warmth
Dear Ciara,
The days are getting warmer, and my plants are suffering. I often come home from work to find my Thai basil and Vietnamese mint drooping. Even my cat’s whiskers plant, which grows everywhere else up here like a weed, is struggling in this heat. The grass is yellow and cracked. Everything is so dry. I never thought I’d miss the wet season, but I don’t want it to arrive quite yet—I’d like it to remain dry for my upcoming holiday. After that, the rain can come.
The back garden bed, in contrast, is overgrown. I’ve attempted to stake my tomato plants multiple times, but they’re far too heavy. They are smothering the entire bed, but I don’t mind. The dense foliage is shading the other plants from the hot sun. Brilliant. Cosmos and coreopsis flowers are beginning to bloom through the green, and one sunflower stands tall and proud. There are garlic chives and salvias dotted about too, but you can’t really see them. My only real concern with this bed is how best to deter pests from the tomatoes. I normally try to avoid using chemicals, but nothing natural seems to be deterring the caterpillars and giant grasshoppers from chewing on the fruit.
I don’t think the tomatoes will likely survive the wet season either, so I need to sort this issue out as soon as possible. Once it arrives, I’ll likely need to thin out everything except the sweet potato.
There are also these strange weeds that have popped up in the bed. I can’t seem to identify what they are. They’re almost a kind of salvia, or maybe an amaranth, with clusters of seeds that sway in the breeze. They have a sickly sort of smell. I don’t imagine they are edible.
Well, that’s all I really have to say. Other than this, my spare time has been consumed by reading. I’m obsessed with those cozy Japanese and Korean books set in bookstores, cafes and other “third spaces”. Speaking of which, I’m keen to continue The Kamogawa Food Detectives this afternoon before church. They bring me a lot of joy. I know you've been reading a lot too, which is great to say. We always seem to be matching.
The song for today is:
S. Carey — Yellowstone
This song always relaxes my bones. Carey's soft, whispering vocals comfort me often on long drives.
Love,
The Gardener