Deirdre's Garden Diary 2008 June July Summer Vegetables

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:: June-July 2008 ::

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:: 07.01.08 ::

First Flower

People...the color is incredible! I am really overjoyed. Next to growing my first tomato and eggplant, bringing this Texas Star Hibiscus to bloom is right up there on the (short) list of garden accomplishments. My obstinate nature would not let me throw this plant away after I had paid good money for it. I neglected getting it out of the pot and into the ground only to let it become a dried up shriveled mess; but I think I learned a lesson...

My procrastination knows no shame and my stubbornness sometimes pays off...and what a pay day!

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:: 06.29.08 ::

Something's In The Air

This spring and summer I have noticed a change in the wildlife around the house. Usually I have a group of Blue Jays bossing all the other birds around...but this year they are suspiciously absent. In their place are a number of Mockingbirds. I noticed because the Mockingbirds have been fighting with each other, swooping with great speed while diving and pecking at each other as they fly in and out of the trees. It's been a lot of fun to watch actually.

But they really got my attention because they are having quite a fit; a very noisy loud squawking fit, when I go into the vegetable garden. I looked around for a nest but couldn't find anything in the area.

Then it dawned on me...every time I was near the fence, near the pecan tree, is when the protesting would begin...and what else is in that spot? Well, the two new American Beautyberry bushes I planted in the spring are in that spot...and they just happen to be putting out new berries this week.

Call me crazy (you won't be the first person) but I am wondering...Can the birds sense some kind of scent from these bushes? I know they are supposed to really love the berries a lot...that's why I planted them actually...but the berries aren't even ripe yet! Is it possible they have staked out the bushes and are keeping their eye on them until they get ripe and ready?

I don't know, it's just a theory, but I do know the garden sure is noisy lately!

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:: 06.26.08 ::

Summer Gems

Ok it's officially summer and that means all the things you would think it would mean... that there is no way in hell I am going to do any gardening. I don't go out much, but if I have to then I am up early by 6:00am just as the sun is coming up. Mostly I just piddle around the yard trying to keep things watered, checking the plants for heat stress and picking the occasional vegetables when they're ready.

It was a little cooler this morning so I spent a little bit of extra time, three minutes, cutting back the dried blooms on the Salvia and I potted up the trimmings to see if I could get the cuttings to root. Not holding my breath though.

Despite the heat I have some pretty summer flowers blooming. The tiger lilies just opened up and the crepe myrtle I planted a few years ago has it's first mass of blooms and the agapanthus that I couldn't resist buying last month (instead of paying some bills) is still putting up new flower stalks. MMmmmm purpley-blue goodness!

I also noticed a couple of new stalks coming up on the crinums if you can believe it...try to contain your amazement and joy...(I know, I know...It really is incredible. I'm sure this means that I am the most amazing gardener evah! ...uhuh). I don't think I have had crinums re-bloom this late in the summer before. Maybe it's because I have been giving that part of the yard a bit of extra water since I planted my oak leaf hydrangea nearby. As amazed as I was to see the Crinum flowers (and I LOVE my crinums)...it was no comparison to the joy I had in finding this little gem...

The miracle come back plant of 2008 is this Texas Star Hibiscus...it has a flower bud on it!
This plant was 98% dead when I stuck it in the ground last Fall. I swear. I just put it out for the hell of it when planting the salvia in that same area. It was so root bound I had to cut it out of the pot with a pocket knife and cut half the roots off to untangle them so they could be spread out. I was shocked when it grew leaves this spring and even though it has been doing ok; I never expected it to bloom this year. Get ready though, because you know I will be photographing the hell out of that flower when it blooms no matter how hot it is outside!

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:: 06.13.08 ::

Almost Ready

Big news....I am still waiting on the first of the tomatoes to turn ripe. They're taking their sweet time that's for sure. Because of the recent ban on tomatoes these babies are pure gold!

I harvested one eggplant this week. I have more than one plant but none of them are putting out blooms yet. I think this is the only Ichiban variety; its stems are purple and the other eggplants aren't, so that is probably the reason this one started producing earlier. I think...maybe.

My most productive plant so far this season has been the jalapeños that I planted for my dad. I don't eat them and he can't keep up with all of the ones growing without getting a severe case of heartburn. Right now I think there are about 12 on the bush and I already picked a batch last week. I had always been told not to plant jalapeños next to any other type of pepper...so I did not plant them in the same raised bed...and there is even one raised bed between the box with the jalapeños and the box with the bell peppers and banana peppers (pictured above)...so let me tell you about that "myth" right now...IT IS TOTALLY TRUE. My banana peppers are hot as hell! Almost too hot for me to eat...but I'm a wimp.

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:: 06.01.08 ::

Slipping Into Summer

See Larger Image HERE.

The vegetable garden is in transition. Almost all of the winter planted vegetables (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, radishes, mustard greens, and peas) have all been picked and their leftover stalks and leaves removed and put in the compost. There are a few winter leftovers like the Swiss chard that didn't get destroyed by the hail, some carrots that still seem to be growing, and the onions. I'm not sure what is going on with the onions. All the tops were bent over during the hail storm and they haven't really grown back. I'm going to leave them in a bit longer.

The summer vegetables are taking over now. There are baby green tomatoes on most of the tomato plants; soon I will be fighting the birds over them. I also have some little banana peppers and jalapenos getting bigger each day. The eggplant, squash and watermelon all have blooms but no fruit yet.

The artichoke plants started to get big! So large in fact, that I had to dig them up out of the raised beds where they were fighting with the tomato plants for space and move them next to the trellis. They didn't exactly like being moved. The leaves wilted a lot and some of the stems were damaged. They are hollow so any little bend will break them off similar to a squash vine. I had to cut both plants back drastically leaving only two or three leaves growing form the base. It was close for a while, I thought they wee gone, but they perked back up and will probably survive. (crossing fingers).

Having the bricks around the beds this year has been really nice. I haven't put the crushed granite over the bricks to fill in the cracks yet, so I am getting a few weeds here and there, but they pull up really easy and it's certainly nothing like when they weren't there at all.

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