Cantaloupe

This summer, I tasted the most juicy, sweet, flavorful cantaloupe.  Even better, it came from my very own garden.  I never realized gardening could be so much fun, and so rewarding.  I'm already thinking about what I want to plant next year.  One thing is for sure, cantaloupe will be on the list!

Garden update

It's been a good year for our garden so far, as everything inside that tiny wooden fence is flourishing.  It's a lot to keep up with the constant changes, so I make a point to go out everyday and give it a nice inspection.  I usually go out there after I get home from work, and Ari and Emilie love to come out and look at the plants with me.

Our lettuce has been harvested for the year, and it was interesting to see how it matured.  We picked the leaves off as it grew for our evening salads, and then it just started growing up with little flowers spouting on top.  The artichokes haven't changed much in the last month, either, but I really don't know what to expect from them.  If anything, they have been a fun experiment.  All in all, though, everything else has done really well.

We have three large cantaloupes right now that look like they will need to be harvested and devoured soon.

The Wisconsin 55's are plentiful and flavorful, proving last year was no fluke.  The fresh tomato salsa, pasta sauce, and pizzas are in full swing, with plans for making my own ketchup in the works!

Speaking of salsa, these little jalapeno peppers have been a real treat.  They really gave the salsa nice kick, and I could definitely notice the freshness.  I also made a chimmichurri sauce with them to accompany grilled pork tenderloin.  Delicious!

More peppers!  One of our starter plants we bought after the frost scare was this macaroni pepper plant.  It has done really well, along with the cherry tomato plant (not pictured).  I am waiting for these peppers to turn red for a sweeter flavor.  What a productive month in the garden!

Melon

Our cantaloupe plant became so big that we had to direct it out of the garden and into the yard, which has made for quite a lawn mowing headache.  I had just been mowing around it for a while, but the grass was getting so tall around it, I had to give it a trim.  To my delight, as I was rustling through the vines, I found some small melons starting to take shape.  It was a fun and unexpected little garden discovery.

Garden Update

My frost fears in April are all a distant memory as my garden is thriving.  I'm still learning about how far to space the plants since what seemed like a lot of room at the time has quickly been erased by rapidly growing fruits and veggies.  I don't think anything is suffocating, though, and I am quite pleased with has things have turned out so far.

We have definitely been taking advantage of having fresh lettuce this year.  We have been picking mature leaves off the lettuce for about a month now, and they are still going strong.  We haven't had to buy lettuce for so long, and we have been eating salads with out dinner just about every night.  The lettuce us so crisp, fragrant, tender and flavorful.

We are also seeing an abundance of tomato blossoms on all of our tomato plants.  I enjoy seeing these beautiful yellow flowers dotting the sea of green because I know what will soon follow.

Tomatoes!  Along with the flowers, there are also quite a few tomatoes taking shape on the plants.  The plants seem to be a few weeks ahead of where they were last year.  If that means BLT season will start a little early this year, I will be a happy man.

One of the more ominous looking plants in our garden is the artichoke.  It's hard to tell from the picture, but it's sharp pointed leaves look more suited for Jurassic Park than a backyard garden.

I am so excited about the jalapeno plants, too!  I love these little peppers, and the bright little flowers were a welcome sight, especially since I thought they hadn't survived that frosty night.

Speaking of survival stories, our cantaloupe plant is also thriving.  So much so, in fact, I had to weave it's vines out of the garden and into the yard.  It has it's own pretty little yellow flowers to boast, and I am looking forward to the juicy sweet fruits it will soon produce.

Quite a change in month, if you ask me.  I can't wait to see what the end of July will bring!