hang them. Some of them I will bring inside to pickle. The ones that I put in a ferment, the other day are almost done and they are very yummy. I trimmed all my strawberry runners off, I got the one in ground bed ready to plant Black Eyed Peas, I watered, which took a long time. I harvested my blueberries for breakfast two strawberries the greens marjoram, basil, lemon basil so now I get to clean and dehydrate all that. I also got a few cucumbers, and I am going to do a ferment with those.

Kim, Madge and I have talked about moving into an apartment, I doubt that we would really be happy there, but it seems as tho the house is falling apart. There is just so much work in keeping a place up. I have a ton of brush hogging that I need to do, but I don't see how I will be able to do it. Just keeping the lawn mowed is a lot of work.

Larry, I wish you and Madge could find someone relative or whoever to maybe park their RV on your place and live there rent free and work on your property that would be an ideal situation and they’d be available to help in the house as well.
It seems people are aging out of their homes, and the younger crowd is not interested in anything except maybe being selfish. I knew an older couple that couldn’t manage a home anymore and they got an RV and seems like it was a motorhome and they just moved it once in a while to a new place and Enjoyed the new scenery. I often wonder what happened to them. They are probably still moving their home around Texas. But I agree with y’all. I don’t think you would be happy in an apartment. Isn’t there anyone in the family that would want to build on your land orlive over that way?

Kim, I gave the land to my daughter, she talked like she would build here, but it does not look like she plans to now, she only lives 12 miles away but she still only comes over about every 2 weeks. Madge and I are going to need more help than that. We may have to move to northwest Arkansas, but the same thing may be true there also. Once kids get grand kids of their own, the parents have to take a back seat. I am so proud that I was able to buy the old home site and have my mother live with me, it's a joy and happiness that is hard to describe. I don't see why younger folks cant see the joy in being with aging parents, it is hard work, but what great memories. Madge and I still repeat funny things that mom would say. But, Madge and I still have one another, we don't cramp the others style, and enjoy each other, but we are going down hill fast.

I got some of the trees trimmed while Madge went for music lessons. Madge did not start music lessons till she was 80 years old, she thought that it might keep her mind active, and slow down aging. I don't know if it helped, but I think she is doing very well for an 86 year old woman.

The schedule changed this week so I went to Edmond today instead of Tuesday, but actually my new day in Edmond is Friday. But, that will start next week. I'm very happy to help my daughter with our little grandboy.

The thing with people around my age who have kids, grandchildren, jobs, property to care for, and who are fortunate to still have parents....it's a lot. A lot to do. Think about it. If you're at work from 8 to 5, then come home and need to prepare dinner, do laundry, feed the animals, mow the property, repair things. IF you have a garden, that's even more. Yes, in a perfect world, none of us would have to work outside the home and we could garden, preserve food, care for the property, visit older relatives, help care for our children and their children. But, for most of us, we have to work. For the past year, the only day I had at home all day was Saturday.

My Mom is 79. She is always welcome to come live with us. She wouldn't want to at all. Not at this point. If we ever move, I'll make sure I have a bed and bathroom for her in case she decides she would ever want to live with us.

I do message with her or call her every day. And, I'm fortunate to see her more than once a week. We always eat lunch together on Sundays.

She can come out here anytime she wants to. She is always welcome. Luckily, she completely understands how my life is. She wouldn't want me to not help care for my daughter and her son. Mom is/was always there for my sister, me, and her grandkids--she put us first--before hobbies, travel, a love life (my dad died at 53 and she was 49)....or anything really

And she wants me to do the same for my kids.

But, everyone and every family is different...with different histories and dynamics.

We'll see how my kids handle it when I'm old. Both of them have mentioned building "granny pods" on their future properties. lol

As long as I have a few raised beds around the granny pod and could have a cat--that would be just fine.

It was super humid yesterday, but I was able to clean up the vine that grows on the west side of the chicken pen (for shade).

That vine is proof that even the best gardener can make a mistake. Dawn gave that vine to me at a SF many years ago. She said it was a coral honeysuckle. It is not. I kept waiting for flowers and finally realized....it's not a honeysuckle. LOL. It's a monster too and takes some work a couple of times a year to keep it from completely taking over the pen, coop, and beds around those. It does provide that needed shade, tho. So, no complaints.

