Garden Update - Early July

~The Good ~

The season's first tomato! This is Punta Banda, a cherry-size paste tomato. This may be the earliest I've ever had tomatoes.

And the first tiny okra! Texas Hill Country Red.

My first squash blossoms of the year! Peñasco Cheese Squash. I planted it in May, although common advice is to plant in July for less problems with squash bugs.

And this is a random volunteer... can't wait to find out what it will be. Volunteers always seem to be hardier and less susceptible to the dreaded squash bugs.

Navajo Red-Seeded Watermelon has blossoms! I feel like it is still awfully small, but I added steer manure, so I'm not sure what else it needs.

I planted Mitla black tepary beans where I pulled up my garlic, and they have sprouted already! I also planted some corn on the other side, and I think I see a few sprouts. It's a great variety called Precocious, and the name is apt! I grew it last year and it had ears within two months. I still have some in the freezer and it's delicious.

The nasturtiums we planted in June are coming up well, and I mulched them well, so maybe they have a chance.

 ~The Bad~

And now for the bad news... all my pickling cucumbers have bacterial wilt, which is transmitted by insects. Possibly this bad boy in the picture? I'm just going to hope it's not verticillium or fusarium wilt, which are easily confused with bacterial wilt, because that would mean it's in the soil and I'm screwed forever.

~The Weird~

Ants on a pear. Are they eating something sweet coming out of the end there? But these are harvester ants - I thought they just ate seeds. It was still cool in the morning, so they were totally still. I picked a few of the tiny green pears to see if they would ripen on the counter or after a time in the crisper. Still trying to learn when is the right time to pick this variety.