When Paul came home last night and asked if we’d gotten any rain, I responded, “Just a little, like we’ve been getting” – meaning, just enough to wet the leaves but not the soil. But this morning, I woke with a memory of rain thundering on our metal roof and the sight of a damp garden through the window. Then, just before I stepped outside to work in the garden, it began to rain again.

I went onto the front porch instead and trimmed dead, crispy foliage off the plants there that have been limping through summer on the little water I’ve been allocating to them. When the rain let up after a few minutes, I headed out to the garden and weeded, grateful for the moist soil that releases roots more readily. And I’ve never been so happy to get rained on, as it drizzled on and off while I worked. In fact, I celebrated by planting beet seeds – I’d been putting it off for lack of rain. Oh, happy day.

Getting on my computer to write this, I checked the weather forecast: more rain! While at first this prospect thrilled me, I worry that we might get too much, as often happens after a drought. The rain finally comes, but all at once, washing away topsoil and causing flooding.

But Saturday the sun will come out again, inviting us all to celebrate the cleansing, replenishing water that has fallen. Join me at the Broadway Community Market Saturday morning, where I and other vendors will have fresh produce, flowers, baked goods, handmade items, and more. I will be bringing:

• cherry tomatoes
• tomatoes
• bell peppers
• jalapenos
• cucamelons!
• garlic
• garlic salt
• crocheted items

Thanks to the drought, bean beetles, and a very persistent groundhog, the bean harvest has been pretty dismal the past couple weeks, so unfortunately, I won’t have any tomorrow. But I will finally have some cucamelons! They usually sell out, and I have a limited quantity, so come early if you want some!

Finally, mark your calendar for our special Back-to-School Evening Market on Wednesday, August 28, 5-8 p.m.

See you at the market!

I hadn’t planned on harvesting cherry tomatoes today, but when I glanced over at them, I saw masses of little golden fruits ripe for the picking. So I grabbed a container and began working my way down one side of the row. And the container filled up before I’d even reached the end, so I ran inside for another. When that one, too, began to overflow, I started laughing – who expects abundance in a drought? Yet here I was, with more than double my usual harvest of cherry tomatoes.

Just before this, I’d walked the row of slicing tomatoes . . . and picked not a single one. Sure, I picked some earlier this week, but not many, and finding none ripe is unusual.

Even more disappointing are the cucamelons. The vines seem to be thriving this year, full and lush, and they put on masses of tiny fruits, but they’re just not ripening. Many of those under-ripe babies fall off at the slightest provocation, such as when I harvest the few that are plump enough, and those that remain on the vine grow so slowly.

I’m blaming this on the drought, though the full-size cucumbers in the same bed have inexplicably been producing fairly well. Of course, I could carefully water the cucamelons every day to combat the heat and lack of rain, but thirsty bite-sized cucumbers feel like a luxury in the face of a drought. Irrigation this summer involves a delicate balance between water conservation and nourishing the plants so we can continue eating. So, I’ll take the abundance I’m given, and dance when the rain finally falls.

This Saturday morning, you can find me at the Broadway Community Market with the following, in varying abundance:

• cherry tomatoes
• bell peppers
• jalapenos
• garlic
• cucumbers
• beans
• garlic salt
• crocheted items

See you at the market!

I think I mentioned in my previous post how I’ve never gotten very excited about Christmas in July. It seems odd to me to celebrate a holiday apart from the actual holiday, to completely remove the meaning and occasion and turn it into shallow fun. And yet, I’ve also always jumped at any opportunity to celebrate something. Special meal? Count me in. Cake? I’m there. Decorations? Absolutely.

So, a Christmas in July Evening Market? Why not! I’ve been happily crocheting little Christmas trees and mini stockings, and I even have colored lights set out to bring for display. This fun popup market happens today from 6pm until 8pm, at the Broadway Community Market. Vendors will have regular offerings as well as festive items, including special food! Jillian’s Farmstead Kitchen is offering a choice of turkey or roast beef platters, and Wiches and Brew will have sandwiches and holiday-themed lattes and cocoa.

I will be set up with the aforementioned crocheted Christmas trees and stockings, as well as other giftable crocheted items and fresh produce: tomatoes, beans, garlic, cucumbers, yellow squash, and chocolate bell peppers. If you can’t make it out to the market this evening, I will also have all of these things at the regular market on Saturday morning!

See you at the market!