Bringing Neighbors Together

I thought the neighbors might be less than thrilled with my collection of pots and screens in the front yard, but I've had nothing but pleasant conversations with neighbors checking in to see what I'm growing and how things are doing. I just had a woman I didn't recognize at all pull over and say she looks at my plants every time she drives by and is impressed at how well they're doing. She said she was just telling her friend how great they looked and asked what I fertilized with. People have had advice and their own gardening stories. It's been great.

Meanwhile, my butternut squash continue to let me down. I believe these buds are some of the fellas that are showing no inclination to open. The female blossoms that opened earlier still have fruits on them. I guess they haven't realized yet they can't be pollinated by zucchini. My mom apparently has gotten three female blossoms and corresponding male flowers at the same time, so I'm glad her butternuts are cooperating right from the start since she had trouble with the zucchini getting both types of flowers. My zucchini seem to be doing their thing. I've only gotten one zucchini at a time on each plant. I don't know if that's just all the plant can support. A lot of female blossoms are shrivelling before they even open.