First tomato blossom & move

Ta-da! My first tomato blossom of the year!

Okay, so that's a bit of a lie. I've been pinching off buds from my tomatoes, cukes, and peppers for the last month for two reasons: to promote leaf and plant growth and become of the upcoming move. The growth idea is that if the plant isn't putting energy towards flowers and fruit, the plant itself will grow stronger and move vigorous, leading towards heavier harvests later on. For the move, I didn't want a lot of teeny fruit getting jostled around for five days, and preferred not to have a lot of blossoms at that time either, in hopes that the move wouldn't knock down the flowers. A few buds slipped past me, however, in the last few days' rush to pack and clean.

I also have several pepper buds (bells, jalepenos, and banana) that I hope will survive the trip. Additionally, my herbs have been going nuts in the humid heat Virginia has had this week--I cut several of them back for the move Monday, and my garlic chives grew back to full length in.two.days!

The hubs and I are heading out Monday morning--a few of the hardier plants (e.g., aloe) will be riding in the back of the uhaul, while the more delicate plants will be hanging out in my car, towed by the uhaul truck. We plan to take five days to get from southeastern Virginia to southern California, and honestly, I'll be happy if half my plants make it to their new, larger balcony home!