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Today in Our Jersey Summer Garden
August harvest

USDA Zone 7a (formerly zone 6b)

South Jersey caners have been busy canning tomatoes and sauce already. We're about ready to join the fun. Our San Marzano's are beginning to ripen even though they are shaded somewhat beneath passion flower vines.  

Even without the San Marzano's, we finally have enough tomatoes to make our first pot of pasta sauce this weekend! We plan to use some of our heirlooms too: Cherokee Purple and Goldman's. 

Other veggies, herbs, harvests and updates in our garden include:

• Italian Parsley (huge and blooming now too!)
• heirloom Chocolate Cherry tomatoes
• very small, current type, French tomatoes: Leslie's Petit Moineau
• Rutgers Select
• Pattypan Squash - picked one HUGE one so far (shown) - we plan on cooking it tonight
• Oregano (let air dry and store in spice jars)
• no onions this summer!! they were a bust
• didn't see many grapes either this year... have to go look again 
• Cow peas and Franchi Fagiolo Rampicante Anellino giallo climbing yellow French beans are coming along...

Backyard birds and blooms have been spectacular. Hummingbirds are out in force, buzzing about. We have several water sources and native plants that attract lots of wildlife. 

We could use some rain. This morning, chattering catbirds enjoyed cooling off under the garden sprinkler while perching on willow branches.

In our garden, Bronze fennel gets it's own raised bed - just because we like it and so do cool looking caterpillars. They munch on the leaves to provide energy to turn into a chrysalis and then into beautiful butterflies like Black Swallowtails.

Every garden needs a few unusual plants. This summer my favorites have been Fragrant Gladiolas (Peacock Orchid), Passion flower blooms/fruit and blooms on our Peanut Butter shrub in our beloved dog Aspen's memorial garden. The PB shrub has been growing for about 3 years and finally decided to bloom for us this summer!

The PB shrub is really more like a small tree and doesn't look at all like a shrub. I was told the blooms would be a favorite for hummingbirds. And, friends from Dave's Garden were right! I've been watching hummingbirds (and butterflies) loving it. The blooms remind me of an azalea blossom.

Happy Gardening!
Photos and Blog post Copright (C)Wind. All rights reserved.