August's Garden (2023)

 

The garden is out of control and we are exhausted trying to catch up.

It rained for two weeks straight, stopped, and then the heat and humidity soared. The garden grew wildly.

I'm glad the planting dates for the tomatoes were staggered. Those beginning to ripen cracked from the deluge. The sweet potato vines below the tomato vines have taken advantage of the empty space and are spreading up the support fence. It will make picking the leaves for cooking easier.

Our big lawnmower broke down twice, parts were difficult to find so the lawn became overgrown. The melon patch disappeared beneath the weeds. 

The grass spread into the garden along the edges.

The yard resembled a hay field when it was finally mowed and had to be raked to avoid suffocating the grass. Bill raked while I spread it as high as possible between every plant. It was piled as high as two feet in empty areas. It wasn't something either of us wanted to do in 95-degree weather.

I'm not complaining. I'll take too much rain and mulch over drought any day. 

The rain ruined the chickpeas and caused the pods to mold since they were mature. 

They will be grown again next year but I will raise them differently. The seeds were purchased from a grocery store so the germination rate was about one in ten. Soaking them overnight might have improved the odds. Next time, at least ten peas will be dropped in each hole unless I can purchase them new from a seed company. 

Staggering the planting dates didn't work well because the plants died immediately after production. Some varieties like purple hull peas continue to produce, but these didn't. The fresh flavor was similar to new English peas. It would have been better to harvest early, then pull them all up at once and plant something else.

I feel like it was a successful failure because I learned so much. 

Nothing in the summer squash corner has performed as expected. Only four lima bean seeds were planted below the arch at the far end because I didn't want the vines to take over the area like they are doing now. One seed on each side might have worked better.

The dahlia below the Lima Bean vine has been quite happy with the excessive growth and likes being shaded from the blisteringly hot summer sun. They don't grow well in this area and burn during the summer. It is doing better here than in my flower garden. That's been a surprise.

Only two yellow squash from the last batch of seedlings survived but for some reason, they are doing great. I have ignored them yet they are producing.

Out of the dozens of Candy Roaster squash seeds planted only one survived and has produced a fruit. My dream was for dozens of these since they are our favorite. I am wondering why the squash vine borers haven't killed them. Is the scent trap working or have they flown away? Also, the squash bugs are gone. I haven't seen any since the two weeks of rain - that's never happened before. What did I do right with these plants because I want to repeat it. The more I learn about gardening, the less I know.

A happy surprise, the experiment growing lettuce during the summer has resulted in one success. Crisp Mint has lived up to the claim of surviving the heat of summer without becoming bitter. (Woo hoo! I succeeded!)

The bed from saved seeds of whatever greens have bolted is thriving. It is always a surprise to see what sprouts. 

The summer garden has produced more than I imagined. Overall, there have been more successes than failures and with gardening, that's a win. The last two months have been hard but it was worth it to have a full pantry ready for winter.  We have had a few cool mornings which means winter may be early again. It's time to begin seeds for the winter garden and after last year's failure, my plan is to way overplant.

Last Month's July Garden (2023)

Last Year's August Garden (2022)

Through the Garden Gate

July's Garden (2023)

So far this month, the weather has cooperated well enough and there have been no major disasters in the garden. We are harvesting large amounts of produce as fast as possible at sunrise in an attempt to avoid the oppressive heat. Our time in the garden is getting shorter and shorter due to the temperature and humidity rising earlier. Afterward, I head to the kitchen to process the food until exhausted. Every day is like the previous one.

 After the onions in the strawberry bed were harvested last month, borer-resistant squash were planted and are already flowing over the edges.

The second raised bed has tomatoes with watermelons underneath and they too, are spreading over the sides and into the path between the beds. 

All of the watermelon, squash, sweet potato, and melon vines in this part of the garden are being trained (pulled) onto large tarps spread over the yard. This is to keep them from over-running the garden.

This self-planted squash appeared at the end of the green bean row and joined the others on the tarp. It appears to be some type of butternut.

This row of tomatoes with sweet potatoes below is a "don't do as I do but do as I say." I tried a new variety of tomatoes called "Red" which were fantastic according to the commentators on the seed site. Being gullible when it comes to new seeds, I couldn't resist. At first, they flourished, but then their leaves turned black with mold. I fertilized and treated them but nothing helped. 

Normally, something this diseased should immediately be ripped from the garden but instead I removed every leaf to force the tomatoes to ripen in hopes of saving some. When tomato seedling volunteers sprouted in the compost pile, I risked it and transplanted them right beside the diseased plants (another no-no.) There was no other place empty and more are needed to produce enough for winter meals. As of now, the transplants are healthy and blooming (a big surprise).  The "Reds" have not lived up to the hype.

