Early July Straw Bale Garden Update

Good Morning! :)

Today is Independence Day here in the US, but this post is not about that. It is another garden update! *wide grin* I know, I know... I have become very one-note, haven't I? So what! There are growing goodies to share! Let's get to it!

SBG July 2, 2018

Here is a somewhat panoramic view of our garden at the beginning of this week. :) You can see that the garden has taken over the bales and framework, to the point where you almost can't even see the cattle panel. Yay! *This* stage of gardening is what I live for! If you look in the corner of the bales at the right of the frame (immediately behind my watering cans), you will see that a volunteer wild sunflower plant has sprung up! 

Side note... I call any plants that were not planted by any of us 'volunteer'. This sunflower was the one seed that escaped intact from the copious amounts of seed mix we put in the yard for the local wildlife this winter. It happened to grow in the absolute perfect location, so much so that it looks intentional! haha Next year, I *will* grow some on purpose! I have mysteriously gone from hating sunflowers to absolute mirth when I see them! :D :D Photo credit to my Booh Bear for every picture you see in here. She has become quite adept at taking them!

As you can see, things are growing quite well in the garden. We have too many kinds of tomatoes to keep mentioning over and over. Plus, in this stage of growing, they are all green and hard to tell apart. However, this is a picture of our Sunrise Bumblebee tomatoes. You can clearly see that they'll be striped. <3 

What follows are other pictures of tomatoes that I won't be describing in detail. ;) Like this one!

And these happy little growers right here. :) I love that you can see the a cucumber flower kissing a tomato in the left of the photo!

There are also these...

And these...

Aaaaand these.
You get the idea! ;)

We also have spaghetti squash growing very well, like these. In fact, you can sometimes spot more spaghetti squash in the pictures of other veggies we've taken and shared. 
There is also a squash growing that my Booh Bear keeps swearing up and down is a spaghetti squash. The thing is, it has stripes on it. I have an inkling that it is something else entirely. I have not checked it out in person, but I hope to soon. It doesn't make sense to me that absolutely all of our squash look alike but that one. I am hoping that it is a watermelon, actually.

I have a picture of it sitting by other plants, but I want to get close and solve that mystery before I post about it any further. :)

This is a butternut squash. I have grown these in honor of my beloved dad, God rest his soul. They will not go to waste. My mom (Granna, in these blogs) loves them every bit as much as my dad did. My plants did not thrive last year, yielding only one (much-appreciated but tiny) little squash. It sits on a shelf with pictures of my dad. <3 <3 <3  

There are also zucchini coming on very well. My mom and Booh Bear have already been enjoying them consistently. <3 I may not like this vegetable personally, but I will attempt to grow absolutely anything I can get my hands on! :) We are also going to begin carting some over to the neighbors, per usual. 

After last year's struggle, I happily  report that we are again keeping ourselves in cucumbers. Yay! This is one of my favorite veggies to eat fresh from the garden, though you will rarely catch me buying them from the store. Little Giraffe really loves them, as well. We've had some pest issues, but I am about to try a neem oil/dish soap/water mix. Finger's crossed!

We have very few pumpkin plants this year. I think only two, maybe? They seem to be doing alright. The garden is so big that it is somewhat painful to dig around the rough vines. I am not sure how many pumpkins we have, but there will for sure be at least one! lol

The broccoli are finally starting to develop wee heads. They, the spinach, the watermelon, and the cabbage are all kind of being buried under the massive squash and zucchini plants. That said, I've not had squash actually kill any plants at any point in the past. I just have to get some gloves on and go digging when the temperature finally drops to a tolerable level.

This is the last picture I have right now. My pepper plants are a mix of "Aaawww, maaaannnn!" and "Meh". I know... not great. The plants I started from seedlings are only a few inches tall. They are beautiful but too small to do anything this year. The plants I bought from the farmer's market (one is pictured) are growing orange peppers. The plants are growing in funky shapes and the peppers are small, but they are at least there! :) I find it so odd how I can have great success with a plant seasons in a row, only to have a random bad season. 

So, there you have it. The garden continues to grow. We haven't seen any cantaloupe on those vines yet, but everything else seems to be off and running. Most of it is doing very well. Only a couple of things are not. I neglected my potatoes on accident for a very hot week. Now I am fighting to save the plants. Yikes! Live and learn!

I hope that everyone is having a happy and healthy summer. School will begin before you know it. We are probably going to be starting the new grades ourselves here in another week and a half. In the meantime, Hubs, Granna, Booh Bear, Little Giraffe and I all bid you a Happy Independence Day! 

Quick Edit:
The mystery plant is a second pumpkin! It is very light in color for some reason. We have also found wee little watermelons and cantaloupes! Yaay! <3

<3 Remember to tend those spiritual gardens! <3