Garden Updates
The garden seems to be going great. The tomatoes and peppers are growing, albeit slowly. I do think that as soon as we get another hot extended dry spell they will shoot up fast and in a mater of two weeks or so they will be covered with flowers. The lettuce just keeps coming and coming....plus a few of the cabbages are close to harvest. Luckily it looks like they will come in in a staggered fashion. The sugar snap peas are still producing, but now more slowly...I think next hot spell they will wither away allowing the seeded pole beans to take over in their place.
In fruit, there are currants on two bushes, and the gooseberries are starting. Those seem touchier....but some are ripening on the bush like they should. The strawberries are at June peak...meaning we really should harvest daily. Every other day is about what we can manage and process. We already have about 15 quarts frozen. Maybe we should get a larger freezer...lol The blueberries are also trickling in. All the work that cheetah_fanatic and I did when we planted the fruit beds three springs ago is starting to pay off. Even the one remaining grape is taking OVER.....it should have fruit this year, and we certainly will have to build a trellis of some sort next winter for it. The Kiwi's have grown together on the back fence wire.....Now that will turn into a BIG vine....I also excavated the Mission Fig from the morning glory in the back yard. Must come up with more fig recipes....always need more fig recipe's....
All the bush and pole beans have come up and are growing daily....as are the sunflowers I planted throughout the lot visible from the street in unused spots. Marigold are finally popping up, but inconstantly. For some reason marigold do not do very well from seed here. Probably the nights are not hot enough since they did fabulously in the Midwest. The onions for the most part are bigger than last year and seem to be doing better...maybe t is just that we are eating off of them later, but I think we are going to have a much better crop this year than last. The Nasturtiums are also growing daily....I have never eaten the flowers before that I can remember...so this is exciting. Being able to go out in the yard and pick flowers for the daily salad.....ummmmm...
What to say about the ornamentals. Of the three rosebushes that have not been doing well, one of them listened to my warning. This one has about a half dozen nice red shoots coming up from the base, so now after the old stems bloom I can cut out the diseased wood and start afresh with a nice sturdy rose. The other two are in differing stages of disease. Black spot is a real problem here if you do not spray and I REFUSE to...So, if these two....both from Freddies and both unnamed and cheap....do not perform the rest of this season they are getting replaced with nice new strong roses next year. We also are replacing one if not two of the old pink original roses in the back forty. The name is "Tess," and we have three of them....at least one is going to get dug out....and possibly two of them. So, if you have a place for a mature pink rose let me know....we will be digging one or two up in early February. Otherwise the back rosebed looks just amazing and the new roses planted this year are doing great. It is very relaxing pruning and dead heading in the morning....helps me focus.
The Hummingbird friendly wild flower bed is almost at full bloom...just another few weeks. All we need now is Hummingbirds. The poor Dahlia's all died except for one. It is yellow and purple, and I have decided to let it go this year, but dig it up and move it next year to someplace more protected.....maybe the Hummingbird bed. It needs a few more flowers anyway....Foxglove...several Foxgloves would be nice.
Now to eat and finish stapling plastic up under that enclosed porch. Once that is done I can store all the excess siding for the house and get it out of the way until the next window replacement or addition.....the most that will happen this year is three windows, none of which will require anything but trim boards. The siding is done and painted for the year at least.
In fruit, there are currants on two bushes, and the gooseberries are starting. Those seem touchier....but some are ripening on the bush like they should. The strawberries are at June peak...meaning we really should harvest daily. Every other day is about what we can manage and process. We already have about 15 quarts frozen. Maybe we should get a larger freezer...lol The blueberries are also trickling in. All the work that cheetah_fanatic and I did when we planted the fruit beds three springs ago is starting to pay off. Even the one remaining grape is taking OVER.....it should have fruit this year, and we certainly will have to build a trellis of some sort next winter for it. The Kiwi's have grown together on the back fence wire.....Now that will turn into a BIG vine....I also excavated the Mission Fig from the morning glory in the back yard. Must come up with more fig recipes....always need more fig recipe's....
All the bush and pole beans have come up and are growing daily....as are the sunflowers I planted throughout the lot visible from the street in unused spots. Marigold are finally popping up, but inconstantly. For some reason marigold do not do very well from seed here. Probably the nights are not hot enough since they did fabulously in the Midwest. The onions for the most part are bigger than last year and seem to be doing better...maybe t is just that we are eating off of them later, but I think we are going to have a much better crop this year than last. The Nasturtiums are also growing daily....I have never eaten the flowers before that I can remember...so this is exciting. Being able to go out in the yard and pick flowers for the daily salad.....ummmmm...
What to say about the ornamentals. Of the three rosebushes that have not been doing well, one of them listened to my warning. This one has about a half dozen nice red shoots coming up from the base, so now after the old stems bloom I can cut out the diseased wood and start afresh with a nice sturdy rose. The other two are in differing stages of disease. Black spot is a real problem here if you do not spray and I REFUSE to...So, if these two....both from Freddies and both unnamed and cheap....do not perform the rest of this season they are getting replaced with nice new strong roses next year. We also are replacing one if not two of the old pink original roses in the back forty. The name is "Tess," and we have three of them....at least one is going to get dug out....and possibly two of them. So, if you have a place for a mature pink rose let me know....we will be digging one or two up in early February. Otherwise the back rosebed looks just amazing and the new roses planted this year are doing great. It is very relaxing pruning and dead heading in the morning....helps me focus.
The Hummingbird friendly wild flower bed is almost at full bloom...just another few weeks. All we need now is Hummingbirds. The poor Dahlia's all died except for one. It is yellow and purple, and I have decided to let it go this year, but dig it up and move it next year to someplace more protected.....maybe the Hummingbird bed. It needs a few more flowers anyway....Foxglove...several Foxgloves would be nice.
Now to eat and finish stapling plastic up under that enclosed porch. Once that is done I can store all the excess siding for the house and get it out of the way until the next window replacement or addition.....the most that will happen this year is three windows, none of which will require anything but trim boards. The siding is done and painted for the year at least.