One Tomato, Two Tomato...

We're finally harvesting some ripe tomatoes, but the numbers are disappointing. I wrote earlier that pollinators are curiously absent from our garden this year, and we were hitting the tomato stakes to loosen the pollen so our 56 tomatoes could self-pollinate. A few bees have arrived since but not enough to make a big difference to our garden, so we continue to try imitating the vibrations of wind or of bees by tapping those tomato poles. 

The tomato in the photo is probably from one of our German Johnson plants. We ate two tomatoes last night--our first harvest--sliced and lightly salted. Tom also picked some lemon basil for the marinara sauce I made to serve with pasta. I had to use canned tomatoes and tomato paste for the marinara sauce, as we don't have enough ripened tomatoes for more than a sandwich or two.

But the garden delivers other delights, as the photos below illustrate.

Green spider with prey--This is probably the same spider I photographed previously on the mountain mint.

I think this is an assassin bug. It was trying to hide from me, with its catch, under a leaf. I've turned the photo horizontally.

Purple hyacinth beans and morning glories now cover the bamboo trellis I built.

The blue-black salvia is blooming profusely.