Garden Thief

So if this cutie is eating only my weeds, who's eating my eggplants and beets?

Reap What You Sow

It's funny; the less hours I work at my paid jobs, the more I am able to fill my hours with other things, which still don't involve cleaning house or taking care of my garden.  I am always very well intentioned to take care of the garden but there always seems to be something else of a higher priority to do.  I am blessed to live in the wonderful climate that I do, so that even if I ignore the weeds for a while, the garden still does fairly well.

We changed the plant mix this year.  For the first time, we didn't plant tomatoes and cucumbers.  We are trying some crop rotation strategy.  The lavender and chives are perennials in the herb patch.  We have added a strawberry mint and a cinnamon curry plant to the patch this year.  In the veggie patch, we are growing potatoes and shallots instead of cucumbers and tomatoes.  The eggplant this year isn't doing as well as last year despite it's rotated location.  We have planted beets this year for fun and my husband always has to have his one chili plant as well.  We are also trying chocolate coloured bell peppers this year, but unfortunately, no fruit.  As usual, I planted yellow marigolds around my patches to try and keep away the pests; works not too bad.  So without further ado, here are some pics of my overgrown herb and veggie patches and some of my flowers.

Chives blooming before lavender at the back right

Lilac doing really well

Ah, clematis

potato plants and shallots on the right

shallots, beets at back, eggplant right front, chili right middle, beets back second from right

lavender back left now blooming, chives front right blooms faded, cinnamon curry front left, strawberry mint back right

Summer Sweater

I recently completed a new summer top.  I used Naturally Stella Prints in shade 491 (salmon and white self patterning) and Naturally pattern booklet FC66.  This yarn is 100% bamboo.  It was my first experience with bamboo.  I wasn't expecting it to be so soft and silky.  The feeling is pure luxury; absolutely exquisite.  Since it has a highly slippery texture, I felt the best method for seaming it together would be by a crochet seam.  It's holding out very well.  I'm really enjoying wearing it!