Some of the chickpea/garbanzo beans have matured and are turning brown while others continue to grow. It is probably because the plantings were staggered due to low germination rates. All will be harvested this month.

Another new experiment is attempting to grow a few varieties of summer lettuce in the middle of the blazing hot summer. So far I have learned the seeds are hard to germinate in the heat, they don't transplant well at all, and they quickly bolt.

However, there have been a few successes like a handful of leaves which were made into a small salad. It is enough to encourage me to continue trying.

It is time for a report about the ongoing squash vine borer war. (Borers 1,000 wins to my 0 wins). 

So far this season, almost 20 squash plants have been killed even though I am trying all types of different remedies. This area has been replanted over and over.

Hubby built these PVC arches in the spring to hold the long squash vines because I just knew something I am trying would work to stop the destruction. They are sadly empty but will stay up in hopes of success. There is a solution somewhere - I will find it.

On the other side of the pepo and maxima squash varieties area, (they are susceptible to borers so are near the scent trap), are smaller recently transplanted yellow squash.  They are in the shade of the bell peppers, beside the walkway, and against the diseased tomatoes because I reasoned, if being nice to squash doesn't work, maybe I should mistreat them. I am trying everything - even being mean.

In the midst of death and carnage, one huge yellow squash has defied all odds and lives. It is flourishing and has produced enough squash for us to eat fresh and to add three quarts to my freezer for winter! I don't know which remedy worked or what happened and it may drop dead tomorrow but for now, I have yellow squash!!! I HAVE A LIVING YELLOW SQUASH!!! Does this count as a victory?

Last Month's June Garden (2023)

Last Year's July Garden (2022)

June's Garden (2023)

Summer is here. My days start in the garden just as the sun is rising and before the heat arrives. 

Everything is flourishing better than ever before and it is keeping me bustling.

My newest experimental crop is garbanzo beans. They are from a grocery store and not surprisingly, the germination rate was about one in ten. 

The leaves look like ferns and there is one bean per pod. I have been told you can squeeze the pod and it will pop so you can eat the bean fresh.  I can't wait to try it.

The Yukon Gold potatoes are finished. Now that the plants are dead, the green stakes surrounding the bed are visible. They were tied together with strings so the vines wouldn't spill over into the pathways. The garden rows are close together to not waste growing space. Anything that is a tripping hazard gets propped up - walking is much safer.

The large harvest was a surprise. They were planted later than the Red Pontiac and White Kennebec but grew faster. The others are still winding down.

Some of the onions have been dug and I discovered the amount of sunlight made a significant difference. The front half of my garden is full sun but it becomes progressively shadier toward the woods. The Super Sweet Onion slips which came from a local nursery were the earliest to be transplanted in the garden and were in an area of full sunlight. They matured first.

Generic bulbs were also purchased in bulk from a local nursery and were scattered all over the garden. It has been easy to compare the size difference since they are all the same variety.  The strawberry bed that was full of onions is almost empty since most have been dug. It is also in full sun.

Both the Super Sweet and the generic which grew in the strawberry bed are huge!

In the middle of the garden in what was originally the spinach bed are some of the generic onions. They were planted along the edge and at the sunniest end. Tiny okra seedlings were added to the middle of the row when the spinach finished. The okra didn't shade the onions until a few weeks ago but regardless, none of the bulbs are more than half the size of those grown in full sun.

Those in the back in the deeper shade are quite small. None performed well at all.

However, a huge unexpected success was the onions I started during the winter from seed. They were the size of hairs when transplanted into this full sun bed and I didn't expect them to live. They are still maturing and have matched the size of those from the strawberry bed.

These are storage varieties and will be tested to see how long they last. 

Next year, more will be started from seed but all must be planted in full sun.

Onions must be air-dried to cure before being stored. My wrought iron porch furniture makes a perfect drying rack. The dehydrator was set up outside because drying onions in the house is like breathing napalm.  All the activities on the porch have come to a screeching halt.

The back deck has a smelly problem too. An opossum moved into our neighborhood and has made a nuisance of himself (they smell like rotted garbage: just a fun fact for city dwellers). He is emptying out the birdfeeder and has invited his camera-shy raccoon friend to slurp the sugar syrup from the hummingbird feeder (sugar is expensive now!) They party all night long under my kitchen window. 

We have set up the motion detector alarm. The raccoon has the sense to bolt when we open the door but the opossum stands his ground.  He has become accustomed to us, the lights and the noise so refuses to budge. We have to shoo him away every night.

Bill has to go out all hours of the night when the alarm sounds to prod it off the deck with a stick. Since we don't have livestock that can be harmed, it has received grace. 

Possum poking is our latest pastime. Our lives are never dull.

Last Month's May Garden (2023)

Last Year's June Garden (2022)

Through the Garden Gate