Summer Means Strawberries

Thing 2 and I picked over two pounds of strawberries today. The June berries are finally ripening! With all the hot weather over the weekend, we had quite a few. I'm hoping to save up to make jam on Thursday, but I'm not sure I'm going to get the 5 lbs needed, especially with Thing 1 hovering around the bed, plucking berries and popping them in his mouth as soon as he can. Unfortunately, I also found quite a few holes in the ground. Someone else is helping themselves to the ripe fruit.

I also picked the first peas today. Last year I had already picked two pounds of peas by July 1. I only managed a little under a quarter pound today (and so far this year). Have I mentioned everything is late?

I still don't have the parsnips in the ground, but I did get the area they go in to all weeded out and watered today. The onions really liked the hot weather, and I'm getting ready to thin them for the second time. Mmmm. Thinnings....

I dug under a potato plant, and found one the size of an egg. Now starts the debate - to pull a plant, or not to pull a plant? That is the question. Whether tis nobler to the stomach to let the plant grow, and have many more, larger potatoes later, or to have young, steamed potatoes now? My apologies to Shakespeare.

I'm pulling the tomatoes out of the Kozy-Koates, and getting the area ready for some basil. Last year, I planted one basil plant in between each tomato plant, and it worked pretty well. This year I'm going to plant more basil. I also planted many more determinate tomatoes this year, and have hoops in place, ready to cloche the tomatoes and basil, as we have a rough time with cold night temps, and summer rains will bring late blight.

And another first for the year: I almost stepped barefoot on a snake. Ick.