Flat Corn and Zucchini's "Uncle!"

Once again I find myself afflicted with garden separation anxiety. However, now, with veggies on the vine, the stakes are critical. We're headed to a wedding in Virginia (our third wedding in six months) and we'll be gone the weekend. It's not that bad. I'll be able to tend to the plants before I leave on Friday and then again when I come home on Sunday evening. Technically, that's only one full day without tending. One....FULL...day.

I'm okay with things staying on the vine possibly a day longer than they should. There's no real, true damage to that I suppose. What it is, is one full day where the Japanese beetles can engage in as many extra curricular activities as they please and chomp up my garden in their ecstasy once they realize there's no one hovering under them with a cup of soapy water. Truly, this is the only thing that has me on edge. I've prepared the garden itself as best as I can: I picked another large tomato today (my third) and I can bring them with me along with three left over cucumbers in the fridge (I actually picked and gave the ladies at swimming lessons four cucumbers this morning). I've pulled all of the viable beans and blanched and froze them. I grated, steam blanched and froze zucchini for baking zucchini bread later and I've got another to come off tomorrow which should last the weekend in the fridge for us. Things WILL be fine. As long as those Japanese beetles don't text their friends that Mom and Dad are away for the weekend and have another love fest, that is.

On a few side notes, we had a storm blow through here last night. No rain, only wind and thunder, but it did a thorough job of flattening the boy's corn in the container. I tried to shore them up with two poles and twine. Another little rain storm is coming through now, so we'll see how they hold up.

***I do, however, have a question for any of you out there. Do zucchini bushes have a "life span?" I'm not talking about your generic I'm-a-summer-veggie-and-I-don't-like-winter life span but more of a I-produce-what-I-produce-and-then-I'm-done life span kind of like bush beans.

I ask, because on of my zucchini bushes seems to be crying "Uncle." It's not sickly by any means. Green and straight as it has ever been, it is. However, after I cut off those last zucchini yesterday, I notice it doesn't even have any more flowers waiting to bloom - male or female. Odd, isn't it? Now, it produced a TON of vegetables. More than I could have ever imagined and I'm not disappointed by any means, but is it done or do I need to just be patient?

The morning comes early, and the afternoon will find us driving to Virginia.
Sweet weekend gardening dreams.