Reminder

Summer squash seeds started on April 11th.

How Sweet It Is!

The sweet taste of summer squash in the form of a pie is even more fantastic when it's made from fresh produce grown just a few steps away from your kitchen.

A Pizza The Good Life

All good things come to those who wait and now we're in a month that was definitely worth waiting for, National Pizza Month. And while we can't grow mozzarella, pepperoni, ham or sausage in our gardens(sigh), we can grow herbs and veggies that make a homemade pizza all the more special because they add fresh flavors that can only be found in produce that was harvested just a few minutes ago.

So go ahead and grow basil and tomatoes. Make that homemade pizza sauce. Shred yellow summer squash or zucchini. Drain them, squeeze out the excess liquid and sprinkle them  generously over your creation. Put on some young tender spinach. Add homegrown onions and peppers if you like, raw or sauteed. And you can even include roasted homegrown garlic if you have a mind to.

The variations of pizza are endless. And you'll need far more than one month to explore them. So get started now and enjoy! Mangia! Mangia!

Sunshine Pizza

This pizza is a totally tasty sunshine bright delight that's made from fresh, shredded, yellow summer squash and fresh bright yellow and yellow/orange cherry tomatoes. It's just another reason to love my garden!

Believe It Or Not

Did you know that August 8th is national Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Day? Hey, I'm not making this up! And if you've ever grown these Italian cousins of American summer squash you would know why such a day is necessary.

Just one Zucchini plant has enough output to feed a small developing nation. And a small row of plants could be a major contributor to ending world hunger. If you plant early, by August you've given every family member, coworker and neighbor a lifetime supply. And people you know start avoiding you because they've made all the soups, stews, breads and dips that one can that are zucchini based and don't want to take the chance that you'll hand them any more of your garden's bounty.

So desperate times call for desperate measures and you have to start sneaking over to the porches in your area, sometimes in the dark of the night, and gift the unsuspecting with zucchini. So go boldly forth and remember that it IS better to give than to receive, no matter what your neighbors may think.

Growing Summer Squash Is Never Dull

Like their cucumber cousins, once summer squash start coming they require daily inspection because the fruit can literally increase in size overnight. I am quite sure that this beauty was at least two inches shorter when I looked at it yesterday. But all it took was a passing shower or two to cause it to leap to new proportions. When growing summer squash it's best not to blink too often. You might miss something!

The Groundhog Wars- Part I

This year, thanks to some uninvited guests in my garden, I've been forced to take container gardening to new heights, literally. And it turns out that repurposed trash cans are a very effective way of keeping my summer squash beyond the reach of worrisome woodchucks. I wish I had about a dozen of these, but one does what one can with what one has.

By the way, I've discovered that groundhogs don't like the smell of basil. So placing a few well developed basil plants in containers alongside my smaller container veggies seems to keep the rapacious rodents at bay.

Children Of Abundantia

Presented for your consideration(clockwise from top left) Rumi Banjan tomatoes, jalapeño peppers, straight neck summer squash, banana peppers and Black Vernissage tomatoes.

Bargain Bin Bounty

I've been planting summer squash for over a decade now, but I've never seen plants that are as consistently robust and prolific as the ones I've grown this year from these seeds I purchased at the end of last season in one of those 10-packets-for-a-dollar sales. It just goes to show that you never know where your greatest bounty will come from.

This Week In Squash

It has been one of those years where Mother Nature has decided to keep us all guessing. First, there was the tug of war between Spring and Winter that lasted far longer than it should have. Then we had a similar situation between Spring and Summer. And then, there has been the rain, lots of it! All in all it has been a season to remember as far as the weather is concerned. 

So I put things into the garden and crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. The first of the summer squash are now here and once they start coming, they come fast. I'm glad to have them and hope my plant can stay healthy for at least another month. If Mother Nature cooperates, of course.

