Pick and Eat. Pick and Eat.

That's all that's going on this week.  

We pick and eat.  

Bush Beans, Sweet Corn, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Zucchini, Potatoes. Repeat.

One of our neighbors has released two dozen Monarch butterflies so it seems like at any point in the day you can go find a Monarch somewhere close by without too much trouble.  But this was the highlight of my day.

A Giant Swallowtail.

(on a Dinner Plate Dahlia)

It was very large (the Dahlia is at least six inches across) and unconcerned about me and my camera.  I regularly see Tiger Swallowtails, Black Spicebush Swallowtails and Painted Ladies.  I saw a Viceroy last week which is a pony-sized Monarch lookalike, and my most common are the tiny but brilliant Azure butterflies.  But I have never seen one of these big guys.  Luckily I had a camera in my pocket.

I've seeded fall lettuce and transplanted fall Cauliflower.  My Cauliflower plants have been outside all week against the north side of the garden shed so they get about two hours of late afternoon sun.  I wasn't sure they were ready for eight hours of direct sun so I placed these wire baskets I picked up at the Dollar Tree over each one to filter the sunlight for a few days.  Because yesterday when I looked at the weather forecast I knew I couldn't ask for much milder weather.