I'm about to scoot out and see what is happening in the gardens right now.

It's pretty uncomfortable out there, tho.

We're trying to decide when to mow. It's not completely dry from the last round of storms. Looks like more tomorrow. We might have to mow in spots--around puddles. We really have so much to do. There's an issue with the fiber optic line that runs through the chicken pen. We need to remake the pen and get the chickens off that part and bring in a truckload of dirt. We were hoping to get it done by now before it got hot...and before our trip. But, the weather and the time we spent with Rick in the hospital sort of prevented that. Oh well, we'll eventually get it done. First step is complete: the vine is trimmed up for the season. Next step is some repairs to the trim on the coop.

Out to look at the garden now.....

You are so right Jennifer. Even part time work with all the kids grandkids and other responsibilities is a lot. And managing property is enough to wear you out.

Kim, I wasn't complaining about my life. I like my life. I hope it didn't come across that way. I was just offering reasons for why children might not visit as often as they should.

But....I do see situations that are shameful. My Mom helps care for a 95 year old friend. Her children are simply absent from her life. She might get a call from them once a year.

Obviously, I don't know what type of mother she was to them....and how that affects their lack of a relationship now. BUT, I do know she is a delightful woman. Lived in her own little apartment until 5 years ago and walked everywhere--to stores, church. She had a fall and is now in assisted living. But, she's always cheerful and encouraging. She has a good church home, so many people help take care of her.

Anyway, we did some mowing last night. It's not a tidy mow for sure, but it's knocked down at least. Our burn pile had widened a LOT over the past couple of years with herbs and sunflower growing up in it. It needed attention badly. While Tom mowed, I raked all the chunky things towards the centers so that the edges could be mowed. It's a lot better, but it does make me a little sad. There were a lot of species in that pile. Lots of herbs and I even found mushrooms growing on an old log that was partially buried.

We (Tom, Rick, and me) had been careless with how we threw stuff onto the pile and that is why it had widened so much. I should still have a few sunflowers pop up and the herbs/garlic in that will come back, but will be mowed down. We can't let it get out of control like that again.

I'm considering working on the east and north sides of the chicken pen. It doesn't have the rampant vine, but it does have millions of tulsi and scarlet sage coming up. Needs to be thinned a lot. And Bermuda is sneaking in.

It's been so long since I've had a day at home alone....I'm lost on what to do first

Jennifer, when my mother was in the nursing home, she was crying and she asked me what she did that was so awful that the other children never came around and never called her to check on her. I told her honestly, I had no idea. I really believe she had treated us all equally but Every person interprets things differently. The other kids used to make fun because every time they did go see her. She had a big list to get done. She did the same to me and I didn’t see a problem with it. We all seem to interpret things differently. After daddy died I called her every day to check in. One of the kids called weekly. One of the kids called every other week two of the kids called once a month. Everyone’s commitment was different. We all sow our seed and live with our choices. I worked in a nursing home and I tell you I never could figure out people that would put their parents there and walk away.

You're right, Kim. People interpret things differently. If you've ever studied the cognitive functions, it makes so much sense. The two biggies that struggle with each other, it seems, are extroverted feeling vs introverted feeling. I'm an INFJ, so use extroverted feeling (it's an INFJs second function, tho, the dominant being introverted intuition). Anyway...to really understand that personality system, you have to look at the cognitive functions. The INFP and INFJ get confused a lot, but once you know the introverted (fi) and extroverted (fe) functions, it is much easier to figure out. Those two types look a lot alike from the outside.

Anyway...

My Mom asks for things on occasion. It was easier when Ethan and Jay (my nephew) were living here. Sam, the other nephew, helps with some heavy lifting and whatnot. She's still pretty able-bodied.

It wasn't hot and it was cloudy this morning, so outside I went. I was able to prune the vitex. It's probably 12 feet tall now. And worked on the areas around the chicken pen. Feels good to get those tasks complete. I wish I had started more flower seed, because I need some flowers around the east side.

I also planted your nettle at the back of the property to the side of the wild violets. Those violets are spreading now. The were put there in 2023.

And put the mullein in a bigger pot for now.