Cheap Eats

Some may look at my garden and wonder why anyone would go to the expense and trouble of growing something that could be picked up at the nearest grocery store. Well, the fact is that truly fresh produce tastes far better than anything you're likely to buy at most grocery stores. And then there is the matter of frugality.

I know that's something that most people find hard to understand. "Don't those plants require water and fertilizer?", they ask. Most certainly they do. But how are those things major expenses when you use mainly captured rainwater and make your own fertilizer from food scraps and plant matter using a composter? And when you lasagna garden, you don't even need potting soil or top soil because the decomposition of leaves, grass and other organic matter you've gathered from Mother Nature provides your planting medium.

Summer squash are selling for an average of a dollar a pound in local stores in our area. So far I've pulled the equivalent of more than $20 in produce from the plant in the picture shown above and there is still more to come.

I get delicious, fresh produce and pay pennies for it. What can be bad about that?

Keep A Weather Eye Out

When someone tells you to keep a weather eye out or on something they mean watch it very carefully so you don't end up blindsided by change. That's always good advice when growing anything, but it's especially true about summer squash, cucumbers and other members of the Cucurbita pepo group. Once they start bearing fruit, it takes daily inspection to make sure you don't overlook some tender prize. And If you skip a few days of inspection you may find yourself looking at living baseball bats, because as tender as they are when they're young and small, they easily become tough skinned behemoths in a very short time.

These beauties will escape that fate. They'll make a nice side dish after they are battered and lightly fried.

Song Of The Cicadas

Summer is ending. Summer is fleeting. Soon it'll be cold, snowy and sleeting.

The cicadas are out in full force and singing up a storm. And no matter what lyrics one might put to their tune, the chorus would undoubtedly be something like the sentences at the start of this entry. Gardening this year had a later start than usual because it seemed that Mother Nature didn't really want to start spring. Planting in this area was three to four weeks later than usual. But the time of bounty is upon us and the first summer squash is in. I hope my straight neck squash plant lives up to the prolific nature of average summer squash plants, because there isn't much time left before the cool nights return and the autumnal equinox is upon us.

Summertime And The Living Is Tasty

The summer solstice has come and summer is now with us. Though each day henceforth will offer fewer of the life-giving solar rays that produce the bounty of the garden, there is still plenty of time to celebrate the days of summer. And what better way can be found to do that than by enjoying summer squash? Though best when young and tender, this specimen of papaya pear squash still has a few days before it is ready to be harvested. And I can hardly wait!

The Bugs Are Back, So What!?

You would think that after the snowpocalypse of a winter that we had here a few months ago, any squash bug eggs that were left over from the fall would have been totally obliterated. Ah, but insects haven't survived for approximately 400 million years because they're easy to exterminate. And while I'm sure there were some bugs which emerged and died from lack of food because the cold, rainy spring delayed planting, some didn't hatch out until after my squash plants were in their containers and well along in their development.

Their arrival hasn't been a welcome event, but the delay in their appearance gave me ample time to prepare for combat against them and has given the plants the chance to reach a healthy, mature state to help fight them off. As you can see from the photo above, lack of summer squash won't be one of my problems this year.

Ready For Dine Time

The tomatoes are still forming. The peppers are developing. The melons are only at the blossom stage. And the onions are not yet at their pungent best. But the first papaya pear summer squash is ready for its close-up and the dinner table. And it was really great sliced and sautéed with green onions, celery and home grown garlic!

Crooknecks In A Box

This is the first year I've tried growing Crookneck summer squash in a container. I used a 15 gallon plastic storage bin with a couple of drainage holes drilled in the bottom. Looks like things are working out just fine.

Fresh Summer Squash

The papaya pear squash are the first summer squash to appear this year. But as you can see, Mother Nature isn't always so neat regarding where she places her bounty. Cutting this golden prize from the plant without causing damage is going to be quite a challenge. And did I mention the squash stems are studded with little spikes that really irritate the skin when you brush against them? Ah, the things one must endure for fresh produce.