Cherry tomatoes are the first to start ripening, while the Cherokee Purples and Amish Paste remain as green as they’ve been for the last couple of weeks. I read that when temperatures start climbing above 85F, tomatoes slow production of lycopene — the phytochemical responsible for the red and orange color in tomatoes, carrots, and the fruit of watermelons. We had a couple of weeks of triple-digit temps earlier in July, which might account for the other tomatoes’ slowness to ripen.

The few cherry tomatoes that have ripened already are deliciously sweet and tangy. I’m looking forward to the next batch.

Deer feasted on a couple of my jalapeno plants. I turned off my motion-detector sprinkler during the day to do some yard work, and forgot to turn it back on before evening.

Normally when the deer come within 10 feet of my plants, they get sharp blasts of water that send them running. They took advantage of the free pass, and managed to eat most of the leaves while leaving the baby peppers on the stalk. Here’s hoping the babies will continue to mature, even without their surrounding leaves.