Photo taken last year on June 23rd! It is a completely different growing season this year.
I was looking through photos the other night and was surprised to see that this was what life was like a year ago. The tomato plants are in the background at knee height and I do remember too that were were wearing long john’s that day. Lots and lots of rain and oh so cold. Different challenges this year!
No significant rain this week at all. Irrigation and sprinklers run around the clock and it seems the watering schedule takes up much of our physical and mental time. Scott is on top of it all and everything is really thriving. Tomato plants are growing several inches every day and love the overnight warm temperatures. The plants are huge, deep green and healthy. I am sure we will all be eating tomatoes soon. At the height of the season we will be harvesting over 100 pounds a day! Curious what this years favorite variety will be….?
Tomatoes on the vine.
The tomato patch.
Cucumber plants beginning to trellis.
We have started to pick a few summer squash this week and the plants are covered with rich buttery blossoms, and our first planting of green beans should be in full swing next week producing buckets full of crunchy beans. We have 3 different rotations in the ground now and may plant 1 or 2 more just for fun and have beans all summer long. I have lofty canning goals this summer! The cucumber vines have started to flower and look strong and healthy. Many of our fellow gardening friends have reported terrible problems with cucumber beetle this year. Gratefully these pests decided not to visit us.
Scott and Malachi harvesting the broccoli for the CSA
We are happy to report that the broccoli is starting to head up!!!! We have had a terrible time with broccoli in the past and our number 1 goal this year is……Good Broccoli and Lots!!! of it too. We did much research over the Winter. So, we planted 2 early varieties to play it safe-a cool variety and a heat tolerant variety. Scott studied up on reflective mulch (which looks like tin foil). The plants grew well in the “tin foil”, kept the bugs away too and we provided much irrigation. I was sure that the cool season variety would just give up with this prolonged heat, but here it is! I am so glad. Smaller head size, but wonderful flavor. We will also be planting 2 Fall Broccoli varieties this season.
The Sweet peas are handling the heat much better than expected. They main vines are shorter this year but the flowers stems are long and blossoms large. We pick every other day and the vines are loaded with these sweet old fashioned beauties.
Pretty Sweet Peas.
The eggplant is flowering and we have opted to pinch off these early blooms-the plants are short and not fully developed. We can’t image the plants holding the load of a big purple eggplant! Many of our ornamental crops and flowers are also flowering on short short stems. My favorite lime green celosia is about 4 inches tall max! What a disappointment. About all I could make is itty bitty “shot glass” bouquets with these blooms. Our peppers are wanting to flower too and we are removing these blooms.
We have started to harvest some of the early garlic and it is sure tasty! Odd to be digging it when we cut of the last of the garlic scapes a week ago on the later varieties. I do think it is going to to be a compressed season of harvest. The plants seem rushed almost in this heat.
Every season is different and has it’s own unique challenges. This fact sure became apparent to me when I saw the picture of last year at this time. We adapt and change our perspective, have a positive attitude and water on……
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Another exciting box this week.
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