I left for a week’s vacation a little apprehensive about my garden…. Would it rain enough? Had I controlled the bugs, will vegetables actually emerge from these leafy masses?
First, the good news… it rained. The soil was pleasantly moist. More excitingly, the first burst of bright color has emerged… several raspberries are deep red – ready to be plucked. Though not yet enough to make anything of substance, I could garnish a few cocktails if I managed to not eat them before guests arrived.
The cauliflower sprouted its first floret. The basil that was sickly two weeks ago (bottom photo) has recovered nicely (same plant, top photo), and the Brussels sprout plant that nearly withered from aphids has recovered too.
Tomato plants that flowered two weeks ago have yet to produce fruit. Instead of a little bump of a tomato pushing the flower off, the flowers instead fell off without any fruit behind it. With my favorite resource (Brett) on vacation, I am left to wonder the reason. Is it not hot enough yet? Do the plants need more nutrition (in the form of compost or organic fertilizer)? Was it too wet? Dear reader, do you know the answer?
The ugly…. With so much rain and too little attention, the weeds have thrived this past week. A solid hour or two will be necessary to clean up the beds – not just for the aesthetics. If there’s a dry spell, I don’t want the vegetables competing with the weeds for water and nutrients.
With only a few raspberries, but plenty of mint, a raspberry-mint mojito seems like the perfect diversion.
Raspberry – Mint Mojito
yields 1 cocktail
4 tsp. sugar
1 ½ oz. rum
5 mint leaves
½ lime, juiced
Crushed ice
soda water or 7-up to taste
Raspberries and mint to garnish
Muddle sugar and mint with ice until sugar dissolves. Stir in rum, soda and lime to taste. Garnish with raspberries and mint sprigs.