Summer, Sun, and Silverbeet

It is the second day of Summer here in the Antipodes; Kiwis count it from the first of the month for some reason. Usually this feels a bit premature, but Summer has really shown up for it this year. We had a full week of heaps of sunshine and not a drop of rain. Then late yesterday evening the rain arrived and drenched everything. I sat in my armchair looking out the window and breathed the satisfied sigh of a gardener who doesn't need to water everything for a change. 

I made a hurried second harvest of the silverbeet today to go into this evening's noodle casserole. I harvested even more than the first go; I forget how prolific the stuff is once it gets going. And all this in partial shade! I am in love with the candy-striped pattern on some of the stalks:

The joy of preparing beautiful food from your own garden! I generally recommend planting one silverbeet per person. Four plants for a three-person household may be pushing it, but the grown-ups in our house can't get enough of the stuff. I'm looking forward to a Summer full of beautiful greens.