We picked our first tomato from the garden this morning which is pretty good considering we planted a little late and it's been somewhat dry up until the past week or so! We always hope to have a tomato before the fourth of July but it doesn't always happen. Fortunately, we usually have the first ones in June but conditions always dictate their appearance.
As you can see, we also got a handful of green beans, another a first of the season! We've dug the onions, garlic and potatoes and have had squash and cucumbers for a week or so. The cukes have become to come in reliably enough that I'll start to pickle them any time.
And I have an update on the baby birds - they've all left the nest! We went out yesterday morning and shortly after we got home, I noticed that one of the birds was gone. I tried to keep an eye on the other two but they seemed content to hang around the nest. I looked out at dusk and they were still there. However, this morning when I looked, they were gone. I'm a very early riser so they must have left right at daylight as I looked right after my husband got up about 6 am.
And I got to see the mama bird a bit better and I don't think she's a finch but an Indigo Bunting! We noticed a male IB hanging around yesterday and I read where the male will sometimes appear as the babies fledge to encourage the female into nesting again. The female had some blue showing when she flew from the nest and looked very much like the photos I saw on the internet. Not only that, but the nesting site suggests an Indigo Bunting instead of a finch. It was only about 3 feet off the ground and in a shrub which is supposedly typical of the IB's.
I think I misidentified the bird because it is a member of the finch family and similar, plus, we don't see the IB's around here a whole lot and the females are especially shy.
I don't think the female will nest in the same place again this year but if she does, I'll give you more updates!
Now, off to have our first fresh tomato sandwich of the summer!
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