Really. I had no freaking idea. There were actually two cantaloupe harvested today, but I eated one. I have about 60-80 ears of corn on the way. I had a steak with a side of stewed tomatoes for dinner. Needless to say, my freezer will be full.

The guitar is a little cheesy, but it makes for a good still life shot.

Very nice. Is that fennel or dill? (Looks like fennel.)

As for the tomatoes, make tomato confit! Peel them (blanch first), then slice. Put them in a casserole dish and cover with olive oil. Bake at 250 for an hour or more. Oh, add garlic. Store in the fridge. Yum.

Fennel. Had about 35 plants in a 3'X3' plot (I grew dense). Been pulling them, trimming them down to the bulbs/thick part of the stalk and giving them away or freezing them. I use it tons. Stir-frys, sautes, stews, pastas--you get the idea. Chopped a bulb up into tonight's tomatoes.

OMG how did you grow the guitar? It looks delicious!

So cool you're growing corn! I want to do that next year. Everything looks so good. I love seeing what other people grow. Is this the first year you've planted stuff?

I talked to a number of people around here that grew corn, had good stalks, yet no ears. I learned they all planted evenly spaced in rows--like you see on TV.

I learned that corn requires pollination, so I sowed tightly in several "blocks." With that proximity the area was swarming with flying bugs and the flowers practically touched. As a result, pretty much every plant has ears.

Rock on, sourwookie! We've had lots of cukes, but that's about it right now. I'm really looking forward to fresh melons and tomatoes.

An amazing harvest indeed! My tomatoes and cukes pale in comparison.

Whoah, excellent! Where are you?

Beautiful! That cantalope looks tasty. And I woulda thought that was dill. I don't know nothin bout fennel. Do you use it similarly?

Tomato question--do you harvest the tomatoes before they're ripe, to let the plant focus its energy on making more tomatoes, or do you let them ripen fully on the vine for optimal flavor? The MrsMoonPie and I are of differing opinions on this.

I ripen on the vine, mrmoonpie. Never knew there was any other way. Although there have been seasons when intense heat followed by intense rain has caused them to burst. So picking them early may have prevented that.

Wow! I am jealous.

Once the tomato fruit reaches the size it will end up at, it creates a barrier membrane on the stem just above the fruit that effectively seals the fruit from the vine. At this point, it matters not whether the fruit is on the vine or not, as there is no chemical exchange between the fruit and the plant.

Generally, a fruit is safer indoors than outdoors on the vine. For the most part, my kitchen has very few bunnies, worms, birds, or neighborhood children wandering around.

Since it makes no difference biologically, I harvest when the fruit has "cut it's ties" to the plant.