Sweet potato thieves in the hamlet

Returned home after two weeks of holidaying in Malaysia...
We knew from the news that it had not rained at our home throughout this time...
The hot temperatures and the rainless days...
My missus was most concerned that our pond would be all dried up and our goldfishes, all dead...
So, the first thing we did upon opening the gate was to rush to the pond...
The pond was dried, but luckily not completely...
In the remaining little water, our goldfishes were there, alive...

The next thing to check was the potager...
Was very surprised to see my sweet potatoes being dug up...
I had planted three varieties of sweet potatoes...
Altogether, there were 42 plants...
Initially, I thought it was the work of wild boars...
But after some investigation, we could not find any foot marks of the boar...
And, the dug-out areas were just too 'neat'...
Boars would have been more 'destructive'...

The thief or thieves took almost all of the sweet potatoes...
There are about three or four plants that were untouched...

Japanese society is supposed quite 'safe' and free from such things...
Oh well, another lesson learnt... was really looking forward to harvesting them... sigh...
Next season, we should perhaps harvest the potatoes before we leave for our summer vacation...

Tomatoes... fighting off the crows...

Was eyeing to harvest the first tomato...
But the crows always seem to know what is on the farmer's mind...
One day before the harvest, they took three of the biggest ones...
Ooh... that was painful...

Immediately put on a protective net...
And luckily, could harvest some of the fruits...

The big one weighed about 450 grams...
Quite a feast, actually...

For the last few months, have been enjoying our breakfast with vegetables freshly picked from the potager...
Here, we had tomatoes, dill, cucumber, and nasturtium flowers...

Success with Cucumbers

Had been trying to grow cucumbers for the last two seasons...
Thought this season would be equally bad...
But luckily, they are growing very well...

Tried the 'two' (rather than three) sisters method wth corn...
The corn is actually now overwhelmed by the climbers...

Was a bit too late in putting up the supports....
So, this one was just sitting on the ground, waiting for the harvest...


See that one leaf sticking out from the body?

A taste of spaghetti pumpkin...

Just for the fun of it...

Bought two spaghetti pumpkin seedlings

Not very productive

Or, is it the farmer that is the issue?

We got to harvest only two fruits
This one weighed about half a kilo
Not big by any pumpkin standards

Sliced into halves, the texture unfolds
As the name implies, the flesh resembles spaghetti
or noodles  if you like

In Korea, was onced served 'pumpkin tea'
And why not try making our own?

Not as sweet as that of the 'normal' pumpkin

Missus made a vinaigrette concoction to go with it
Sprinkled with a bit of sesame
Ummm...the pumpkin by itself is quite tasteless
But with the vinaigrette dressing, tasty enough to warrant a second planting season...

Greens growing well...

Due to the unexpectedly constant rain for the past few weeks

The greens in our potager have been flourishing...

Bayam or amaranth(green pointed leaves)...
red ladies finger, nasturtium...

Parsnip... seeds from Cairns...
trying it for the first time...

Daikon (Japanese radish)...
First time to grow this crop...

Korean perilla amongst komatsu-na...
The perilla self-seeded and they grow faster than the weeds...
Good for us as we love the taste of it...

Komatsu-na... aka mustard greens...
A patch of moroheya...

Am not sure of the name of this vegetable....
Got the seeds from my mum...
in the village, we call it 'mak choy'...
I like its plain taste... excellent as a soup...

Red amaranth...
bought the seeds from Malaysia...
The taste is as good as the green version...

Planted swede for the first time...
also called rutabaga or yellow turnip...
supposedly a cross between cabbage and turnip...
Bought the seeds from Cairns...

Some folks say swedes do not like transplanting...
I did, un-knowingly...
And it is looking surprisingly good...