Friday, August 6, 2010

Fence Complete! (And a weather update)

Well Gary lied.  And by Gary, I mean Chief Meteorologist Gary of our local news .  Though he really cannot be blamed for what I assume was an accurate interpretation of the computer's weather data, so maybe I should say the computer lied.  Most likely it was just Mother Nature changing her mind that caused both the computer and Gary to come to the conclusion that it was going to rain every day this week, only to have it be sunny every day instead.  (Well, there was a light sprinkle for about 20 mins one evening, but I don't really count that.)  Regardless the lack of rain meant that, GASP, I actually had to water things!  And it was the first week all summer where conditions were actually less than ideal for the growth of fungus and other diseases.  Yay!!!  But guess what?  Gary and the computer are currently predicting rain Monday through Friday of next week, so we might be back to 'ideal' conditions soon. :-(  We'll see.

I made it to my local garden store earlier this week and had both my zucchini and Peter pepper plants diagnosed.  The lady told me that my zucchini was probably the victim of a squash vine borer, and that I should get that plant out of there before the others are affected.  She also said that my mildew prevention was a good decision, and to keep it up! With the high probability that a borer caused the death of my zucchini, I decided to spray all my other squash vines with the insecticide I have.  When I checked today though, it looks like one of the remaining zucchini plants may have fallen victim to a borer as well.  (The leaves are fine, but the main stem looks damaged.)  I will keep my eyes peeled, and for now, both zucchini plants have a good dose of insecticide on their base vines!

I also noticed earlier this week that the leaves on my Batwing pumpkin plant in the garden were starting to droop in a similar fashion to the zucchini that bit the dust.  The pumpkin plants were already on my "to spray" list, but I definitely got concerned.  I sprayed all three pumpkin plants and then decided to wait a few days to see if the Batwing plant improved.  Well it looked better today, so I am not entirely sure what is going on with it.  It is not 100%, but better enough that I have decided to leave it in there for now.  I would hate to have to pull it out!

My Peter pepper plants have a much happier ending then their zucchini friend.  It turns out that, yes, there is some type of bacterial disease on the leaves, but the fungicide I have should help with the problem.  It is also good to know that the fruits do not get affected, and so far the plants are still doing their thing, so let's hope it stays that way!  As I have mentioned before, there has been SO much rain this summer that diseases have been thriving.  I feel for the people who decided this year would be their first adventure in gardening.  They may decide not to try again next year!

I am happy to report that if it does rain all next week, my beet seedlings will be in heaven on earth!  I have seen new ones pop up everyday this week and they have definitely appreciated their daily waterings.  I am hoping this batch will thrive since the last one didn't make it.  I have been wanting to plant some more carrots and maybe some spinach or cabbage, but it may be too late.  I might just give it a try since I have extra seeds, and perhaps I will be successful.  Only one way to find out!

And where might I plant all these Fall crops?  Well I could rip up more grass if I really wanted too, because the fence is finally finished!  Tom was able to get out there today and he went to town.  The garden is now approximately 32 feet x 20 feet, give or take a foot.  Most likely give since we ended up widening it at the last minute.  We had 100 feet worth of fence that we planned on using to encompass the garden.  This does not take into consideration the 5 foot door that we left in place or the fact that Tom thinks there may have been a little more than 50 feet of fence on each of the two spools we had.  He did overlap the ends somewhat, but that still left some extra.  Since the measuring tape we were using only goes to 25 feet, we can't be certain at this time the exact measurements.  So like I said, 32 x 20 feet, give or take.  It is very exciting regardless!  And since there was some extra space, I had Tom bring up the oregano/basil bin to put inside the fence.  I wanted it up there because it is a super magnet for pollinators, and it seems that the reason a lot of my pumpkin potentials shrivel up and fall off, is because they are not getting pollinated.  Have no fear!  Oregano flower power is here!  Tom was NOT amused by the bees.  He wanted to wait for them to fly away before bringing the bin up.  I told him he'd be waiting forever.  He came trudging up the hill, bin awkwardly in hand, saying "The bees are following me!!!"  I thought to myself, "Well good!  That's what we want!"  But as I said, he was NOT amused.  Lol  No one got hurt.  We walked away sting free, and the bees didn't seem to mind the move one bit.  It was a win win!

And what would a post of mine be without pictures?  Enjoy!
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1 comment:

  1. Sara, Great update. I'm pleased that you and Tom have finished the fence. I hope that keeps out Mr. Rab-bit and friends. You appear to have your insecticides and spraying under control. Your pictures are very descriptive, showing a potentially super harvest ahead. Take care. Thanks for the update.

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