Garden Report: All is growing like mad. And very tasty.

Last night's Pasta Primavera with fresh zucchini and squash and a homemade marinara made from our homegrown tomatoes was... how do you say - DIVINE. I love yellow squash it was oh-so-buttery. Man, watering all those days has paid off into some yummy veggies. This is my first time dedicating myself to a vegetable garden so I'm extra excited.

We are having a heat wave in NYC right now. It's already 92 F outside and will get up to 94 ("but with the humidity it will feel like 103"). Ugh. I HATE heat and humidity like this. However, I am glad to see the sun and have my plants performing photosynthesis like it's their job.

Portulaca is a great succulent plant (aka "moss rose"), it is blooming like crazy now. I planted them in really sunny places on our terrace that will get sun most of the day. I highly recommend it if you have dry, rocky soil and want a bloomer without too much effort.

I bought some cone flowers yesterday and potted them along with some bushy little yellow flowers of which I can't remember the name right now. I am heading towards an English garden look on the terrace. I love love love my lavender. (I am partial to French lavender rather than English.) Last year's lavender is blooming like crazy this year! The one I bought this year looks great, but I know it won't bloom until next year. I love the breezy, airy flowers - it makes me feel like I'm in a field in the English countryside relaxing... and then I look over the side and remember I'm in Brooklyn.

Our hot peppers are finally appearing, although no sign yet of the habaneros they have grown a lot as plants and I expect to see them soon. We have yellow bell peppers and tons of different kinds of tomatoes. All the herbs are doing well - I cannot, for the life of me, keep cilantro going. I have tried twice and I give up. Curry, parsley, tarragon, chives, rosemary, chocolate mint (dear god, if you don't have it yet go get it now), sage, thyme, oregano... all of these are flourishing.

The challenge in weather like this is keeping up the water so they don't dry out and die. I'm having a lot of trouble with my cucumbers which I attribute to planting them in a too small pot. I will try transplanting to a larger one soon I think to see if I can rehabilitate the ones I have.

I have learned do not plant more than one zucchini or squash plant in a large pot. They will grow and produce much better when have tons of room to take over.

The peony plants are doing well but will not bloom until next year.

I am about to start composting (well, I have a full composter on my kitchen counter) and using that as fertilizer rather than the Miraclegro.

I think that's all for now. Any suggestions or comments are welcome!

Any thoughts on growing beets in containers? My thought is they are not worth the effort - you only get one beet per plant, right? And they are not super expensive.

Summer is zipping by... I'm not that unhappy about it!

Summer is wonderful, but I hate being hot so much that I often don't look forward to it as a season. I love Fall, it's my favorite so the end of Summer is met with big smiles on my face and a greedy rubbing-of-hands and cackling. Everyone else gets depressed, I have an extra bounce in my walk when the temps get down below 65F. Bye bye, Humidity! So long, Sweat! Ciao, Sunblock!

Hello long-sleeved shirts and light sweaters, tights and jackets, layers and crisp breezes!

So I'm not sad it's mid-August and the days are getting shorter. I do love the sunshine when it doesn't make me hot, but I also love storms and overcast days.

Let me talk MORE about the weather.

ANYWAY.
I have been riding my bike around, not as much as I'd like to given the heat we've been experiencing. 80F I can do, but 90 is a bit much... so it's the gym over the bike until later this Fall.

I have so much sewing to do it's crazy. CRAZY. I can't even make a list because it stresses me out too much. So much fun, but a lot of work.

I have had many visits from friends this Summer which has been so fun! I got married again (to the same person), had a birthday, had a family trip, traveled a bit, went to the beach, have been performing... the list goes on.

I am trying to grow tomatoes and peppers in our backyard. So far we've had four cherry tomatoes and have a few sweet and hot peppers growing and one, very green plum tomato who has yet to show any signs of becoming edible. Hmph.

We went to a friend's baby shower and my husband, who went to grad school for art, painted a onesie for their still-in-utero-son. The mother is an opera singer, and the father an actor friend of mine who used to be a bit of a trouble maker when he was younger. So Jon made this onesie. Mine is a lop-eared rabbit... not quite as talented as my husband in the visual arts arena.

Once again I am thankful for my life, for my family, for my friends... my life is a very rich one. And as I begin to see the fall of Summer it reminds that time is marching on, with or without our permission, and I acknowlege the people in my life who truly make it the wonderful, special experience it is.

I face many challenges in the coming years... personally and professionally. But I have to believe that as long as I keep my dark, pessimistic sense of humor and my heart open to change and my hand open to martinis, all will be well enough.