High summer

And everything is weird. It rains almost every day. Always enough to shut down the haying. Never enough to actually get the plants wet. I have had to water all the bucket and pot plants all summer.


The winesap apple set lots of fruit, but most of them are falling off now. They seem to have been pollinated, so maybe it is a characteristic of the type of tree. I don't really know as this tree has never set any amount of fruit before. I am not even sure it is a winesap, as I don't remember which tree was which. Peg had them...the other was a black astracan ( a historic variety to which there doesn't seem to be much reference). I am hoping even a third of apples that are left hang on to the tree. We are not set up to do anything about insect control, but they would make nice applesauce I think.

I am going to pick whatever zucchini is out on the vines today. We will be gone when it matures and I don't want to waste it. If I find enough I will cook it with some of our homemade breakfast sausage, baby rainbow carrots and rice for dinner tonight.


The sunflowers are way over my head now. Geraniums and petunias grown from seed are beginning to flower. It is always so exciting waiting to see what color they will turn out to be as I usually plant mixes.

Cobweb hens and chicks

The jury is still out on the Dolce Flambe petunias. They are an interestingly delicate combination of white, pink and yellow, but are not very eye-catching from a distance. I am waiting to see if they become more showy as they develop more flowers. Meanwhile there are a lot of things blooming now and we and the hummingbirds are much enjoying them.