The weeds, pests and I have reached a bit of a compromise in the garden. I am not longer to weed or treat (I’ve give up), but they also promise not to get any worse. Well, all except the zucchini are dying. Zucchini are not impenetrable. I’ve actually had quite a few die to wilt disease.

The kids love to play out there. I’ve lost my toddler as he sat in the back of the garden, picking unripe vegetables.

The giant sunflowers are a big hit. I’m still not sure if I’m actually going to harvest the seeds: I might leave the heads out as a natural bird feeder instead.

Right now, I’m getting plenty of cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, and cantaloupe. A few weeks back, I used a batch of cucs to make fermented dill pickles. They were doing great: smelled wonderful. But one day I opened up the bucket and discovered a foul smelling bacteria growing over everything. So the pickles ended up in the compost pile. I did try one: it was crisp and tasted amazing, except of the hint of foul bacteria growth. (I didn’t eat more than one, and I didn’t get sick off of it.) It give me motivation to try again, and I was pleasantly surprised the striped armenianas remained crisp. Next time, I’ll need to check them more, and probably can or refrigerator them earlier.

Here’s another shot of the sunflowers. I love them.