Things are getting exciting in the world of video production and web design. We've had a couple of meetings that promise higher profile clients and projects, so we're very pumped.
Dallas at 14 is a natural source of news. She was off her meds for a few days, and we saw an incredible difference in her mobility. We were just a few days between her last bottle of pain-killers and her next liver tests, but it was enough to remind us of the severity of what those pills mask. Even with the pills, she only stands unaided about 50% of the time. She mostly just indicates to us that she wants up, and she waits for an assist.
We had recently taken her for a couple of swims over at Laurel Creek, and we're concerned that the water has made her sick. The last three nights have seen her wretching into the week hours at my side, keeping us awake to all hours, and we look pretty haggard by morning. It started off as just a slight thing, but Dallas always communicates the severity of a problem by insistently cramming herself head-first into me, and then barfing on my feet. Ok Dallas, I got it after the first two times… Another neighbourhood watch has been instituted for her return to good health.
In other news… I've lately installed both the new Final Cut Pro package and Snow Leopard. Very cool, and I'm working my way through a set of Motion 4 tutorials that should bring my visual effects up a notch or two. I am so happy to pay the Apple premium for next generation performance + reliability.
The GARDEN…
We were warned that the garden would offer both joy and heartache, and has it ever delivered. As the season winds down, I'd like to provide some notes for posterity, and to act as a reminder for next year. I hope you will indulge me.
TOMATOES - we accidentally bought way more tomato starters from Belgian Nursery than we realized, making our (oops) purchase of 25 tomato plants easily the most expensive single crop of the year. They grew like weeds, but mainly produced leaves for the first half of the summer, and their pretty yellow flowers went unpollinated for what seemed like ages. By August, there were a respectable number of green tomatoes coming on, but only the cherry tomatoes were actually reddening and thriving. Stubborn, we took home promising candidates, basked them in sun, and then savoured their earthy tang as one by one they ripened. Fast forward to September: every single plant has blight, and each green fruit looks like a failed and despairing pugilist after round 11. I silently counsel them to just drop and take the count already…
BEETS - these seemed to thrive, and our thinning was pretty bang-on, because mainly we got large hearty beets. We've still got about 20 in the ground, and after last weekend's successful pickling party with the first batch, we'll likely be doing some more soon. We learned that you can steam beet greens just like spinach, and they taste awesome!
CARROTS - like the beets, the thinning exercise we so reluctantly went through in early summer (making us feel like murderers) earned us huge, long, only slightly malformed carrots to be proud of. Every time we plucked one from the earth in front of someone (as our vanity quickly taught us to do), we heard gratifying "Oooohs" and "WOW"s. We eat very few ourselves, but now that we know we can grow them, I predict a landslide next year.
SWEET PEAS - these beautiful things came on all at once in early July, and hardly a pea went to waste. We ate them as we weeded, as we showed off the garden, as we pondered the meaning of life. Passers by would stand beside them, and comment about how they wished they had a garden, because they LOVED sweet peas, (and we couldn't say no). Next year, we plan to plant triple this year's allocation. They did get some kind of weird infection though, and they turned white and shriveled up in stages.
GREEN BEANS - we have learned that while green beans grow quickly and are gratifying to watch grow, we have trouble eating them in sufficient quantity to justify doing them again. Early on, they looked like they wouldn't make it, with the aforementioned hole-punch disease, but they made a comeback, and proved invincible.
SPINACH - if ever garden bonanza could disappoint, then this year's hugely successful crop did just that. While some early "leaf miners" threatened early on, we defeated that menace and enjoyed a long season of victorious spinach success. The only problem? It was a medium green spinach that grew, nice for salads (which we rarely eat), but I was looking for dark green curly stuff, with that stringent taste that tells you you're getting a crazy amount of vitamin C in every bite. We couldn't give it away fast enough.
