This is no Aloha...

I'm still waiting on the large tomatoes (hoping for a harvest at the end of this month), and that's being very optimistic. In the meantime, I try to keep up with the cucumbers, the only vegetables that have done really well this season. In salad, pickled, cucumber gazpacho (meh), and all over again when I've run out of ideas, cukes are just killing it this year.

On the floral end of things, the 'Aloha' dahlia that bloomed recently looks nothing like the yellow and scarlet-tipped dahlia shown (3rd one) below. The burgundy one in its place resembles Spartacus Dinnerplate, and is the biggest flower in the garden at nearly 8 inches across.

Todays high: 28°C / 82°F

You take what you can get

Dead plants, stunted plants, slow-growing plants, some plants (good ones). I've accepted the fact that this year's harvest will be a meager one. Spring started off well enough, but the constant fluctuation between wet, cool days and scorching sunny ones from May to June was of no help in getting the garden off to a solid start. But I was clever this time, because I did tuck some vegetable starts in pots on the terrace. They won't yield as much, but I'll take what I can get.

Cucumbers and bell peppers


French breakfast radishes growing in the grape pot


Wasabi rucola (roquette). They really do taste like wasabi paste!

Todays high: 28°C / 82°F