First Tomato Hornworm

I am amazed every time I sow seeds that a tiny little thing will turn into a big plant that will help feed my family. But there are a lot of things in the garden that frankly kind of ick me out: bugs, worms, etc. I found this guy as I was pruning some suspicious looking leaves off of my Super Sweet 100 tomatoes.


My first tomato horn worm. Ickers! However, my son thinks they are fun stuff. Again ewwwww. He also wouldn't let me squish him on the ground, so we are now proud "parents" of a tomato horn worm residing in a glass jar on the patio. When the kiddo isn't looking that worm might get squished!



I've been hearing lots about garlic scapes lately, and I have been scouring our farmers market to find some. And I found some finally at the Asian Market! I have always counted on Asian Markets through-out the US for fabulous ready to buy food and ingredients that remind me of my youth, but something fresh and new? I can't wait to try them out. I've already frozen some for more experimenting, and I'm plotting where I will plant garlic this fall. The smell as I diced and blanched yesterday was absolutely divine.


And just for fun, here is a picture of my brave kiddo during one of his radish breaks.


Well, as far as being a newbie gardener goes, I am certainly learning a lot through trial and error! Lesson 1.... use a tomato cage...


I didn't, as you can see, and then I missed it as this little one decided that it wanted to go wandering.


It has been a tough week, I think the little one is teething, that has to be the reason he has given up on sleeping. Monday night I think I managed 4 hours.... in 1/2 hour increments. I exaggerate, he slept from 3:45-5, so I managed an hour and fifteen minutes on that stretch. And the next night was about the same. I really needed my Mommy break Wednesday. I can usually escape to yoga once or twice a week to totally disconnect, and the hubby and I try to trade off Saturdays so he can go play basketball and I can run. But June was a recovery month for me after Rock 'n Roll San Diego. So I've been missing my alone time. This Mommy break was extra special. My girl-friend and I had tickets to Lilith Fair. Whoo-hoo!!! Lack of sleep, lack of exercise, and wine...

With all that going on, it was hard to remember what exactly we pulled from the garden. I really have to do better about utilizing the garden to feed the family and not just as a stress reliever for me. I know that the cucumbers have lots of little babies growing, the squash are going gang-busters, the tomatoes are chugging along, that darn bok choy is taking it's sweet time giving me seeds, the bush beans are giving me nibbles and the pole beans are doing their climbing. Come-on summer garden!


FYI --- August 2010 Cooking Light has ideas for additional uses for zucchini....! Only 3, so I will still be trolling the internet when I (hopefully) get swamped in them this summer.

Well, it's getting late and I have an early morning ahead of me! Happy gardening everyone!!