The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

I failed to write a blog post yesterday. I was a little depressed when I went out to the garden and found yet another green tomato missing, one of my Aussies. I found it this morning on the other side of the garden with chew marks all over it. The chipmunk had destroyed yet another one, along with another zucchini female flower. The good news is that the first flower it ate had already set. So the zucchini is growing.

But that wouldn't have stopped me from writing. I actually had a wonderful harvest that morning: 5 cucumbers, peas, beans, basil, hot peppers, cherry tomatoes, and a frilly boc choi. The eggplant is almost ready to pick and more tiny ones are on the way. It hit the ground a little while back, but is still getting longer. Right now it is 4 1/2" long and it is supposed to be 4-6" so I will probably pick it tomorrow.

So there is plenty of good news in the garden too. What got me really down was my Chinese cabbage. I had two ready to pick. They were heavy and huge. I confess I was worried about them since they were filled with holes. The last one I picked, the outside had holes, but the middle was perfect. This time, not so much. I not only had slugs attacking it, but I had earwigs all the way through. Their damage is a little different from the slugs. They make tiny numerous holes, while the slugs holes are bigger. I cut away the outside slowly, trying to find the yummy middle, but it was all shredded. I really hate earwigs. They freak me out a little. Usually they just go for my marigolds, but this year they have left the marigolds alone. Instead they eat my cabbage. I really would rather lose the marigolds.

So I came inside and consoled myself with tea, made from herbs from the garden: chamomile, lemon balm and chocolate mint. It was a good herbal remedy.