Update 6 - 71323

Peppers coming along

(Edit - Tis 71623 1116 - an below are two images added of some zucchini grown that today I plan on drying out).

Evie is our Jack Russel (16 years old) and she is not sure what to make of the big vegetable!

(If I weighed the zucchini in the image above, I’d guess it weighs more than 20 pounds, but it is probably over 95% water, so that gives about 2 pounds give or take of solid concentrate dried out to ~50% moisture content - I’m going to try it in the air fryer today - and I’ll report back on this effort - Ken)

OK - it is 859 pm or 2059 military time on the 24-hour day of 71623 and I’m “reporting back”. The image below is the dried zucchini - about 95% moisture removed per my crude calculations such that it is 50-50 water to solids versus 95-5 as it started out. Took a few hours in air fryer and I had to turn the temperature up to 220 or so. Here is the image:

Per my calcs, the leftover zucchini intact in the image is about 50% by volume of what it was and the remnants dried out in the bowl after about 30% of the total were eaten are the rest - you do the math. I think it might be more than 50% water in the left over remnants, but most of the water, a very large percentage evaporated off and the remnants are kind of chewy in a pleasant way and basically tasty and presumably healthy being no spices or anything was added besides the leftover oil in the air fryer.

This will be another quick garden ambition update and I’m not sure when the next is gonna happen - it might be a few weeks.

I’d like to reveal just now that I’m working on another short story as the “Pee-Wee” story is almost finished (just a few typos left to correct and one more diagram showing “the play” I scored my TD! - see below for an easy link). The title of the new story I’m gonna tell is already revealed in the Pee-Wee story - tell me if you know the title…cause it is there.

However, I recently spent the last few days with family at the beach and while I was there we stayed with friends and I swam in the ocean - nice steady slow rolling waves coming in at dusk against the pleasantly cloudy sky where differentiation between water and air was seamless…..I let the waves roll me in the Atlantic Ocean and then my friend came and collected me before I decided to just head to Bermuda - due east it was at the time. Anyhow, when there with friends, my good friend who we know because our kids met each other at church, said to me: Ken - wouldn’t it be a good story about our poker playing group and the travails of time along with fellowship that has kept us together? I think that would be a good story, and maybe I’ll tell it next instead, but I don’t think so. The Wolf is in my mind’s eye. I feel the Wolf.

But enough of this day-dreaming - here are the garden images for this update on July 13, 2023 - we are more than halfway through the calendar year - that is a good thing:

Here are Gardens #2 and #3. Plenty of crops on the way.

Here is an image of the one and only okra that has grown so far - the poor okra must not of appreciated the colder weather, but the summer ain’t over yet.

Here is the latest on the peppers - I’ve learned so much this year about growing peppers and these peppers are tough. I’m pretty sure in about a month or so I’ll have at least one of each variety in hand, and I plan on saving the seeds for next season. I plan on sharing the peppers that grow with others - I plan on giving them away basically for free - unless you want one of each type - if so, then I will barter them collectively.

A few of the crops - I already ate the tomatoes picked yesterday. I can tell you this - beets grow well here, so they are going to be a staple of this garden going forward.

Here is the Pee-Wee story almost finished:

That’s it for this update - remember this - family is what matters.

Happy Gardening and I send out warm thoughts of peace to any readers here. Together we are better.

Ken