Cucurbit Confusion

Things got a little mixed up. It started out in organized groups of vegetables. When something died or disappeared, I planted or seeded something else to fill the blank spot. It seems I was in a different frame of mind as to what seemed appropriate each time I filled a blank spot.

The Fastbreak Hybrid Melons with the delicious golden yellow flesh I know I planted were setting fruit when it was suggested they might be Lemon Cucumbers. They didn't look anything like a cucumber. They had to be a melon. Unless they were the Early Butternut Hybrid squash, but they had small flowers like cucumbers and melons and I saw a squash vine, with a baby squash among the melons and cucumbers. These round yellow things must be the melons. Not! Who ever heard of a round yellow cucumber? Chuck did you know these were round yellow cucumbers?



The Big Wilt has continued to move through the cucurbits. Reducing yields I am sure, but we are running out of room in the refrigerator for more pickles so that may be a good thing. Still, I reseeded more cucumbers because there was time.

The latest victims of the Big Wilt are the Delicata squash. I tried a dwarf one for dinner this evening and it was pretty good. The other larger ones should be better. I have been leaving them on the bush until the plant is pretty much dead to get them as ripe as possible.

There will be a blank spot there soon and I am planning the sowing for the cool season fall garden. August 15th is the general last planting date for me. I'll probably break that rule too.



The Painted Lady Pole Beans have reached the top of the tee pee, are blooming and setting pods. I am having the vegetable garden Chuck at My Back 40 Feet wanted with all the seeds he sent me when he cleaned out his garage. Thanks Chuck.



The Bell peppers are finally setting fruit. The tomatoes are thoroughly green and two Horn Worms were found on them and tossed onto the scenic highway. The first batch of sweet corn for the raccoons started blooming at three feet. This concerned me a bit. The plants were fat and dark green. Why were they blooming so soon. Well the package said it was the earliest of sweet corns and the ears are six to seven inches. I have My Back 40 FEET vegetables in the roomy roadside vegetable garden. How cute.

The larger Silver Queen sweet corn sown on the fourth of July will be ready for the raccoons around October the 6th. We'll see if that manages to squeeze in in time.



Maybe the Fastbreak Hybrid Melons are in here with the Cantaloupe. I did seed something in here that has sat in the seedling stage until about a week ago when it decided to start growing.

At this point I basically just go in there and look to see what is ready to go on the menu and if I can make any blank spots that need to be filled.



The roofs are now ready for their metal.



That is good because there are signs that we are on the downside of the summer season. It would be nice to get the roofs on and the cabin totally dried in before my building contractor heads to the beach for the month of September.



Madame Stappers, another immigrant from the west coast is ready to greet her new digs. Her relatives down the mountain have been out partying all month.



A little confusion is a regular state of affairs.



With a refrigerator full of pickles and a roof just about ready for lift off, who cares.