Things are heating up.

Yup, things are really heating up. Not only has the heat finally shown up in Vancouver, but the hot peppers are coming out too!

We've got a yellow pepper plant and a couple jalapeno plants. Both are doing well basking in the sun and producing what I hope will be delicious spicy treats. Well, right now they only have a single pepper each, but i never had high expectations for these guys in the first place.

I always thought the little ones were the spiciest...

R.I.P. Strawberry Plant

She showed so much promise...

A young strawberry plant just trying to make it in the big bad world of a West End Vancouver balcony. Unfortunately a wily squirrel decided to stomp the crap out her before she could even bear a single berry. At least we got to enjoy two white flowers before her time was through.

And here is all that is left of her now...

Sunset and Smack Garden Update

I have been lagging in the photo department so I just ran outside at what turned out to be a great time for an extreme closeup of our first nasturtium flower.  The sun was setting right behind it as I took this shot.

In garden news I put 2 afternoons of weeding this past weekend on the middle plots which have largely gone unplanted until now, ie: it was densely populated with weeds.  Throughout I found a ton of cilantro which is our latest rogue plant in the garden and I also found 2 parsley plants and marigolds along the border that had seeded themselves.  I couldn't just extract from the garden so when I was done I planted the beets that I had started from seed along with 4 tomato plants.  Throughout the 2 day process I polished off a case of Cariboos so I guess I planted a tree in a round about way too.  I try.

There are still a lot more tomatoes to plant and some Chocolate Mint that is still sitting in a small container.  That stuff smells like it literally sounds it should.  Reminds me of chocolate chip mint ice cream...  Other than that the peas and the strawberries are coming in, any lettuce we moved is growing strong, and our kale is lookin pretty good too.  I will have to post some more photos soon.

Nasturtium up close		More of the same

BUGS!

The garden is under attack. I've noticed the two star performing sunflowers were looking a little worse for wear. They are getting purple patches and holes on the leaves. Upon closer inspection, I saw a swarm of green critters going to town on the defenseless sunflower. I spent a good 20 minutes trying to track down all of them and squish them with Q-tips. Update: Torill saw the critters and told me they were aphids. Thinking back I remember Alex acting one out, and I knew for sure she was right. Now how to get rid of them for good... a swarm of ladybugs perhaps?

Prumps' Garden Grows

Hello List! Prumps' garden is flourishing in the daily 5 foot triangle of sun that I receive on my West End apartment patio. So far the crops are coming out nicely despite months of what seems like solid Vancouver rain. If I can make one salad or spice up one meal by the end of the summer out of the overpriced dirt, seeds and precipitation that are out there I will consider this a success. So far the cast consists of: A few sunflowers, grown from seed.

Two tomato plants: one yellow cherry tomato (grown from little guy). He's pretty spindly and just starting to show signs of flowering. This is not the bushy, healthy looking tomato plant that i'm looking for to yield a batch of butter chicken sauce. Maybe one tomato for a sandwich one day?

... and one normal tomato plant bought at a big size, so it arrived healthy and full. This guy is going to be the good one.

Basil

Rosemary

Thyme

A few Yellow Hot Peppers from seed.(I don't expect these to do so well in this climate)

One Strawberry plant

Some trees... can't remember what kind. Grown from seed. These should be ready to chop down and build a house with for my great grandchildren. No photos so those will have to wait their turn for an appearance here. Stay tuned for non-stop action updates on how this garden blossoms. The good news is, these photos were taken a couple weeks ago, so there's already progress in the life of these plants. Which will thrive? Which will fall victim to neglect and early death?

Mr. Kitty

A staple to our garden are the many cats that live in the neighboring houses. It is not uncommon to find them laying in the middle of the garden during the day or soaking up the heat on the bedrock at night. I happened to catch our favourite cat, Mr. Kitty (not his real name but it is to us!), enjoying the radiating heat last night. I think he is starting to show his age a bit but he is still as friendly as ever. If he catches anyone sitting on the rock it is only a matter of time before he starts ramming his head against your arms and legs looking for affection.

Without further adieu, Mr. Kitty in all his glory...

Mr. Kitty		What's up?

Lettuce Migration

There is simply no room for all the lettuce I dug out so I took some with me last weekend to my parent's garden. Despite being stowed away in my backpack they survived the trip on the bus/ferry and found a home on the back side of the garage.

New home for the lettuce		Here's lookin at you...

The garden in Victoria is doing well with the exception of any cucumber we have tired to plant.  Some bugs just love to eat any leaves that they produce and have killed about 4 plants already this year.  The peas are doing very well though and our potato patch is going gangbusters.  Hidden inside all of the potato leaves are some lettuce and cilantro which are enjoying the free shade.

Peas, Beans, Cucumbers and Chard		Potatoes check out the before pic