July in a gahden means the honeymoon is over, and it’s time to gird my loins for bug battle. May wasn’t a complete honeymoon, though, as a freakishly late May nor’easter clobbered 2 tender baby loofah plants and the cucumbers. I was able to replace the cucumbers, but the loofah was from seed, soooo, better luck next year, eh?
I’m trying to celebrate all that’s going right with the gahden–taking my wins where I can get them. So before I do bug battle, here’s what’s making me happy.
The big win is the gahlic! I’m so excited that after 3 tries, I think I’ve got it right. I harvested the scapes in June and got the heads out in early July, about 30–woo hoo! Shout out to my brother who sent me the seed garlic in the fall from his grown-up garden in Maine. I am an impatient gardener, so I love having garlic to distract me while I’m waiting for all the other plants to grow, get flowers, yada, yada, yada. It takes foreeeeeeeeeever.
After a rocky start, the jilo is growing well. In fact, I’m really rooting for the smallest one. The original plant died shortly after I transplanted it (I’m glaring at you May nor’easter) and this little shoot came up in its place. I grew those from seed, so not sure if there was an extra seed in there, or the dying plant has some sort of super powers, but I was so happy to see it. Go little plant, go!
The peppers, cucumbers, butternut squash, and sweet potatoes are all happily growing. I have harvested 3 cucumbers, and some critter(s) helped themselves to a fourth and left the half eaten cuke in the garden, just to taunt me. Also, some bug has been eating holes in the leaves of the jilo, peppers, and sweet potatoes, and nearly devoured the basil. I caught the basil eaters when it was past dusk, almost dark and I was watering. There were about 10 beetle shaped bugs flailing in the water in the pot, and I sent them to their maker with my bare hands. I may be a lefty snowflake, but do not mess with my plants. I’ve not been able to catch the culprit(s) of the Swiss cheesing of the other plant leaves, but so far nature has stayed in balance. No harm, no foul. Yet.
On a routine inspection of the tomatoes I found the dreaded aphids. Bahstids! Mostly on one plant, but because my garden is small and the tomato plants are all near each other, the other tomato plants had early signs of the bahstids as well. I should probably mix them up next year. Anyway, hand picked off some, then I neem oiled the hell out of the rest and have been watching ever since. The aphids seemed to have left the building.
The peas I planted never came up. I planted 18 in the place I usually plant beans. The beans have been lackluster the past several years, so I tried peas. How hard could it be? Apparent very hard. Nothing came up. Not one. Stinking. Pea. So eff you, peas. I’m not playing with you, and I hold a grudge. More room for the butternuts, so peas you can go suck it. Gardening is so relaxing, isn’t it?
The herbs are behaving themselves, and the mint and oregano came back from last year. Yay!
A new thing I’m trying is to work with the fearless rabbit and the equally fearless baby rabbit who like to dine in the yard. I appreciate that cats are safer inside; however, I really miss them lurking about and putting a little fear into these creatures. City rabbits have no idea they are prey, and sometimes they seem annoyed at me for interrupting their dinner when I water the plants. Fuzzy bahstids. Where are the urban birds of prey when you need them?
To distract them from my vegetables, I have been putting out extra plants I don’t care about for them. I don’t think it would work if there were a whole warren of them. We’ve all seen a large bed of beloved flowers reduced to green nubs overnight. But given they there are only a few, or at least only a few who find my garden interesting, it seemed worth a try. I put out a flower box of pansies that I was done with when I switched out the flowers on my deck. They’ve nibbled on that. I also planted the extra beans from last year in the ground nearby just for them. I was a little annoyed when they came up beautifully, unlike when I planted them in the raised bed last year, but the rabbits nibbled most of them down, so phew, mission accomplished. I more recently put out 2 extra squash plants, but so far, no nibbles.
And per usual, I was convinced everything was coming in later this year, and per usual, I checked last year’s garden journal and of course, everything is more or less on time. At least I’m consistently impatient, right?
That’s all the for now, and may the aphids and the beetles be the worse of it.
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