The Latest Casualties

We had another (mercifully brief) bout of cold, rainy weather with high winds this week.  Two up my cabbages were uprooted and a small tomato plant snapped at the stem.  One of my Early Prolific Straightneck squash plants was taken out, too, but that was from one of our cats vigorously chasing the neighbour’s cat off our property.  They took a detour through the squash bed.

The pole beans are starting to wind their way up the poles and the tomato plants have lots of yellow flowers on them.  The potato plants look fantastic; I hope they are producing as well underground as they appear to be doing above ground.

A family of magpies has stopped in the area.  They arrived last week.  We think there are two adults and 4 or 5 little ones. They are so cheeky!   One of the youngsters had fun plucking petals out of my marigolds.  My marigolds are doing so poorly this year, I wasn’t much bothered!  So far, they have left the cabbage and strawberries alone (crops damaged by the last family of magpies we had visit in 2016).  They seem to have better things to do than put holes in or pull apart the garden. *touch wood*

Neither of us has touched the hayfield…I mean, the raspberry patch.  I just don’t have the energy this year to tackle it, and have been stung enough times weeding it in the past that I am not particularly motivated to buckle down and try.  Once the berries ripen and require picking, it will have to be done.  Though I am grateful for the abundance of berries, I am not looking forward to the hours of weed-pulling we’ll have to do to get to them.

The crabapple tree, which R. and his brother cut back last fall, is absolutely loaded with apples this year.  At least we have found a way to use them!  R. used the steam juicer he bought last year to cook them down.  The juice was pink and a little tart.  Much better than regular apple juice, which is so loaded with sugar it sets my nerves on edge.

I moved the Scarlet begonia I got at the greenhouse from the front step to the bathtub planter at the side of the house.  It is partially shaded there, and is blooming beautifully.  What a gorgeous colour! 

The Romanesco broccoli, which is planted in a raised bed along the driveway, is doing well.  The transplants looked so weak and sunburned in the Spring that I almost composted them!  I'm glad I planted them and gave them a shot, because they look robust and healthy now.  Sometimes, you just can't predict what will do well and what will fizzle out in the garden!

The Shasta daisies are almost ready to bloom.

My friend, Sharon, gave me some Gazania flower seeds for my birthday.  I started 9 seeds in March or April, babying them with heat mats and grow lights.  Three came up, and one survived.  I think I loved them to death.  Ha!  Still, I am thrilled I have this one, as it looks healthy and I am eager to see what the flowers are like!  The Gazania is in the purple pot in the front. In the black, square pot behind it is cinnamon basil.  In the white pot behind the Gazania are dwarf snapdragons from a little grow kit R. gave me for Christmas.  It included 10 miniscule, pelleted snapdragon seeds and a growing medium.  I didn't think the seedlings would make it past the hardening off period, but they have and are doing well!

Zucchini

Borage, which from the looks of things, might soon be larger than the tomato plant.

L - R: beets, cabbage, and Black Coco beans (dry/bush)

Lou and the Garlic Scapes

First Strawberry, First Tomatoes, and a Heat Warning

The first strawberry of the season!

All of the pole beans I planted germinated.  These are "Early Riser", which are Romano-type snap beans

Pole beans on the left, some volunteer potatoes to the right, and a North Georgia Candy Roaster plant closest to the upper right-hand corner of the picture.

One of the first tomatoes of the season!  A tiny one (the variety is Scotia).

A close-up.  Because it's cute.

"Small Wonder", a hybrid spaghetti squash.  I planted them in large containers, thinking they were a bush variety.  I gather they are actually a vining type.  Whoops.  They are situated near the car, so I guess we'll just guide the vines along the driveway.   Could be a bit of a hassle, but this variety is supposed to be productive.  Worth the vine-wrangling, if they are!

Loulou loves the garlic patch in the south garden. 

The second little tomato of the season!  I forgot to label this plant.  It was a replacement for a larger variety that had it's stem snap during the windy weather earlier this month.   It's either a Scotia or an Early Annie, I believe.

"Whatcha doing?"

Guarding the 'maters.

A few extra carrots planted behind the house in a large container.  It is shadier in this spot than the carrot-bed beside the driveway, but it looks like they are coming along well.

We went from several weeks of chilly, overcast, damp, hot-chocolate-drinking and flannel-nightie-wearing weather to HEAT, seemingly overnight.  We are on day 3 of a heat warning (temps 30 degrees Celsius or above).  Today is hot, overcast and extremely humid.  It feels more like summertime in NS than northern BC, which is usually dry.  The mosquitoes have been out in full force since early this morning.  It is mid-afternoon now, and a breeze picked up about 15 minutes ago. A severe thunderstorm warning is in effect for early tonight in this region (South Peace River and North Peace River, BC).  I hope that the wind gusts predicted for some areas don't manifest here.  My garden has been through enough this season already.

Batten down the hatches! 

Replanting The Beans

I’m glad I didn’t wait any longer.

   Snap beans were planted in the south garden on May 22 during The Brief Summer.  The Red Swan beans came up well, almost 100% germination despite the cool weather that followed.  Five Slenderette beans came up, but three of them were missing their leaves (the cotyledons).  None of the Roma beans came up.  That was a disappointment; I had been looking forward to growing an abundant crop of them for the first time this year.

