Worked alone today. Pulled out all the broccoli after harvesting whatever I could. Not too much left, meanwhile the broccoli is full of caterpillars. I hardly had any caterpillars anywhere and now all of a sudden, they are everywhere--on the broccoli and the tomatoes.

Sifted some compost and mixed it in where the broccoli used to be. Shoveled dirt from the hillside garden into a wheelbarrow to add to the potato pile. The potatoes are looking good.

Sat, Sept 24

Two people came to the garden today-Katherine and Lily. They helped me with the compost pile, mixing in newspaper and ripped cardboard. Both girls helped me put a compost wall around the potatoes so we can start putting soild on top of them. I got more soil from the hillside garden. We watered, weeded, pruned the tomatoes, and harvested tomatoes, peppers, arugula and lettuce.

Worked alone today. Pulled out some zucchini plants and pruned the powdery mildewed leaves. Harvested 7 pumpkins! Imagine that! And I didn't even plant them. Some seeds must have come in with my organic soil order. Pruned the dead tomato leaves and tied up some vines that fell over.

The vetch arrived so I plan to mix in all the compost in the next couple of weeks and plant the vetch wherever I can. Also have to get in the winter crops. I hope to plant onions, garlic, kale, Swiss chard, bok choy, arugula, lettuce, carrots, beets, turnips and parsnips. Maybe kohlrabi. I don't even know what to do with it, but I guess I can find out. It's supposed to grow well in the fall and winter.

I worked alone yesterday. Mostly pruning the dead leaves on the tomato plants. It took so long for the tomatoes to ripen and it seems now that they are all ripening at the same time. Yikes! What to do with all those tomatoes. I have given some away, made some tomato sauce. I am eating tomatoes twice a day-cherry tomatoes with salad for lunch and heirloom tomatoes with basil for dinner. Guess I have to make more tomato sauce. I will be happy this winter and spring when I have a freezer full of tomato sauce. Also must make some pesto.

Tomatoes, tomatoes and more tomatoes!

Finally, the tomatoes are getting ripe--the cherry, the Beefsteak and the Brandywine. The peppers are getting ripe also. Still waiting on the bell peppers, but we have banana peppers and small hot red chile peppers.

It was so hot today. Didn't do too much. I watered everything before Juna came. Together she and I covered the new potato plants. They are doing well.

Then we just harvested tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, arugula, green onions, chard and basil. An easier day, but a good one!

Worked alone today. Pruned the tomato plants. Harvested lots of carrots, cherry tomatoes and some beefsteak tomatoes. Starting to think about fall, cover crops, making the garden smaller--maybe just 2 gardens instead of 5.

Sept. 1--can't believe it. Strange season this year. All the tomatoes are starting to ripen at the same time. The bell peppers are there, but very small. The hot peppers are starting to turn red. The cauliflower never came, although the plants looked very healthy. I pulled all the cauliflower out today. Taking up too many nutrients from the soil and not giving back. The watermelon vine keeps growing. The first watermelon was very disappointing--pink, sweet, but not very red, as one expects.

Bought more citrus/avocado food and fed the 2 avocado trees. Sprayed the lemon tree with bioinsecticide. It had scale. Also sprayed the plum tree which is nearby.

Sprayed the 2 rose bushes for powdery mildew. Must spray the rest of the vegetables soon.