I've got to get back on the garden, picking and putting up produce, and there couldn't be a better day to do it. I sent my son home with 2 heads of cabbage, some yellow squash and one of those Persimmon tomatoes(just for bragging rights, tee hee!) so I'm leveled off in the garden except for beans, I am behind on the beans but we didn't plant all that many this year because I had so many left from last year. The problem I'm having with the beans is since the varmints got most of the first planting all my beans are later than we normally pick plus we planted them by the potatoes. We've sprayed with Pyola but I think the bugs infested the green beans instead. Anyway, because of those two circumstances the beans are really buggy this year. Next year I'm planting them further away from the potatoes and I'm going to try to have early beans. I much prefer them early too because it's not as hot when you have to pick.
Today I have to start getting garden serious.
We lost more corn last night but we did get a possum. Now, that's one huge adult and 3 young ones that we've caught so maybe we've been blaming the wrong varmint. All I know is I want my corn and I'm getting seriously concerned about how much will be left by the time it's ready!
I dug my garlic after lunch today. I usually tell people that as a measure to go by, plant garlic cloves in September, dig in August. That being said it is July 24 and my garlic has been ready for 2-3 weeks. The secret to garlic is to dig it about the time the bottom portion of the leaves brown and die and yes, you will still have green tops. The biggest reason is so that your garlic cloves do not start to separate while they are in the ground and will store longer and better. Always remember to use a fork to dig them and never pull them. Do not leave them out in the sun to cure like you do onions. Bring them immediately into a shady somewhat cooler spot and let them cure for a couple weeks and then you can braid if you have softneck garlic or you can cut them off a couple inches above the bulb and store in pantyhose or old onion bags where they can get a lot of air circulation. Keep them in a fairly cool spot and enjoy them to their utmost all Winter long. I'm putting a nice article about garlic on my Did You Know Page. Check it out. Regardless, now listen to me, don't get all bent out of shape if you are digging later than you're supposed to. I didn't get to mine until today, and I am definitely not timely; but I've got 60 head of garlic resting on a screen in my basement and I probably won't lose 10 of them so don't panic, but do try to raise good garlic and get it dug at the proper time if at all possible. It's well worth the effort. Then take a few of your very best and sometime in September when you get your bed all worked up plant your cloves about 2-3 inches deep and about 6 inches apart, cover with some kind of mulch and watch the miracle next Spring!!
I've got a beautiful honeydew melon out there that's just about ready to pick and a couple more coming on. For most of my life I never liked honeydew - but there's a drastic difference between buying it or eating it at a restaurant and growing your own. When they named it honeydew they knew exactly why they were naming it. A really well-grown honeydew is as sweet as honey and far surpasses anything you've ever tasted. They are just brimming with tantalizing, mouthwatering, juicy, sweet bites of goodness.