Triumph and Tragedy in the Squash Cage

As usual, the enjoyment of summer got in the way of constant vigilance in the garden. What do I say to that? Oh. Well. However, it's been incredibly productive, despite our late season negligence. I think it was mainly the watering that suffered. We had so much rain for a spell (that's homesteader talk, right?) and everything was oversaturated.

Then, we went camping. Which, of course is not an activity that is confined to the actual time spent camping. There's shopping, and preparation, and packing, and cleaning, and making arrangements, traveling... Then, after the exhausting, but also exhilarating, trip, there's unpacking, and resettling, and catching up on long-forgotten chores, like picking tomatoes. Anyone need a tomato? 5? A bushel?

So the squash cage worked out really well. Next time i think I would confine it to two vegetables instead of three. The beans got a late start, the squash was overcrowded a bit, and the cucumbers took over more than expected. So, maybe just cucumbers and squash. And planting the squash in the center, instead of at each pole. Then it will be easier to constrain them. The cucumbers have been incredibly prolific. We probably got two dozen from five plants. The skin gets tough if you let them get too big. It's really a slicing cucumber, but seedy no matter the size. It was a fun experiment. There is also the Jamaican Burr cucumbers that got a late start in a nearby bed. They're just about to ripen.

So here's the desiccated remains of the squash. Hopefully what's left is going to ripen. Only time will tell.

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