Last week’s column (which I wrote on Tuesday) spent some time on my complaint about the lack of rain. Then, as luck would have it, we had a decent soaking as a result of a cold front. That front fortunately pushed Hurricane Erin offshore and away from us. Aside from the wind, we had some cool, sunny days, which made for perfect Agricultural Fair weather.

There is quite a bit of clean-up required in the gardens. It still isn’t time to start some serious fall plantings. I did manage to get some buckwheat planted in the empty onion beds. We still have time before a freeze for it to bloom. I love to give the honeybees another shot at some early fall foraging. As the buckwheat “goes by” I simply overplant it with some winter rye. The beds then have a cozy covering for the winter months.

I tend to make stuff up as I go along. To wit: I found a row of kale completely untouched by the hideous white cabbage fly larvae. It was odd since all the other cole crops were decimated. The untouched row was growing in an area overtaken by reseeded Sweet Annie. I wonder if the smell kept the pests away? That’s now my story and I’m sticking to it.

One thing I like about myself is the ability to recognize plants in their infancy. It’s a handy skill if I ever actually got around to weeding when they are small. Recently, I took on the sweet potato patch. What a mess! They were overrun by the wild morning glory. Sweet potato vines are very similar to morning glories, so it was a bit challenging.

Weeds have an uncanny ability to look just like the plants you wish to save. Do they “know” where to grow to avoid detection? Also, why do they seem to survive droughty conditions better than everything one tries to grow? Just another of life’s mysteries. 

I’ve complained a few times about the loss of my old gas range. The pilot light was a handy tool this time of year for drying some of the garden’s abundance. A few years ago, I purchased a food dehydrator. I’m not a big fan, but it does do the job.

I made my first big picking of the Italian variety Principe Borghese tomatoes. They are the ones that are sun-dried in Italy. Supposedly, the farmer throws the entire plant over a fence and the sun does the job. We live in much too humid of a climate, so the aforementioned dehydration does the job. It takes several days and much of the counter space. They can be frozen or covered in olive oil for the fridge. They are great on homemade pizza or in a simple tossed pasta and cheese.

My canning tomatoes are yet to ripen in numbers worth dragging out the canning equipment. I use Amish Paste and/or San Marzano. It’s a relief that they are still unripe. I’m not ready for a canning project to take over the kitchen.

Where’s Jake Tapper when you need him? He wrote an entire book about the aging and decline of Joe Biden and yet not a sentence about what we all see with our own eyes. The health (or lack thereof) of our 47th president is increasingly shocking. Joe Biden accomplished much in his four-year term, but no one seems to know. He did not endlessly brag, but now the Republicans take credit for some of his projects. Oh! And they voted against them.

Trump thinks he gave Maryland the funds to repair the Francis Scott Key Bridge and now wants to withdraw them because Gov. Wes Moore didn’t sufficiently stroke his ever failing fragile ego. I hope our country survives him.

Why can’t someone take the car keys from Gramps?