The Squash have Taken Over

We came back from the Cape to a garden over run by Squash plants.  I actually had to cut some stems (?) off the squash to keep them from jumping spaces over to the tomatoes.  The squash have turned into truly humongous bushes and we picked enough yellow squash to have for dinner last night.

Also, I apparently planted the cucumbers too close to the squash---the cucumber vines are climbing up the squash bushes.  I saw one cucumber hanging off the top of a zucchini bush.  I'm hoping to make some Tzatziki this week with our fresh cucumbers and dill from the garden (one of the few herbs actually growing). 

The swiss chard is looking very nice.  I replanted it once I figured out that I had previously pulled it up thinking it was a weed.  It's a very pretty plant and matches the few beets we have growing quite nicely.  I have to say I'm a little disappointed in the carrots/onions/beets/chard section of the garden (near which the radishes are STILL NOT RADISHING and the one remaining sunflower is starting to look sketchy).  Why disappointed? We planed 18 onions bulbs.  8 came up.  We had one as a green onion.  Three just disappeared in the rain.  And now there are 4 left.  One wilted as I was looking at it yesterday morning.  We have one beet that looks edible.  ONE HONKIN' BEET out of the dozens of seeds we planted.  How can you roast one beet for a meal?  The carrots aren't looking like much is happening under the ground.  I am hoping the chard will grow and we can harvest them for meals.  I love sauteed swiss chard. 

The red pepper plants do not look healthy.  The others look ok.  We should have eggplants sometime in the near future. The tomatoes look healthy.  Everybody has a few green tomatoes, and I'm hoping to fry up my first batch of green tomatoes this week. We need to add higher trellises for the pole beans.  They are supposed to be 6 feet tall and ours are only 4 feet.  We may have to fake that one by putting some two tall stakes out and weaving rope or something between them.

I'm about to give up on the Sage and Oregano.  Every other time I go out there, they look bad.  (then I water them and they look nice, but still)  The mint has turned into a bush.  What can you do with that much mint?  Add it to tea?  Add it to water?  We need some mint ideas.

I think when we have work done in the yard this fall, we'll add dirt to the garden and maybe even "raise it" so it can drain better. 

Off to work.

8:27:47 AM