garden update: late july

We've had some insane weather in July. A week of heavy rain and bad storms and flooding followed by crazy heat with humidity that put the heat index over 100. Then a slight cool off, and today more rain. I didn't get outside this weekend to get sunny photos, so I settled for afternoon break-in-the-rain photos. 

My how the garden has grown. The assortment of wildflower seeds I randomly planted as an experiment have come up strong, though no blooms yet.

Lovely little purple basil, small but strong!

Sage seems to barely be holding on, but it's still there.

Here is some proof I haven't moved these containers in a little bit. Rainy spider web!

The sweet corn plant is getting high and has some growth. Still waiting to see if this experiment will produce an ear of corn. Even if it doesn't, it's been fun to watch it grow.

The bean patch is pretty much ready to burst out of its confines. Still no real beans, but I'm holding out for a miracle. They are dragon beans, after all.

Mark has been waging a war against cucumber beetles all summer, and he seems to have won thus far. No cukes yet, but the plants have not succumbed to the little buggers. 

Now, this is the melon/squash/pumpkin mound area. I think we have a few plants that are plotting to take over Carnegie. (While the chickens hang out in the compost.)

I just love these little curls coming off the plant. Looks like gift wrap ribbon!

I see you, squash blossoms! Might need to eat you on salad this week!

Hey, ladies. 

We're starting to get some bell peppers, as well as a few hot ones. I like how you can see the marigolds in the background. They seem to be working as a pest deterrent.

A ridiculous basil plant, one of way too many we have in the yard. Fragrant, though!

Perhaps my favorite is what I'm going to refer to as the tomato forest. From seedlings we weren't sure would survive to this...

Definitely some tomatoes coming, slowly but surely.

These ones are elegant, with their curls and globe shape.

I swear every time I go out to take photos, I stumble upon something new that has sprung up in our backyard. This trellis was left by the previous owners, and it's attached to the garage, so I have never removed it. I pulled the dead plants out of it earlier this season, and suddenly, we have this. Gardens never cease to surprise and/or amaze me!

Hopefully I'll have some photos to share soon of actual vegetables that we produced. I shared the first peppers on Instagram this weekend. Follow me there and on Twitter at @nextgenhouse.