July Update

Quick update from the vegetable garden.  So far we've been able to harvest radish, bak choy, red lettuce, and mint the past few weeks.  With his year's late start to Spring and some very extreme weather conditions in Toronto we've been getting this summer (it's either cold, very rainy, or extremely hot and humid), I would say we're having "medium" success with the vegetables so far.....

Still, I'm very thankful any vegetable we've been able to harvest - food straight from the backyard, it really doesn't get any more "local" and organic than that.  Plus, there's just something very satisfying about food that I've planted from seeds..... 

The Caspian Pink tomatoes are finally starting to bloom.  The blossoms are small but quite beautiful actually.  And I really love the smell of the tomato plant..... 

Lettuce are doing quite well in the one planter that is on the shadier side of the deck :) 

And cucumbers are coming!  Waiting for this first one to be ready.... I think it's almost there! 

Flowers!

Happy Friday!  Colourful flowers are blooming! 

Clematis

The clematis in the backyard this year is FINALLY growing into the shape I've been training it to.  The eventual goal is to have them grow onto the large tree trunk that's along the fence and covered by the beautiful purple flowers and foliage.  

I never know how to prune back clematis during the off season (Fall?  or Spring?).  So I did a little bit of research on the "inter-web" and found some useful links:

http://www.raymondevisonclematis.com/main/guidesPruning-simple.asp?a=1

http://www.finegardening.com/how-to/articles/clematis-pruning-guide.aspx

Also, I've been trying to figure out what kind of clematis this is as it was planted by the previous owners of the house.  After some research, I think this is the common "Clematis Jackmanii" - purple in colour and four-petal configuration.  

Strawberries

Spring and Summer had a late arrival this season, so did the strawberries in our yard.  The strawberry blooms didn't start until almost the end of May...

The fruits finally started to form after Memorial Day.  I used the plastic bird prevention net and ground stakes again to help protect some of the crops, knowing that it'll probably be a light year for strawberries this season, so I had to protect whatever we can get.... 

Finally, first strawberries ready to eat on June 10th.  It didn't help that it's been such a rainy Spring/early Summer, that some of the fruits started to rot before they were even ripened.  

I'm still extremely thankful that I got to enjoy fresh strawberries from my own backyard.  Even though they are not the sweetest strawberries, they are so much more fragrant than the ones from the store, which makes the perfect for SMOOTHIES! 

Colour in nature

Beautiful colours - all from nature! 

Rain, rain, and more rain....

Although not preferred by people, Spring rain is extremely good for plants... and water/dew drop photography! 

I love how the water drops are beaded and suspended on leaves and branches...  

My nemesis

This is an act of my nemesis ... "the squirrel".... 

Only in our neighborhood do the squirrels try to hide a large piece of pita/naan in the soil of a small potted plant.  Really?  Is that the only place you can hide your treasures?  There's a whole yard right in front of you!    Grrrrrr....  

Hopefully they won't cause too much havoc on the strawberry patch and vegetable garden this year!