An Abundance of Tomatoes

The zucchini are definitely slowing down, and the plants look like they have a leaf mold growing on them--not surprising, given the mad rains we've had recently. I'll have to read more about the situation before I decide what to do with the zucchini plants. When I harvested today (3 zucchini), I only spied a couple of blossoms here and there, so it looks like zucchini season may be over. Wow, what a run it was!

The cucumbers are still producing heartily, and this evening I harvested 11 more. I'll definitely be making another batch of bread-and-butter pickles tonight. I gave away all but a couple of 1/2 pints that I had previously made, so I'll need to make a couple of batches this time...and I'm going to try a small batch of freezer dill pickles.

The tomatoes are coming on now. I pulled in 8 Beefsteak tomatoes, 4 Best Boys, and 57 sun sugar tomatoes. The first few Beefsteaks I harvested have been eaten in parts, but as they tomatoes begin turning more quickly now, it looks like I'll have plenty of blemish-free tomatoes soon. I had a couple in this batch already.

The okra plants are tall and should be getting okra on them soon, and the pepper plants continue to grow slowly. My fear with the okra plants is that the Japanese Beetles seem to have found them. I have to go out and knock them into a bucket of water. It seems like these bugs will never die! Every time we think we have them eliminated or reduced to a manageable amount, they come back in greater numbers than before. We'll definitely be treating with milky spore this year.

TOTAL PRODUCE COUNT TO DATE:
Zucchini: 82
Cucumbers: 88
White Onions: 1
Yellow Onions: 1
Sun Sugar Tomatoes: 228
Beefsteak Tomatoes: 10
Best Boy Tomatoes: 4
Herbs: cilantro, mint, dill