SWEET CORN - Now this was a nice mid-August surprise. We were told not to get our hopes up, but the ears came on, and no insects or worms seemed to come near. We have been beside ourselves happy enjoying this crop. We did the minimum this year- just three rows- but next year I feel we will plant at least six. We did get a couple of ears fit for the Freak Museum of Corn, with crazy fungal deformations, but the overall success of the plant lets us forget freakazoid number 9, and keep eating the rest of it, slathered in bricks of butter.
CUCUMBERS - dominating the middle of the garden in a 12x14' space were 6 rows of cucumbers in two varieties. These came on in July sometime, and they enlarged to occupy their entire space seemingly overnight. We brought the first ones home, and our taste-buds rolled in delight at their flavour and freshness. We dreamed of plates piled high with cucumber, tomato and corn cobs… We took home a few rounds of cucs before the ugly yellow trend across the leaves turned brown, and seemed to consume the entire patch in just a few days. Anguished, we called in cucumber consultants, plied lime sulfer, and then resignedly- took the advice of our garden centre and collected the last whole cucumbers and then upended the entire patch, hauling it far far away to stave off further infection. A very sad day, but we did get about 7 jars of pickles out of what we salvaged.
ZUCCHINIS - I can't condone growing zucchs again. They were so wildly, insistently successful, and we ate so many, gave away so many, and are still left with so many that our festooned deck has been compared to St. Jacob's market. Ok, maybe a plant or two for next year, but that's it. With all the rain, some zucchinis were as big as a small dog… We had zucchini in our eggs for breakfast, in our casserole for lunch, and on our pizza for dinner. We left bags of it on neighbours' doorsteps. In return, neighbours left their own zucchini bread or ratatoulli on our doorstep. Folks started to look the other way when we returned from the garden, or they called out pre-emptively, "we're not done with the last batch yet!" I'm reminded of Lee's account of the zucchini festivals of Europe. I feel that Canadians are unworthy of this treasure, currently piling up so relentlessly on our deck. Today, as I hauled back beets, corn, tomatoes, spinach and beans, I left neglected the latest football-sized specimens, under the cover of zucchini leaves broad enough to hide my neglect for just a little longer, while I cast around for new stratagem...
ACORN SQUASH - while this is another expanding crop like the cucumbers or pumpkins, they stayed somewhat under control, and we've had bounty and good health with them, with very little drama. I think acorn squash will very definitely be in our future.
PUMPKINS - Alas, another tragedy. The roots were so infected with blight and traveling mold (no, I don't know if that's a real thing, but CBC's Ed Harris hasn't done a show on this lately) that while we were ripping up all the cucumbers, I decided I'd also excavate all the pumpkins. The black mold was traveling from the roots all along the vines in an almost cartoon-like malaise of disease. Clearly the pumpkins were doomed. Clear to me that is, but subject to exclamations and accusations of malice from Kate. We "rescued" over a dozen pumpkins, and they now sit accusingly on our deck, beside our neglected surplus zucchinis, and another pile of yellow cucumbers that passed their prime before they too could be pickled. My mom joked that she was going to bring some orange paint, and that way Kate could still enjoy orange pumpkins for Halloween. : \
Among other things, like basil and leeks (the jury's still out on those leeks), we planted nasturtiums and gladioli. The nasturtiums expanded WAAAAY beyond what we predicted and totally smothered first the peas and then they took aim at the green beans. We only beat them back with shears. The glads are just fabulous, and we have one radiant specimen on our dining room table now. While the nasturtiums came on too quickly and smothered everything, the glads came on way too slow to actually function as an insect deterrent. I think we'll be looking into marigolds next season.
Oh- and there will be a next season. The wild success of our garden has very much become the envy of the park. The park owner Bruce, came to us, and asked if we'd mind sharing the field next year with about a dozen folks who'd asked if they could get in on the action. We will be thrilled to have the company, and if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then we are well flattered. I am keen to have a more manageable sized plot to contend with, for my own part. And for the time being, we relish the fruits of our labour.
