strawberry season

I picked these today in Beulah.

Here is shot of the sand dunes and Lake Michigan at Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes.  About 20 min from us.

Here are some nice photos of my natural Michigan garden.  Most of these are natives and they are just starting to bloom in June. I can't remember the names or find the paperwork of course but they are pretty either way.  The thing with natives is they throw off babies and now my yard is filling with various shoots all over the yard. I have been moving some or just removing some.  Fun to see what will bloom and when.

June 2014,  Joyce and John visiting from CA. Fun at Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes and the new boat on Crystal Lake.

Ok back to tomatoes.  This is the 2014 crop. On the left is a patio waterfall cherry which already had some small fruit and know has about 20.  Nursery says it can produce 600 tomatoes!  In the middle is a Early Girl, very small.  On the right is another patio but a bit larger fruit.
I am also trying another jalapeño, some mini basil and parsley.  I also planted mesclun and cilantro.
Check out the new planter, raised bed, cedar and fancy red cages.  I am upscaling!

Mike's Beta Theta Pi brother and his wife Joyce visited for a few days and we toured the area.  Here we are at Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan.  Luckily we are too smart and too old to climb the dunes!

How Asparagus grows

We have a great farm that just grows asparagus and it is in full harvest.  Wonderful in omelets, in pasta with morels and cream or just steamed.  I actually learned to steam them without making them "mushy" as Mike so kindly insinuated.

Welcome to blog 2014, Michigan summer.
We got here early and NOTHING was blooming due to late cold and snow. So now I get the pleasure of seeing all the spring flowers like these trillium.  They grow in the woods all over here. See don't pick because as cousin Judy will attest they smell like wet cement in the house. (circa 1967)