The mint and chives went into a couple of other pots. I was waiting to plant them until I could refresh the soil....but we're going for it with last years soil.

Other than those Super Fantastics, the only thing left is a Dawn's Pepper. I'll put it with the other one.

I feel myself about to make a stupid decision regarding the Super Fantastics. Something along the lines of pulling out the lettuce in the hoop house bed and putting them all into that area, which is too small.

Hard to judge that mother/child relationship from the outside looking in.

My Dad and I were very close. When he passed in 1996, my Mothers attitude toward me took a 180*. She had always been closer to two of my three brothers. I found out she would call them every day. And I would either call her or she call me once every week or two.

And when I tried to help her after Dad passed, I got pushed away in favor of my brother. Then she spent half of Dad's money that he left her, on another brother. She would not let me into her finances but let my older brother take complete charge. She never consulted me about anything.

She always claimed she did not have a favorite among her four sons. But as she got older, got into her late 80's and senility set in, she no longer could hide it. She went to assisted living and she and I rarely talked. It was more of a case of her shoving me away and remaining very close to two brothers.

Its very complicated. Let each find their own way.

You are right about that Lynn. Each one finds their way. I felt a deep obligation to my mother especially after daddy died that the others never did and my children do not feel. I always figured they would follow my example but they really take after their aunts and uncle. My niece is here if something happens.

Thanks for sharing the picture, Larry.

There's probably so many things that we don't even realize that determine perspectives. Mom and I both use Fe and my sister uses Fi....and I feel like she misunderstands Mom's meaning often. Although, they have a good relationship. It's not quite the same as with me.

Also, perhaps a parent says something that isn't meant to be hurtful but is. I think about my Grandma who had my Mom, and then my uncle not quite a year later. And then 2 years later had my other uncle. He overheard her say that she never really wanted a 3rd child. BUT, she didn't mean she didn't want him once she had him or that she didn't love him. But, it affected him.

I've always been very careful to not let Ethan hear me say anything about him being a "replacement" for his brother who died at 20 months old. When he got older he asked if I would have wanted him if Lane had lived. I just told him that I always wanted a 3rd child. (And I did, but we probably would have not had a 3rd.) He is very special to me. He's a rainbow baby. Also, certain personalities just click...even between family members.

I connect with my daughter in certain ways. She was my first great love. Before having her, I couldn't imagine how much my capacity for love was--different than love for a parent or spouse. She is a perfect blend of Tom and me--personality-wise. Ethan is an old soul...and a very deep thinker. He and I enjoy talking about/thinking about similar things. We don't always agree on those things, but talking about them is enjoyable to us both. He's one of the only people in my life who is really interested in those type of conversations.

Anyway,

How's everyone's gardens? I'm scared this week is going to really damage tomatoes in the SG and will rot the potatoes and onions in the ground.

We had so much rain come down yesterday around 5 or so. It came fast too. Afterwards, the sun came out. The property behind us had a river flowing through it. The neighbor kids were playing in it. I wanted to play as well, but felt like maybe they didn't want a grownup interfering with their fun. They were floating things down it--catching June bugs and floating them on little boats.

Decisions need to be made regarding the onions and garlic. I really don't want to deal with the onions until we get back from Oregon. Or the potatoes. I might pull the garlic and put them on a shelf in the utility room to cure. Normally I cure the potatoes and onions in the shop with the doors at both ends opened for ventilation during the day. I can't really ask my neighbor to deal with that. She's already caring for all the animals. And the special needs girl will water the pots and Vego beds and Greenstalk. The green beans will probably be a full production then too. I can probably get someone to come pick them for me. I just don't want to ask someone to open and close the shop each day.

My FB memory today was from 2018. I had just pulled the onions but they had all bolted, so the decision was made to chop and freeze. It might be that type of year again. Although, not many of these have bolted yet. They're just sitting in incredibly wet soil.

We can hope that all this rain killed the hatching grasshoppers.

The asparagus continues to roll in. Without Rick taking a large portion of it, I'm pushing it on people at work.

IF I have time, I would like to pull the lettuce out of the Greenstalk and put a few green bean seed in. They did considerably well last year in the GS.

Glenda, Josh, Amy, Jen, Rebecca--y'all doing okay?

