Friday, May 22, 2020

Garden Friday



Welcome to a sodden Garden Friday!
We've had almost 4 1/2 inches of rain since Tuesday,
with more predicted this coming week.
No need to use the drip system we recently installed.
No complaints here!


 Along with the pelting rain,
the winds have been fierce.
Some of the sunflowers in the pollinator bed
have fared the worst.
Hopefully, once the weather calms down,
I can get out there and stake them up.


 Another casualty from the winds 
was one of the birdhouses.
I found it face down on the ground,
the ten foot pole having been blown over.
Thankfully, when I checked inside,
there were no eggs yet nesting there.


It got fastened to the gazebo frame
until we can get some more rebar.
I hope the occupants decide it's safe enough to return.



The snap peas are blooming now,
so they were given a dose of worm castings.


 A few pods have been sampled,
with much satisfaction.
There is nothing so fresh tasting
as a snap pea eaten off the vine.


 One of the 4X4 beds was partially planted,
but until the rains hit,
there wasn't much action here.
Now it seems that the seedlings have grown
several inches in just a few days.
There's nothing like Mother Nature's blessings.

Detroit Dark red beets


 The lettuce and kale in the coffee cans exploded!
The scarlet kale will be transplanted into a raised bed,
as I hope to relish eating it for months.


The strawberries in the galvanized tub seem content.
This batch was acquired this season from Cooperative Extension
during their yearly plant sale.


 Another batch was gifted by a dear friend last year.
They are planted in a straw bale
and are putting on fruit.
I'm thinking I might cover them with deer netting,
so that we actually get some berries to enjoy.


 This is the first time I've tried using netting
to protect my plants from larger critters like birds and squirrels.
It's easy, organic and causes no harm.

 

 There's a volunteer cantaloupe growing in the pollinator bed.
The plan is to move it into a container,
although since it's already flowering,
I may have waited too long.


 We have squash coming up in one of the 3X8 beds.
Three varieties were planted,
but so far, only two have germinated.
The rest of the bed will be planted with sweet potatoes this weekend.


A new bean to me, Dragon Tongue
(I wrote the wrong name on the tag),
popped up yesterday.
This versatile bean can be eaten fresh, shelled or dried for the pantry.
 


 If we get a break in the weather,
one of the weekend's tasks will be to empty the trailer
of another load of free mulch.
Slowly, I'm working on expanding the walking areas around the garden.


 The front porch garden is coming along.
Most of what is here returned from last year
including the allysum, coneflowers, Gerbera daisies, lantana,
milkweed, rudbeckia, and salvia.
Even a stray sunflower arose,
most likely thanks to squirrels or birds dropping the seed here.
The bird bath in the middle,
fashioned out of an old cement base and a plastic saucer,
gets many visitors each day.

rudbeckia


The flower seedlings started earlier in the week
are germinating and will be ready for transplanting in a few weeks.
These include daisies and zinnias.
(The wire caging is what I used before acquiring the deer netting.)

blanket flower



The rain may have slowed down my work in the garden,
but the crops, flowers and frogs are mighty satisfied.
Here's hoping for just a wee bit of sunshine
so that I can tackle some garden chores this weekend.


"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, 
snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, 
only different kinds of good weather."



6 comments:

  1. Wow! You guys really have received some rain. Too bad about the winds but happy it didn't do too much damage. Everything is looking great! Once you get a break from the rain and sunshine has some time to bless your garden it will be amazing!! I tried using that smaller square netting on my strawberries but chipmunks kept getting stuck in it and I was so afraid I'd permanently injure or kill one that I took it off. Now I use a thin row cover when I don't need to worry about pollination and nothing when I do. It's so frustrating when you see pieces of fruit or veg with bites taken out and they don't even eat the whole thing! I toss it to the chickens so it doesn't go to complete waste. Oh well..... :)

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    Replies
    1. I thought about that too, and if there's any problem with something getting injured, I'll stop using it. We don't have chipmunks (yet?).

      Happy gardening!

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  2. We also got 4 1/2" of rain. Glad to see your plants are thriving. With the sun and warmth, I bet they'll be jumping. That's such a pretty porch floor you have, and I love the coneflower in your porch garden.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, they love, love, love the rain!

      Enjoy the aftermath!

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  3. As always, your garden is beautiful. The rainfall is such a blessing at this time of year.

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