What a CUCUMBER!

It had been 2 weeks since we were last up at our Temecula home. I was afraid of what else Mr.Gopher might have attacked! First glance - everything seem alive, particularly the weeds. Promising.

I hear an excited shout from my husband to come look at this amazing squash in the planter. I am puzzled as I did not grow any squash. Maybe a bird drop a seed? My jaw drop!! 

It was the Armenian cucumber- A GIGANTIC CUCUMBER! I have never grown an Armenian cucumber before but I do not think they are normally that big or at least people do not let them get that big!! There were so many of them.When I saw the plant last, I believe they were just flowers or just forming the cucumber with the flower still attached!! 

When I saw the little pot of Armenian cucumber at the nursery, I thought let's try something different for the salad bowl. I do not think these batch of cucumber at least are destined for the salad bowl. It does however re-ignite my hint and desire for the the Grandaddy of cucumber "Lo Wong Kua" literal translation "old yellow cucumber". Hmm, my Cantonese may have gone astray, to me Wong Kua has always meant cucumber. I guess Kua is any squash. I digress. So Lo Wong Kua is a large "cucumber" kind of like my Armenian cucumber but rounder and more filled out, brownish in color. I love it boiled in a soup. I am going to cook my "Big Boy" here the same way and see if it will taste anything like Lo Wong Kua.


I look at my little asian herb garden. It seemed to be thriving along with the weeds. The serai (lemongrass) was starting to take off. I need a healthy clump of lemongrass for all the lovely Asian dishes.

 The Chen Hong / Vietname Rau Ram is starting to blanket the ground. Next to it the Thai Siam Queen basil was a healthy bush.

 The curry leaf plant looks like it is very happy settling in. The leaves look healthy. I hope there is enough hot days left for it to set forth roots and nuzzle down before winter.

The screwpine or pandanus plant obviously loves the heat of Temecula!! It was sending out roots and staking its spot in the garden. I am looking forward to delicious pandan flavored and perfumed food. Yum!! Of course, I am fully aware that I could lose this precious plant to frost as it is very frost/cold tender. A nursery I went to, had to buy back plants from customer, when they lost the nursery's Pandan mother plant to frost! I come prepared. I had started a number of baby plants. I will keep some in pots so I can move them inside when it get colder. But... the ever adventurist gardener I am, I am prepared to gamble with a plant in the garden, in hope of it naturalizing and adapting, or me coming out with a way to protect it to allow it to winterize in the garden.

We finally planted in the ground the Mexican Papaya plants. It said to plant them together for better pollination. Those Papaya plants must have double in height since we put them in 3 weeks ago. I have high hopes for my papaya. I am hoping to start some Hawaiian Papaya too!

The Meyer Lemon tree is full of green lemons. I'll be ready for them!

Blood Oranges!! So looking forward to these delicious beauties. So afraid that Mr. Gopher is going to takt down this tree next.

Thus goes my Temecula garden in late August.

Update:
NB. I just noticed I was right! The last blog posting August 14 showed the Armenian cucumber was small and there were just some flowers only. Click on link to compare.