Well...there were actually 26 Super Fantastic tomatoes in the hoop house. They honestly looked like C rap when Rick brought them over 7 or 8 weeks ago.

BUT, they're all now planted. In stupid places. But....I didn't let any of them die. Not yet anyways.

That's what I did after work. That, and walk Josi. Tom grilled himself a steak so I didn't have to cook. But did roast some golden beets for my dinner.

I hope everyone is okay....just busy. Nancy, you too, Are you okay?

Tomatoes have some fruit setting, and I have one pepper so far. Just noticed the one cucumber plant has a bunch of flowers, but I think they were all males. Working on getting everything set up so I can go to camp and not worry about it all dying. Cliff is NOT a gardener and I doubt I can con him into going out to water for me. But I usually can get it mulched good enough to stay slightly damp.

I need to weed. I have gobs of mullein, all in my garden. Maybe I can move that to the circle bed? It's already weedy, so what's a few more. And licorice basil is growing like weeds. I've already pulled buckets of seedlings and there's still gobs out there. Sunflowers are almost under control.

Oh, and I have to brag to someone. Last year I dug up some indian paintbrush and moved it to the circle bed. One puny thing continued to grow and bloom, then it died off and I figured it was gone. But this year I have about a dozen paintbrush sprouting up all over. So maybe I did something right! I've always heard you can't move them.

Jennifer, I can’t keep up with you. You are so busy all the time. Sometimes reading your posts makes me tired just thinking about it. Jen that’s awesome. You gotta Indian paintbrush moved successfully. I never even tried because I heard that there was no point. See how people limit us. There’s a surprise cactus out behind where I had my dog pen. I never saw one there so I don’t know how it got there. I have been puttering in the garden, which means a little of this a little of that and not much of anything. I did harvest a big harvest of herbs yesterday and got that in the dehydrator. A friend from church gave me a new dehydrator. The hardest part about that is trying to figure out where I can put it. Most of my onions are harvested and drying. I got some southport white globe seeds from I Gardner and those things just came to life about a month ago. They’re actually trying to bulb up so I’ll be interested to see what happens there.

Jen, that's so cool that you got the Indian Paintbrush established on your property! That's a huge brag.

Your cucumbers are ahead of mine. I don't have any blossoms yet and they're still very small plants.

I'm also worried about my garden and plants when we're gone for a week. I try not to be OCD and ridiculous when I ask people to help with my things like the animals and the gardens. I want to show them which hose nozzle setting to use on each individual garden bed and/or plant. LOL!

Mist for this, shower for that, and jet when you fill that. :D

I don't, tho.

Basil sure is a reseeder. I do believe the Tulsi is the "worst". There might be a million tiny seedlings all over the property.

There's a plant for your circle bed, Jen. And you can dry it for tea. It does smell so good.

Or gaillardia.

Kim, what's your opinion of freeze dryers that all the cool people are using?

Puttering in the garden sounds so nice. That's my goal--to get to the place where I can putter. It's my favorite.

I am busy, Kim. But don't recommend being like me. At least not right at this point. Some of the joy is missing this year due to more than one reason. I do believe that towards the end of June, things will lighten up just a bit. I'll go back to having Tuesday and Saturday off work. And, I feel really driven to get things done--it's not always a healthy thing. There's so much I want to do and try and only so many hours in the day.

We just had rain. I'm about to go out to look at things. Maybe walk the dog. The garden will be too wet to get any work done like trellising or weeding. Or our coop work. We are both taking the day off work tomorrow hoping to work on the coop and pen. Maybe the weather will cooperate.

And everyone is fired up about the Thunder right now. It is exciting, but a calming walk sounds nicer.

Jennifer, I would have a freeze dryer in a heartbeat if I could afford it and I guarantee I would keep it running six days a week. Whether I bought food to put in it or straight from the garden and farmers market, I watch homesteading family and she was the first one that really talked about doing mealsfor the guys for camping and that intrigued me. Plus the herbs are a better taste when rehydrated.

There are tornadoes over near Lubbock, my youngest, and his family is over there and lots of my friends. Not sure if that bad weather is coming this far, but I hope it dissipates.

Me too, Kim. I wonder how much electricity they use.

