Little things make me happy like hand-printed letters and drawings from the grandchildren, our Carolina wren perched atop Cliff's tower singing his heart out first thing in the morning, the taste of pure goat cheese purchased from Donna at the farmers market, and just recently discovered at Wayne's Feed Store, Deer Stopper barrier ribbon! 

In preparation for our trip to Myrtle Beach a few weeks ago, Cliff and I started to wrap twine around bamboo poles hoping to deter deer from wiping out my yellow and green beans.  He didn't have any faith in my plan and I doubted it would work.  He insisted we go to Wayne's and find a product that would give me a better chance than twine.  In the six years I've been planting, the beans never made it taller than about six inches and if they did, once the sweet blossoms appeared so did the deer.  I bought the last box on the shelf.  The barrier tape needs to be tied tautly thirty inches from the ground.  If it sags, it won't work.  For moose, it needs to be tied at forty-eight inches and for fawn, muzzle height is twenty-four inches.  The ribbon is pre-treated with whole egg solids, mint oil, rosemary, vinegar and a few other ingredients so is harmless to animals and crops.

Today, two weeks after installing Deer Stopper.  In another two weeks, I'll have to spray the barrier ribbon with the Deer Stopper spray.  Next year we'll put barriers around more of the garden.

Cukes climbing the teepee.
This year we are pestered by Japanese beetles on the morning glories.  I put up a beetle bag but some are still devouring the leaves.

Morning glories on their teepee.

Still digging potatoes and the first few onions.  I'm not too pleased with the four-by-four box we built for potatoes back in March.  They didn't produce like the author of the Mother Earth article said his did.  I was going to nix it next year, but my newly retired friend, Barb, told me to try it again next year.  I'll do a smaller two-by-two instead.  Potatoes planted in the garden clay and mushroom compost produced  a much better yield. 

Tomato plants are full. 

"To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow."  ~ Audrey Hepburn