It has been hot and dry - a normal August but these are some of the surprises that have happened in the garden. A month ago the sweet potatoes were small scraggly vines but now it is a sea of leaves. They grow so fast they seem to be moving.
This squash plant has amazed me. It is a volunteer spreading down the field fence beside the lawn. The horses can reach it but are not interested in munching - the leaves are prickly. Vines that spread into the field are trimmed before the horses trample them.
Now for the amazing part. It sprouted in the compost pile in spring, chose to climb the fence and hasn't been watered until the leaves wilted this week.
When removing the compost its root was uncovered and half of it had been chopped. Hubby stopped digging when he realized what it was and we have since left it alone. It might have rooted in another spot under the mountain of food scraps but I'm not searching. Vines haven't rooted anywhere along the fence due to mowers and horses hooves.
This is either proof of the magic of compost or it shows I am a better gardener when I do nothing.
The yellow squash experiment of covering the seedlings until they bloom to avoid squash vine borer damage is having some success. When the netting is removed, it is moved to another row where more seeds are planted. There has been a constant rotation of squash.
This row of yellow squash has been protected from the borers with the the netting. (We are still watching for signs of infestation. It takes awhile to manifest.) The squash in the middle of this row is twice the size of the others. All were planted from the same pack of seeds at the same time but the one in the middle has gone wild.
It is covered in blooms and fruit plus the vine has sprouted branches like a tree! Yellow squash are always a single vine with maybe the occasional extra branch but not this one. We have no idea why it is so different. It is the only plant like this and if at all possible, seeds will be saved. It looks like we might actually have a decent yellow squash harvest for the FIRST TIME EVER! My fingers are still crossed though.
Other than the heat and no rain, the garden is absolutely rocking!
The squash looks perfect, and delicious! Your garden overflows. Sweet potatoes I've never grown, I should give them a try.
ReplyDeleteSweet potatoes love heat of which I have plenty. Some of mine are orange from a sprouted grocery store potato and those purchased from the seed company are different varieties of white potatoes. I'm wishing for a fantastic harvest - only time will tell.
DeleteHooray for the yellow squash. That's quite a vine!
ReplyDeleteNever have I seen one sprout branches all the way up but that is not a complaint!
DeleteOh, I love those volunteers and surprises in gardening! I've had quite a few of them this year, too, with all the warm and weird weather we've had since April. It does appear you will have quite a harvest!
ReplyDeleteI claim no credit for the volunteers. They did it all themselves! The weather has certainly been weird this year and I think next year will be even stranger.
DeleteI like your funny story! It pays to be observant too! Happy Sept! Hugs, Diane
ReplyDeleteOooh. I wonder if prickly leaves will deter deer?!? I have seen them in our front yard, but they haven't jumped the fence to the back...yet.
ReplyDeleteYes, the prickly leaves will deter deer. I have seen them walk right beside the vines and not touch them. Whether they will refuse to walk over them on the ground is unknown. The horses have trampled mine and once one squash had huge teeth marks; but, that never happened again. The warning memo was heeded.
DeleteCongratulations to one very happy and apparently (fingers crossed for the squash and sweet potato harvest) very successful gardener. I wonder how you store your squash?
ReplyDeleteOne of the unknown squash fell off of the vine unripe so it has been eaten (roasted in the air fryer and we loved it) because it would not store long. The two that are still on the vine should (hopefully) mature. They will be washed, dried in the shade for a few weeks, then used as fall decorations and moved to the basement come winter. If they start to soften, they will immediately be cooked. The skin is thick so they should last until next spring without any problems.
DeleteThe sweet potatoes are dug, rinsed, dried on the porch for a day then brought inside. Those that are damaged are either cut into chunks or roasted and blended then canned. The chunks are used as side dishes (with butter and cinnamon) and the blended are used in pies and muffins. In the jars they have lasted 3 to 4 years without any deterioration; however, they were also stored in closed cardboard boxes in the cool basement without being disturbed.
Now for the odd part. The unblemished sweet potatoes are stacked according to size - big to small then stacked single layer in flat cardboard boxes (like what held shipped strawberries or mushrooms). The bigger ones last longer and are put on the bottom of the stack. We begin eating the smaller ones first. They stack up on the floor in my bedroom closet where they will last one year to 18 months. They lose sweetness and flavor after a long storage time. In the past, they have been stacked in my garage, basement, kitchen pantry, or upstairs bedrooms but they never lasted as long as in my closet. Go figure? The boxes have been stacked three feet high in past years which required a major closet decluttering before harvest time.
Could the compost squash be a 'sun and moon' one? It's got those colorings...
ReplyDeleteI am also puzzled why, when you plant everything the same, one area and/or plant does better than the others. Gotta plant that produced a small but definite root veg...and the other seeds just produced greens. Go figure.
You are asking the million dollar question, "Why?" If only I knew. The same thing happens to me all the time. One plant thrives and the same kind one foot away croaks. It drives me crazy. I am ruthless. If something doesn't thrive, my time nor the nutrition in the soil or the water will be wasted babying it - out it comes.
DeleteI should have checked before I mentioned it -- it's not 'Sun and Moon,' but 'MOON AND STARS' -- and it's a watermelon. So no go.
ReplyDeleteI really envy your prolific garden. We have to work so hard just to grow a few beans and zukes, thanks to the heat -- and the chipmunks. They don't care about the tomatoes, but we don't get enough water to justify those. (sigh) I love Colorado, but it's sure not like Michigan, in this respect.
I have grown "Moon and Stars" watermelon before and silly me thought the yellow spots on the leaves and melon was a disease. It tasted good but I discovered we like the orange varieties way more.
DeleteI admire you for continuing to try and grow things. It is hard. Our fall, winter, and springs are fine but the summers are brutal. We get absolutely no rain, the temperatures hit the upper 90''s every day, the humidity is extremely high and the soil is rocky. I have seen so MANY people who move here from California, the mid-west or up north be absolutely defeated by the conditions. They ask for advice and all I can do is sympathize. Not one single person I have watched has continued to garden. They either stopped or changed to a tiny flower bed. I am tempted to quit also but we desperately need the healthy food.