midsummer garden update

Hard to believe it's already the middle of summer. July is almost over, and we only have to slog through August before we (hopefully) begin to see hints of fall in the air. Hints are all I need to make those last hot weeks more bearable. This year has been a doozy, too. 112 degrees, say wha?!? So not cool. Haha. We've found ways to beat the heat, like the community pool (surprisingly nice considering that Englewood boasts 2 stoplights and not much else), and our own little blue frogpond  swimming pool. It may only be about 4 feet across, but filled with cool, cool water, it gets the job done.
We've been fortunate that we've had some rain this scorching summer. The beginning of July looked pretty bad - the pond was DRY, and the bog was mowable for the first time in I don't know how many years (thanks for mowing it, Papaw!) and we were beginning to wonder if our beautiful, promising spring was about to crash and burn. But then, miracle! we got 5 solid days of rain, and lots of little afternoon showers since then. The pond is back up (no more hauling trashcans full of water down to the garden!) and what with all those frequent rain showers we haven't really needed to water. Even if we do need to, it's much nicer to do so in 90-degree heat than 110.
We lost pretty much all the corn to this heat and drought. I managed to put up a dozen or so ears, but not nearly so much as I was hoping to. We still have our 3rd planting of corn, which is looking pretty good and should be ready in a few weeks, but it's a small patch, so I don't know how many ears we'll get. Here's hoping!
I harvested all of the beets and carrots this week - only got about a handful of each, but I wanted to get the garden ready for fall planting, and they were in the way. I also pulled the onions, but they were still so small that I decided to put them in water for a day or 2 and then replant them so they can fill out. Next year I will start them MUCH earlier.
Pulled up the peas finally, and I've got the row ready for beans now - I will hopefully get them planted tomorrow. I'm really hoping to get at least one round of greenbeans in.
The beans we planted in the cornfield were pretty much a total loss - my fault, too. They were drying beautifully on the vine, and then we got 5 days of rain.. they got moldy, and some of them even sprouted inside the pods. I should have picked them sooner. I'm saving what I can for next year's seed.
My feelings at this point on the 3-sisters planting style is that I don't like it for beans. Our corn wasn't strong enough to support the beans for their full growth cycle, and it's hard to find the beans to pick them. I'd much rather have them on a handy trellis.
The tomatoes and peppers are the real stars of the garden this year. They are LOVING this heat. I've already picked several basket-fulls and more on the way.

This week's goal is to get the fall veggies started, and maybe pick up a few pullets at the animal sale this weekend to replace 2 of my roosters.

cock-a-doodle thrice

Well, there's no longer any denying it - out of 6 chicks bought this spring, 3 are roosters. The 2 Rhode Island Reds are destined for the stock pot, I think, but the Blue Wheaten Amaracauna? I think I may just let him stick around... he's going to grow up into one beautiful boy. So - it's time to go pick up some more chicks (I was just itching for an excuse), and pray for better odds this time around.

garden update

Happy Independence Day everyone! Hope you all have a safe and wonderful 4th.


I think we have learned more from this year of gardening than any other.. and it's only July.

For starters, corn+hills=good, especially in 100+ degree temperatures. It doesn't hurt that our cornfield is on the edge of a wetland, and so even when it's crazy dry and we need rain, there is moisture in that ground. Thankful for that. We've got a pretty decent corn harvest in the second section - I need to get it picked and preserved. However - I am not happy about our pumpkins and greenbeans. Squash bugs were especially brutal this year, and so so many of the pumpkins that I planted simply never came up. Even the yellow squash and zucchini are not doing well. Eternal optimist me decided that even though it's July, it's not to late to try to sprout some pumpkins and get them going. I'm trying to get them started in the house and then plant them outside, where I will water them dilligently every single day until they are thriving, because I need pumpkins. NEED them. This must happen.
Our second planting of beans was pretty much a total loss as well. They sprouted and then promptly shriveled in this crazy heat. I'm going to rip out our snap peas this week and plant bush beans..  I really want to can green beans this year. I'll buy them if I have to, but I'd rather grow them myself. Nothing beats home canned green beans. So - 3 sisters prognosis is this... it works great for the corn and for beans that we're going to dry on the vine, as long as the beans get started before it gets too hot. I don't like it for green beans, and I'm very disappointed in the squash this year, though whether that has anything to do with the 3 sisters method is unclear. They just never got going. Soil test time, perhaps?

The vegetable garden, on the other hand,  is rockin' this year. Tomatoes and peppers are growing like mad, the tomatoes especially are the biggest and best we've ever grown and I've already picked enough cukes for  2 jars of refrigerator pickles. I'm about to pickle some banana peppers, as soon as I can work up the nerve to fire up the canner in this heat. I've got my first ever eggplant, the onions are looking great, and my optimism potatoes appear to be thriving. Parsnips look great, and we got 8 whole peaches off our peach tree!  All in all, it has been a good year so far, and I am already looking forward to next spring. Of course, there's still a lot going on in this year's garden, and this fall to plan for and plant, but I am excited. Every year we learn so much more and things begin to make more sense.. it becomes second nature, like an old friend. An old, good friend.

Fermenting pickles - in a few days they'll go in the fridge to slow the fermentation process. This is the best recipe I've found for pickles.. they taste like Claussen pickles. For real. recipe here: http://www.lesleycooks.com/canning/delipickles.htm