   Yesterday afternoon, I decided to dig up a few inches of the Roma row to see if any of them had germinated.  A few inches became the entire row, as all the beans had rotted.   I decided to also check the row of Slenderette beans, and with the exception of the two that had emerged with their leaves intact, discovered the same thing.

   I planted the Roma beans left in the packet, and planted Tendergreen beans (green/snap) to complete that row.  The Slenderettes were replaced with Calima beans (green/filet - I’ve grown them several times before and they always produce well) and Beurre de Rocquencourt (yellow/snap).   According to the forecast, local temperatures are supposed to jump back up to mid-twenties to thirty degrees next week.  If anything happens to this bunch of newly planted beans, it won’t be rotting in cold soil!

A Brisk Start to June

Wind.  Wind.  Chilly.  Drizzle.  Wind.  Chilly.  Rain.  Cloud Cover.  Gale.  Cloud Cover.  Sunshine!  Cloud Cover.  Drizzle.  Chilly.  Wind.  Wind.

That is a summary of the first half of June 2018.

Following The Brief Summer, what we call the few days of intense, August-like heat we experienced in May, this month has brought cool, WINDY, overcast days without much of a break.  I am back to wearing my floor-length "granny gown" at night (I am unapologetic about my affection for these nightgowns).  I have been known to peruse the garden in the morning still wearing it.  (I don't offer any apologies for that, either!)

As evidence of the gales we've had, behold the shredded pepper plant. (Click to enlarge photos)  From the original six, I am down to two.   I also lost another tomato plant - the stem snapped. 

Here is a bit of cinnamon basil, a scarlet begonia from the greenhouse, and the pea patch.

The south garden: a variety of cabbage on the right, garlic patch beside that, and to the left of the garlic, three kinds of bush snap beans (Roma II, Red Swan, and Slenderette).  So far, only the Red Swan beans have germinated well.  A few of the Slenderettes have germinated, but some have their leaves are missing and will have to be replanted.  No sign of the Romas at all.  Beans do NOT like cool weather.  In the far corner, near the crabapple tree, there is lettuce and a variety of brassicas (curly kale, Dazzling Blue kale, and collards).  They seem to do well in the shade.

Along the side of the south garden: zucchini, mint from the greenhouse, cucumbers (they haven't come up yet) and a few potted tomatoes.

I also planted some cabbage (Red Express and Cour di Bue, I believe) in a raised bed along the driveway.  You can see it was windy when I took this picture!

Raised beds along the driveway.  The closest one contains red and yellow onions and carrots.

We've trying potatoes in one of the raised beds.  They seem to like this location!  It is so much easier for them to cope with the sandy soil in the raised bed than the heavy clay soil in what we call the Potato Patch ("East Garden"?)

Furry supervisor, Bea, reporting for duty.

Purple Amish Gnuttle and Swedish Brown beans.  They will have short runners, thus the bamboo stakes.

Two North Georgia Candy Roasters are planted in this container.  It is right beside the driveway.  I am not sure this was a wise idea, as Candy Roasters sprawl.  We'll see.  I planted Morning Glory seeds around the stake.

The "East Garden".  We usually call it the Potato Patch, but there are no potatos in it this year (or are there...?)  Planted in the garden are 4 North Georgia Candy Roasters,  Damascus Steel and Malachite Box tomatoes, 2 eggplants (looking woeful and small after this stretch of weather), 1 collard plant, 1 Dazzling Blue kale, a few marigols, Early Riser snap beans (pole), and Flagg dry beans (pole), and a few zinnia, alyssum, and dahlia seeds.  For the heck of it, I popped in a bunch of large (Russian Giant?) sunflower seeds throughout the garden, as well as some Sunspot (dward) sunflower seeds.  I thought they they were both packets of old seed, so I planted lots.  To my surprise, even in the heavy, cold soil, they all seem to be coming up!

 
Furry Supervisor # 2 (Loulou), reporting for duty.

The East Garden/Potato Patch is proving to be a fun spot.  Kind of a treasure chest this year.  It seems like every day, new and unexpected things appear.  In addition to the things deliberately planted, there are volunteer sunflowers and several volunteer potatoes coming up.  We don't know how the potatoes survived the winter.

The rock wall is finished. R. did a nice job.

The cabbage in the south garden look healthy - they have liked the cool weather - but many of them are laying on their sides, having surrendered to the relentless gusts of wind.

Lou, thrilled to be out in the garden.

A friend gave me a few fingerling potatoes in the Spring.  We are trying some of them in plastic grow bags.  So far, so good.

South side of the house.  The tomatoes here are faring better than the tomatoes in the raised beds and south garden, having been sheltered from the wind.  Two dahlia are growing in the brown pots on the right.

It is likely a tad pathetic that I have taken this picture, but I was so relieved that these Prolific Straightneck Squash seeds finally germinated that I couldn't resist.  All three germinated, so I will have to move one of them to a different spot.

More potted dahlias waiting to be moved to the (sunnier) front step.

May the second half of June bring us calm, warm, sunny weather!