Summer micro-harvest

I always have this slightly optimistic idea that I can grow my own vegetables. I don't know if it's the red Georgia clay, the dry summer, or the different garden pests, but vegetable gardening seems so much harder than I remember growing up in Ohio. Early season setbacks with voracious slugs, a foraging raccoon, and a squash borer taking my zucchini were grave disappointments in my mostly organic efforts. Nevertheless, things looked a little better by late summer. One positive thing of which Georgia gardeners can boast is the hothouse effect of 90 degree days with near 100% humidity. Veggies seem to love that and thrive. In this picture you can see some tomatoes-- I tried the Roma variety this year, which seemed to be a success. The grape tomatoes grow like weeds with little effort on my part. Some are volunteers and have second generation hybrid breaks like pear-shaped fruit or yellow skin. This year I tried eggplant and started some from seed as well as putting in a few starter plants from the local big box nursery. I experimented with some exotic types-- the long white variety shows you at least part of the reason that eggplants are named for eggs in America, the original named variety being white, and well, egglike! Last week I made a nice tomato, eggplant, and okra casserole with some balsamic vinegar and a little garlic (also from the garden). Should have photographed that! The okra was also an experiment this year. I have about four plants that survived from seed. The blooms are very exotic, a creamy yellow color, shaped like a hollyhock or a hibiscus. The way okra ripens is one finger at a time, so in order to provide a proper family serving you'd probably have to have a goodly number of plants. I do like the taste, I must say, though I know not everybody does. Signing off as Ken the gardener