I hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July celebration. My family joined the community pot luck hosted by our neighbors. It was nice to get to know some of the neighbors in our community. I made a pasta salad with balsamic vinegar dressing to share. It was a nice and quite gathering….
Meanwhile, some of my plants are doing great. The cherry tomato I planted from seeds a couple months ago is now almost as tall as I am! Okay, I admit that I’m a shorty. But still, from seeds to 5 feet tall, that’s some achievement, don’t you think? See the mini tomatoes from the picture below? I think they’ll be ready in no time. My Little Girl is the most excited one as she adores tomatoes.
My Chili plant is also doing great. It’s been producing more chilies than I can consume. Guess I’ll preserve them by turning some into chili oil. Yay! It’s always more exciting to spiced things up, right? At least, that’s the case in the kitchen, I think!
Unfortunately, my green thumbs is still acting….so sad that my favorite thyme didn’t survive. I really can’t figured out what I did wrong.
Neither did the tarragon below. Any tips or advice you can give me, will be greatly appreciated! I know some of you are great with gardening. So please help.
And since my Italian basil started blooming, I have a few more self-invited friends in the garden lately. Such as Mr. Bubble Bee (see picture below), and his entire family!
So, remember my new “Housemates/self-invited guests”? The babies are out now and they are so cute. Unfortunately, their nest is way up high on the 2nd floor’s roof so the picture isn’t too clear.
Here’s a closer look at them. I think they are super adorable, don’t you think? Although I have to clean up their mess everyday on the porch, it’s all worth it when I see these little faces and hear them sing everyday. Can’t wait to see them spread their wings and fly on their own one day.
I hope you’re all doing well. I’ll post my latest favorite summer treat on the next post. Stay tuned.
Awww I love the little houseguests!!! They are so stinken adorable!
ReplyDeleteThey sure were adorable. I'm going to miss them when they move out!
DeleteNice post, as usual.
ReplyDeleteAnd nice birds!!
Waiting for your next post.....
Regards
Thank you, Laurel. Glad you love my post. ;)
DeleteOh, what fun on your potluck. The garden looks so nice, if you've grown so much, you sure have a green thumb.
ReplyDeleteThe birds are darn cute...enjoy them and Nice to meet you Amy.
I subscribed today.
Great to meet you too Asha. And thank you so much for subscribing my blog and I'm definitely to follow yours back.
DeleteWhile some of the herbs I have planted grows beautifully, others just plunges down. I grow mostly local herbs and they strive well in our hot climate. Never had any luck with tarragon and dill but the rosemary is there but turning yellow, again the heat from the sun.
ReplyDeleteI am just like you. I feel good when my plants grow and quite side tracked when they die. Because of the different climate in the country we are, I can't give much advice except that just like what I do, continue planting and see what happens.
Thanks for your encouragement to continue planting. I agree, different climate and different plants just react in their unique way. I use those herbs quite a lot so I'll definitely keep planting new one. :) Hope yours will grow better and thrive too!
DeleteBeautifull garden!
ReplyDeletei love gardening micro herbs too since actually i need just a little for plating garnish, hehehe
no need to brought a bunch of basil and throw it all after using a pinch....
I agree, I love having fresh herbs for the same reason. I used to use just a little bit of basil. Now,I use them a lot to make pesto. They are so good with pasta. ;)
DeleteAs someone with no green thumb at all, I think your cherry tomato triumph is AMAZING!!! The only think I have successfully been able to grow is mint (because it's essentially a weed) and rosemary. Actual vegetables elude me. Your "house guests" are adorable! --Lisa
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting, Lisa. I know...seems like my mint and rosemary never die. Opps, I probably just jinx it! LOL
Deletewow, you have truly green fingers Amy, I reallya dmire your gardening talent! My basil pots keep dying on me, and maybe one day when I have a garden, fingers crossed, I will get cracking! Till then the balcony will have to do :-(
ReplyDeleteI know...I wish I can plant my herbs and vegetables on the ground as well. But so far, I'm happy most survived in the pots. :)
DeleteHi Amy,
ReplyDeleteSo glad to see you gardening, don't give up you can come over to the cottage and check out my current June Garden Tour. I am now picking you up on bloglovin. Hope you are having a great day!
Miz Helen
Thank you so much, Miz Helen. I'm hopping over to your site right the way cos I remember you're wonderful in gardening. I'm sure I can learn so much from you and your site. :)
DeleteThanks for adding me on Bloglovin. I'll be adding you on Feedly as well (that's what I use to replace Google Reader).
Hi Amy! You have done so wonderful gardening .
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping at my space and I am following your space to get new tips on cooking and gardening.
Thank you, Sapana. Appreciate your follow and I'm more than happy to follow you back. :)
DeleteThank you, Sapana. Appreciate your follow and I'm more than happy to follow you back. :)
DeleteYour garden looks great Amy, and yay for tomatoes growing at such a great rate:) Parts of my herb garden are thriving but I have some that are haven't survived. I don't really have a green thumb either so welcome any tips too :) Aaw and your cute little house guests look so adorable!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kelly. I know...I really don't have much clues when it comes to gardening. LOL...Glad you love my little house guests. I think they'll be ready to fly away in no time.
DeleteThank you, Kelly. I know...I really don't have much clues when it comes to gardening. LOL...Glad you love my little house guests. I think they'll be ready to fly away in no time.
DeleteHi Amy, we've no green thumb here but the more we neglect our thyme and tarragon they flourish, a bit of water only. These babies are charming... :-)
ReplyDeletehm....maybe I should just plant and forget about the herbs! hahaah....come to think of it, I wonder if I've gave them too much water. :P
Deletehm....maybe I should just plant and forget about the herbs! hahaah....come to think of it, I wonder if I've gave them too much water. :P
DeleteYour thumb is turning green, Amy. You'll be enjoying your fresh tomatoes before long. For a long time we haven't had a veggie garden. The squirrels enjoyed the tomatoes as much as we did, so now we purchase our fresh veggies at the road side stand. :) They do not eat my perennials.
