Hot, Hot, Hot!

Ok, now we are on day number 3 over 100 degree temps and day number 5 of heat indexes over 105. My poor garden is paying the price. It, like the rest of us, were not ready for such hot and humid weather so early in the season. We would get a day here and there this time of year but it wouldn't hang around. Whew, I hope this isn't a preview of what the summer will be like.ssshhhhh, don't look at all the weeds. I haven't been out there since the pool opened but more on that tomorrow.

Anyway, back to the garden. This year we have narrowed down our pickings until we can get better at growing. We are still new to this. It's only our second year and last year was a slight bust since I really didn't have the time for it with a newborn and two in school. Plus, the soil is so different from what we are used to. I love that black New Jersey soil. It can grow anything pretty easily. Down here we have clay. It's tough and dry and impossible to dig up. We are still adding a lot of compost to loosen the soil. This year we planted more tomatoes before we realized how many were coming up from last year. I didn't have the heart to pull them all out, so we just thinned them. We still have over a dozen plants out there so if all goes well we will have enough sauce for the next year! We also planted green beans and sugar snap peas, though with the heat the peas are just about done for the season. Our lettuce is pretty much done too, but we still have peppers and I am trying to coax our zucchini and squash back to life. I have to say my favorite though is the herb pots by the back door. We have parsley, cilantro, oregano and my favorite, basil. I love being able to walk our the kitchen door and pick fresh herbs for dinner that night.

Well, we have at least two more days over 100 before it cools down to a lovely 96. Send cool thoughts this way, we will need it before even we wilt.