Are your friends and family okay?

I didn't get much done last night after the rain. Pulled a few things that I don't want in the native garden. And pulled some lettuce out of the Greenstalk and planted a few green bean seeds.

Today, after we do a bit of shopping for trip and things to do repairs, we'll (hopefully) get some coop work done.

Everyone is OK in Lubbock. It was a close call. Jennifer on those freeze dryers from what I heard they don’t cost that much in electricity. I personally think that it would be well worth the money having done the research that I have done. And I use my dehydrator fiercely for food and herbs and can only imagine having a freeze dryer that preserves the taste so much more. Has anyone heard from Larry? I haven’t seen him here for a day or two.

It's possible Larry doesn't have power.

Kim and Jennifer, George, who used to post here, has a freeze dryer and really likes it. I think he said they don't can much anymore.

Made it through another spring night without trouble. Got the boot off my ankle Thursday.

I have power, just not doing much. Madge got concerned that I was working too hard, and ask that I take some time off. I am on pins and needles knowing that I am getting farther and farther behind in the things I need to do. I feel better when I am working, but I sure pay for it afterwards.

I got the last of my sweet potatoes in om the 2nd. I have not done any work around the house, other than trim 12 or 13 trees, and drag the brush out into the pasture to burn.

I am not sure I will ever get the gardens cleaned up, I have hardly even looked at them.

I started a post but got sidetracked by a mighty skirmish between the crows and blue jays. It went on for about 45 minutes. It was NOISY here at our place! And then when I finally thought to try and get a video of how noisy it was, I got sidetracked by seeing a couple new butterflies and had to chase them down. And when I got back to my ringside seat on the deck, I forgot the post and accidentally closed windows.

I enjoy everyone's posts, and check daily, but just don't have anything worth mentioning, for the most part.

Kim, glad your people in Lubbock are safe.

Amy, glad you got the boot off. That must feel good.

I don't really have a great place to set up a freeze dryer, but even a small one for herbs and fruit would be wonderful to have. The Harvest Right small one in black is on sale for $1795. I don't really have that kind of extra money right now.

Larry, I get a little anxious when I feel like projects are stacking up too....which is probably why I push myself. And the very large amounts of rain is making it very difficult to work out there. Even if Rick were still here to care for the SG, he wouldn't be able to do much. But at some point, I'll be whining about it being too dry. I really do love a good thunderstorm. When I heard it this early morning....it made me feel relaxed until I remembered that it's dumping even more rain on the garden....and maybe rotting things. Insert Rick's saying about the weather here.

Nancy, what type of butterflies did you see? You and I would have a lot of fun together. I imagine that you would want to float June Bugs on little boats down the flood river behind my property too. Soon I'll have an excuse to play like that because the little grandson will be big enough, but still too little to play alone.

We were able to get the coop decently cleaned yesterday. We put vinyl flooring in it 8 years ago and it started cracking and coming apart so we had to pull all of that out. We won't replace it. The coop is on a concrete slab. We also pulled the giant metal nesting box set out. The ladies are very suspicious of the new nesting box situation. That giant metal set was hard to clean. I need easy now.

I didn't do any gardening yesterday, but was invited to pick green beans from my neighbor's garden. And zucchini. My beans are looking good, but not producing yet. And I don't often grow zucchini any longer. I prefer zucchini. Rick liked the yellow best. Tom likes both.

Anyway, I traded her out with eggs. We took another neighbor some asparagus. His garden was new last year, so he's not harvesting any yet.

That's about it.

Today, we'll pick up some things to continue coop work. We have to get the girls off a certain area in their yard. It's eroded by a couple of inches and is exposing the Cox fiber optic. Doubtful we'll get the dirt brought in and completed before our trip.

Their pen, however, has gained a couple of inches of soil. I guess from 8 years of throwing in grass clippings, straw and other things.

Our friend "died" a year ago, but was able to be brought back. So, he has a "1 year old" BD party this afternoon, so we'll go to that too.

I have been resting a lot. The last thing I did in the garden was on the 2nd. Madge and I have just spent a lot of time just being together, and going a little.

