Summer has finally arrived. Past garden updates have been a little slow and the plants a little small as the temperatures stayed low and the sun was scarce. since then, it has eased into hot and sunny with the need to even water the garden the last couple days. The plants are loving the sun and are starting to fill in the little garden box and teach me lessons again this year.

Let's take a look.

Here is a look at the main garden box as it stands today. Return readers will remember I built this out of wood I had lying around from the backyard rink I used to set up when we first moved here. I shoveled it more than the kids used it so it is better used growing food and flowers. Another lesson I am learning is that I really should label the different tomatoes as I won't be able to tell which are the beefsteak, roma or cherry varieties until they actually start producing fruit!

Beans

On the far end, I planted some beans anticipating they would like the wire to climb on. Last year, I had them in a big pot and they did well. The beans planted this year were harvested from last year which is gratifying not to have to purchase them. They are in the ground this season so I can see if they develop any differently or yield more. One thing for sure, they are growing higher faster and I had to put some sticks up to extend the climbing structure.

Asparagus

This is a little bit of a photography fail as the little asparagus is out of focus. It is the first one that really looked like what I was expecting though much too thin to be excited about. I learned last year after planting that asparagus takes a few years growing to get to the point where they are big enough to eat. I didn't have the heart to pull them out and they are really flourishing this year. I have to trim them back and contain them behind a little barrier for threat of taking over the garden. Maybe I will have one big enough to put on the BBQ

Carrots

Another lesson I learned after the fact is that though carrot seeds are tiny, they are hardy as hell and each one will probably grow. I think it was @shadowspub who mentioned having an ounce of seeds produces an incredible amount of carrots. I planted some indoors and they grew really well but didn't transplant too well. So, I simply furrowed a trench and sprinkled the remaining seeds liberally in hopes they would make it. The definitely did and I have come to find I have an unholy mohawk of carrots a little too close to each other. I have been slowly pruning them out and feeding them to the guinnea pig but won't be able too get them spaced out like I will surely have them next year.

Cucumbers

These little beauties are slicing cucumbers I planted when I was afraid my seedlings were not going to make it. I have lined up a bunch of sticks and will make sure to start them climbing as soon as the next growth spurt happens. They will be fantastic in sandwiches and salads which will make the ladies very happy. Such a hardy variety too as not too much sun is getting down there and they are all doing well.

Tomatoes

Here is the first hint of tomatoes growing. The first yellow bloom is exciting and they are so much fun to photograph. If I were to wager, I would say these are the Roma tomatoes. I will be picking these and freezing the ones we don't eat fresh and use them to make some sauce for the winter. Very juicy tomatoes compared to the fleshy beefsteaks or the snacky cherry tomatoes.

Jalapenos

The first of the hot peppers are starting to grow! These little babies are on the biggest pepper plant and look to be willing to beat the others to maturity. I love these on burgers and I am going to try and save some for hot sauce and hot relish. These are so easy to grow and produce peppers easily. When they get a little cracked on the outside, you know you will have a good heat to them.

Sweet Green Peppers

Not to be out-done, the green peppers are coming along nicely as well! The plant itself is only maybe 6 inches tall but is it charging right into producing peppers on all the branches. Again, fantastic in salads and I opted for the green as the growing season in my region isn't long enough to allow the red or yellow to turn colour.

Habanero Peppers

My little row of habaneros seems to be happy enough to be sprouting peppers. They are also only a few inches tall but get a lot of sun so I expect them to shoot up at some point. For now, producing the first round of peppers early is a good sign and I will add them to my hot sauce for some stronger heat.

Red Chili Peppers

These ones are growing a little taller than the green and habanero ones but not as high as the jalapenos. I really like drying these out and crushing them into sauce to spice it up. I will also add them to the hot sauce for the awesome flavour and enjoy the vibrant colour photographing them when the flowers turn to peppers.

Ghost Peppers

This plant is a bit of a surprise as I imagined the hottest of all peppers in the garden to come off the smallest plant. This one is not as tall as the jalapeno plant but is spreading out nicely. These will really put the kick into my hot sauce and get it up into the sport heat to burn the face off manly men who think they can handle heat. I prefer taste over heat but a serious hot sauce needs the scovilles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scoville_scale

More Tomatoes

Someone at my wide;s place of work brought in a handful of tomato seedlings that needed a home. I will take the rescue of plants over that of animals which my ladies are wont to do. So, I planted these ones in a pot along with a marigold to see how they do. Interesting little round leaves and I will probably move these around to optimize the sun they get.

Marigolds

Speaking of marigolds, I was told they help keep critters away from the garden somehow. They also make good ground cover and bloom for some pretty nice colours so I like to scatter them in the raised boxes too.

Lupins

@lyndsaybowes might be pleased to see my lupins are growing nicely. She was the one who let me know they should be planted in the fall in our climate in order to bloom in the summer the next year. We soaked them in water a few days before planting them and the ground must have been cold enough early on this year to activate them. Though they won't bloom into flowers this year, they will develop strong roots and be vibrant and beautiful next year if we are lucky.

Nasturtiums

The nasturtuims started off slowly as well but are doing well now. These are awesome little edible flowers my little one loves to snack on. They are also excellent if you want to get fancy and shred them into a salad for a little pizzazz and colour....so I am told ;)

Pansies

Speaking of flowers, I have to throw up a shot of my punk rock flowers. They sprouted up last year right where we were planting all the indoor stuff. So, I think we may have spilled a couple seeds onto the edge of the lawn. Now, they are a defiant little blast of colour where you wouldn't expect it and such a nice thing to see as you look out the door from inside.

Raspberries

It has taken a couple years but the raspberry bushes are starting to go nuts. They have spread and are already showing signs of a bumper crop this year. Next year, I am going to have to contain them or they will take over the whole garden. For this year, there will be snacking and hopefully enough to start making raspberry/mulberry jam!

That is it for may rather lengthy garden update. I was waiting a while so I could actually show some progress and then got swept away by real life for a week.

Thanks as always @simplymike for running this event for #gardenjournal2019. For those who don't know, I think we are waiting on the July contest announcement but here is the one listing the participants and winners from June: https://steemit.com/gardenjournal2019/@simplymike/steemit-community-garden-journal-challenge-june-winner-announcement Give her a follow and enter for yourself!

How does your garden grow?