What's that I see?

Could it be yellow....and a trace of red? On my tomatoes no less? It is! I had decided that it was Fried Green Tomatoes and Green Tomato Chutney all they way and was about to pick them all on Monday....but our Farmer Across The Street came over just in time to stop it all. His experienced eyes saw what mine could not....traces of yellow on the fruit - signaling that they were actually going to ripen after all....two or three weeks late but they would ripen. He even saw new little buds of promise that my frustrated mind had blinded me to.....and he told David I could still pick those green ones and tear out those bushes if I wanted to...but to be certain to throw them into his yard....

Filled with hope, I looked at the pepper plants and the squash plants that I had almost given up for dead and saw that they too had new buds on them...they've survived the floods and the creepy crawlies after all. A layer of sand under the squash, more coffee grinds around the base of the peppers and a quick hand picking of the few remaining slugs and bugs I could see and I'm feeling optimistic again.

Underneath the tomato plants, the lettuce is peeking through; over near the herbs I can see chives beginning to reach for the sun as are the onions; I planted some more sugar snaps as I picked the tiny yield I got from the initial plantings (which have lost every single leaf).....

The chicks have learned to follow me to the gardening section of the yard now....they know that its almost certain to yield them a treat or two....a tomato worm on the end of a stick, or a slug presented on a leaf.....its always nice to have companions while one works....

Its a good day.