All the rain we've had this summer has really helped the garden take off.  It was a little slow to start, because it was, well, underwater... but after a little compost and some sunshine it's pretty thick!  With whatever space I don't take up with my veggie plants, I like to plant zinnia and cosmo seeds, and also allow all the basil germinate from plants that bolted in the garden last fall.  

 

Fennel is a new one for me, to grow and to eat.  This bronze fennel is really striking in the garden though, and I'm excited to harvest both seeds and the bulb before long.

 

 

Last year's oregano made it through the winter and decided to bolt (along with the sage and parsley) this past month.  It's huge and smothering the peppers at the moment, but the flowers sure are pretty (and pollinators are loving them)

 

 

My reasons for loving zinnia are pretty much apparent here - there is so much color variation!  Each new bloom is a pleasant surprise with an unexpected hue.

 

 

At our previous house, I had a butterfly milkweed plant growing in my flower bed that just randomly germinated in a gaillardia plant I brought home one year.  Every time I drive by that house I'm sad that I didn't bring it with me, along with the purple coneflower that I moved back from Austin with.  Both are huge and nicely established now, covered in blooms all summer long.  Hopefully they are being enjoyed by the new tenants and passersby!  In any case, I planted a few different types of milkweed throughout our yard with hopes of enjoying these plants once again.  The one above is tropical milkweed.

 

 

My niece helped me build this herb bed in the spring.  It needs to be weeded, but is otherwise flourishing.

 

 

First little pumpkin of the season!  (first one ever, for me)