Farm and Livestock Report For July 13

In my spare time, I fiddled with the anemic sprinkler system, that must be replaced at some point. When I work on it, I see it as a study of something done without much thought or planning. I removed and plugged a mostly useless spray head, hoping to boost the pressure available to the last three orbiting heads left in one zone. I also replaced a bad pop-up in the other zone. This is the hot time, with another heatwave later in the week, so good watering is critical.

My oregano has sprouted, but the problem is that I see three slightly different types of sprouts in that bed, and I'm watering them all, and will decide later what is and isn't really oregano.

The eggplant loves the heat, and as the purple flowers are pollinated, they close up into little spiked green balls.

It's been cooler the last few days and I'm hand pollinating the tomatoes. I did find two lonely tomatoes forming on a heirloom plant. I don't think pollination is really the issue, it's the heat. The tomato plants are stressed, so they put their vital force only towards plant survival. We're having a 70 hour window of cooler weather, so maybe fruit set can happen in those short cool periods, otherwise I'll wait till August. Next year, I'll plant only heat tolerant varieties. I didn't realize that 90 degrees was the limit for most tomatoes.

The almonds are coming along, the fruit is starting to turn brown and splitting. When you open one, there is an almond inside, albeit with a papery thin shell.

The cat is feeling good, and I have to water her today.