Quick Post and Parsleyworms

I am very blessed to have a hubby who gets to work from home sometimes. He has been able to do a lot of his work from home for the past few weeks or so. I'm not complaining, but it does limit the amount of time that I can get on the computer because he needs the computer for work. So that is one of the many reasons why I have been short on posting time lately. Today is also one of those days that my DH is working from home, so I have to hurry to get this post up. Please ignore any errors in spelling or grammar. :)

I also would like to say a big THANK YOU to all the folks who left me "Get Well" messages and prayers. I am feeling so much better now, and your kindness really helped speed that along!

I was pretty excited this morning when I was able to harvest 3 heads of broccoli! I have 7 more that are still developing and 1 that is working on getting a side shoot after I cut off the main head a few days ago. I also have 2 heads of cauliflower that are blanching and a few more that are starting to form small heads. I should be able to blanch them in about a week, and they will be ready for harvest about 2 weeks or so after that.

My girlies are really looking forward to the annual arrival of the Parsley worms on our carrots. The tops are just about big enough to attract them. As I have mentioned before, I try to control garden pests by natural methods. But I rarely try to control the Parsley worms. They only feed on the tops of my carrots and once they are done feeding they turn into BEAUTIFUL black swallowtail butterflies. Since I try to attract as many butterflies into my yard as possible, I personally feel that it would be a crime against nature to destroy these creatures. Instead, we have learned to live in harmony with them. I allow them to eat my carrot tops. They don't destroy them and we don't use the tops for food anyway. They reward us for sharing by producing a spectacular butterfly show when they emerge from their cocoons. It is a win-win solution for all of us, even though my carrot tops are less than impressive when the parsley worms are finished feeding. I even allow the girls to keep one worm each, feed and care for it, and watch it go through all of it's stages in a butterfly keeper. We release them once they have hatched and dried their wings. They get to learn about butterflies AND about trying to garden in sync with nature rather than against it. :)

Well, I am off to do yard work and prepare for the 4th of July. We may (or may not) have a small gathering. I want to be prepared either way. Have a great day!!