We had a pretty strong rain (2" or so) this morning, I have not been out to check on anything yet. I know everything is over grown, and too wet, and I doubt that I will be able to do anything today, but I do plan on going out and checking on the garden at least. I spent a good bit of yesterday in bed, but feel like I may stir around a little today.

I walked out to check all 3 gardens, they are in terrible shape, and its too wet to do anything, even if I felt like it. The blowing rain has all the onions and garlic that I had curing on the back porch soaked, of course the brush pile I want to burn is also soaked, and it looks like more rain on the way. But, on the good side, the sweet potatoes look great, they are starting to run everywhere, even the runners that I cut off on the 1st and 2nd look like they are all taking root. I also noticed that I had some very good runners producing roots, that is what I like to replant, but I have no ground ready, and with 230 plants, I really don't need anymore.

Larry, thinking about you and Madge. Some days I have little energy and it's work just to wander around the yard and then fix dinner for the pets and us. I'm thankful that sitting on the deck and enjoying the view doesn't take any energy.

I love the look of sweet potato vines--and what a great display of greenery they are. In fact, a good reason to grow them and basil. . . and okra.

I've lost count of how much rain we've gotten in the past couple weeks. A lot. We had a mighty thunder storm last night and it was raining as hard as I've ever heard it rain here. The thunder was so loud and close I actually wondered if where I was in the house was safe if lightning hit one of our nearby trees. And about then the power went out. It was funny not funny! The power didn't stay off long, just long enough to make me laugh at how vincible we are with Mother nature at times.

The butterfly I was most excited by yesterday, HJ, was the first male Diana fritillary this year. Not as many the past couple years, but I'll be hoping more will show up around the end of June.

I'm glad you're not stressing too much about leaving your garden for a week; I'm sure you'll fly into action upon your return, though. . . I remember doing that 4-5 years ago, and was flabbergasted by how much it all changes in a week's time. But although the make-up of my garden has changed, the weeds have not. And how they love the rain!

It would make me happy, if we could just go without storms and rain for a few days.

Forecast high of 90* today, should dry things out. Hopefully, I can mow the lawn, if I can borrow a brush hog.

But more storms this evening.

The tomato plants have escaped their cages and are making a run for it, while I don't want to wade into the mud recapture them.

I know, Lynn. Me too. Pretty sure I'll lose all the potatoes. There's 3 45 (ish) foot rows of them. I can't even walk into that garden right now. I would sink up to my ankles.

Then there's the onions. I might pull them this afternoon and just put them in cardboard trays and deal with them when I get back from our trip. Will probably chop and freeze. At least the onions are in the kitchen garden in a slightly raised bed.

Some of the tomatoes look good and others don't. The ones in the taller raised beds look okay....although there is disease showing up on some.

I've decided not to do fall tomatoes. We're just gonna finish up the year as best as we can. (I still have a couple of weeks to change my mind on the fall tomatoes, tho. If I do any, it will only be cherry tomatoes).

I am going to try a few fall potatoes in the hoop house bed.

We still have puddles on the property, so no mowing for us.

My sister-in-law always picks the worst times to visit. She is coming next weekend--Thursday night. We need to get our property and animals ready for us to be gone for a week, but will be unable to do that with her and her husband visiting. She's very allergic to cats, so normally I do an intense clean of our home--blinds, upholstery, ceiling fans. Make sure she has a cleaned leather chair to sit on. I simply won't have time to do this.

Anyway....what will happen will happen.

I have been more or less down for a week. I had been working hard dodging rain and trying to get the garden planted, and when you are only able to work for short periods at a time it takes for ever to get anything done.

This is what my garden looks like. I had plowed 2 furrows, planning to amend and plant okra. I don't ever remember planting okra this late, but I still plan on putting in 2 row each of peas and okra. I have around 50 tomatoes, and 92 peppers that need to be cleaned, but some of the areas will be sprayed with glyphosate because there is no way that I can get the areas cleaned with out it, I also have about a mile of fence row to be sprayed.

This is the best looking part of my gardens. This is the sweet potato area. The row on the right is the row of slips I planted on 6-1, I don't think that I have even lost one of the 230 sweet potatoes that I have planted, there are 65 sweet potatoes in the north garden.

I must cut back on my gardening, I am just not man enough to care for this many plants. At the rate I am going, there will be no garden next year.