ReplyDelete~Judy
Oh, I know what you mean. I share the tomatoes with the birds too. ;) I wish there are road side stands that I can buys veggies and fruit here. Oh well.
DeleteLovely garden, Amy!! You need to come and bring life into my dead basil, rosemary, thyme and mint pots.
ReplyDeleteNo joke. I have a huge black thumb!!!
Sorry about the dead herbs, Kiran. hm...I wish I have more tips, or herbs to share with you too. :P But my thumbs aren't that green either! hahaha...let's hope the the best on our next batch of herb plants!
DeleteWow - what's your knack for growing those chilis? I've never had good luck...
ReplyDeleteThe secret to grow those chilies was just plant it...water once a day and lots of sunshine. I didn't really do much with it except harvesting more than I could consume! :P So, I just made some chili oil today. Will see how it taste in a few days. ;) I think they are the easiest thing to grow...more so than the mint!
DeleteYour tomatoes look great! The trick with herbs is to make sure to cut them back frequently and buy high quality organic soil. Your soil has a lot to do with how well your herbs do. Also you need larger pots, herbs like a lot of room for their roots to grow :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for these great tips. I kind of noticed the difference on plants' quality with the pot size too....it's just that I need to find more rooms for larger pots! LOL :)
DeleteHerbs can be hard to grow in containers, or at least I find that to be so - they can dry out so quickly! So watering is crucial, without over-watering of course. So many things to think of when gardening! But things are looking great, and there is nothing like your own tomatoes. ;-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the great tips. I agree with you...I wish I can plant my herbs on the ground and not in pots! I bet they love bigger spaces of their own. ;) I can't wait to harvest some sweet and juicy tomatoes too.
DeleteHi Amy,
ReplyDeleteYou have a wonderful garden there. I love to plant herbs in my garden too but sometimes just doesn't have luck too..:D Hope that you have better result for the next batch of herbs. Jia you!
mui
Thank you, Mui Mui. Let's Jia You together! Hope we'll have better luck/herbs on the next batch. ;)
DeleteThank you, Mui Mui. Let's Jia You together! Hope we'll have better luck/herbs on the next batch. ;)
DeleteWe have a beautiful tomato plant in our side yard, but are being plagued by blossom bottom rot at the moment. We are hoping that a couple of Tums might do the trick. Fingers crossed because we love our homegrown tomatoes too. Love your little birds. They are so cute!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing, Karen. I agree, homegrown tomatoes are the best. Hope your crops will turn out plenty and wonderful. ;)
DeleteThe chilli pepper plant is doing really good, Amy. My basil plants didn't survive as we had a really bad spring and it has just started to look like summer since last weekend.
ReplyDeleteOh...sorry about your basil plant. Hope your next one will thrive. The chili is doing so great I just made a jar of chili oil today. Will see how it tastes in a couple of days. ;)
DeleteWe have a neighborhood potluck on the 4th, too...I love pitch in dinners! I have a black thumb, but thyme is one thing I haven't killed yet. It comes back in our garden every year with or without my help!
ReplyDeletehm...I guess I better stop "touching/caring" for the thyme when I get a new plants! hahaha...I can't believe it die one me either.
DeleteYou do have green fingers to grow the tomato plant from seeds. Sorry I can't help much with gardening.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mun. :)
Deletegardening must be hard work...
ReplyDeleteOh it is...I spend time, love, sweat, money on it....and not always getting anything in return! :P But it's okay, I'm learning as I go.
DeleteLove the babies! I have lots of herbs but I grow them in the ground, except for basil. They don't like a lot of fertilizer, in fact I never give them any, and they tend to be in a hot, dry spot in my yard. I water but the site has good drainage. Gardening is hard work!
ReplyDeleteIt is hard work, tell me about it! :) I wish I can grow my veggies and herbs on the grown too...but I currently don't have any space. Oh well, at least some of them survive. :P
Deletelove plants and herbs..you have a wonderful garden..but it needs lot of hard work to maintain the garden..
ReplyDeleteThank you, Gayathri. I agree, gardening is hard work. :)
Deletebravo tu as de jolie plantes moi je n'arrive pas à faire pousser les tomates cerises dans mon jardin.
ReplyDeletebonne soirée
Je vous remercie. Le jardinage est un travail difficile. Je suis juste content que les tomates survivre et de plus en plus mal. Mais rien pour vous, quand il s'agit de jardinage.
DeleteHermoso tu jardín yo también tengo muchos en verano en maceteros,plantar y comer sus propios tomates es lo máximo,felicitaciones,abrazos.
ReplyDeleteEstoy de acuerdo, las verduras de cosecha propia son los mejores. Me alegra saber que te gusta demasiado la jardinería.
DeleteYour garden looks awesome! So much fun to be able to grow your own food :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Amy. I agree, watching the plants grow and then able to harvest is the best. :)
DeleteHi Amy, love your garden. It's always something great to plant our own herbs and some vegetables. :))
ReplyDeleteYour house guest is so cute.
Happy gardening and have a wonderful weekend.
Thank you, Amelia. Couldn't agree more. I love homegrown veggies and herbs. :) I can't wait for the little house guests to fly off. I know I'm going to miss them.
DeleteI enjoyed this post very much. Those chicks are very cute too.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I know...those chicks are too adorable. :) Can't wait to see them fly.
DeleteThat's a really nice gathering and help me say hello to all your new members in the garden :) Lovely post!
ReplyDelete