Today In The Garden 6/24/21

 So much regular Toon Tuesdays.  Think humorous thoughts. Today’s Garden Word is RABBIT.

We thought we had them blocked from the backyard, at least. A series of replacement posts this spring created a perceived and thus possible weak spot. 

While hand watering one day this week, something shot out from under a plant that was not a squirrel, and it’s game on. 

The rabbit also found the one side of my shed without a six inch deep barrier of hardware cloth and shoved aside the bricks to get cozy under the shed once again.

I’m already having trouble with the squirrels digging in and around my plants and seedlings in the vegetable garden. Now I face a rabbit too, as not every side of the veg garden is as well protected as the south side.

We had a break in the 90 degree days over the weekend, with lows in the forties and fifties. Eep.  My lettuces were happy. 

We’re of course back to stifling heat, drought and ya, no gardening year is ever ideal.

Tomorrow I weed P2 (perennial garden 2) which is being overrun by Queen Anne’s Lace, which I’ve been working unsuccessfully to iradicate.

Happy gardening!

Toon Tuesday

 I’m reviving Toon Tuesday, some with my own cartoon efforts, some garden related humor from real cartoonists. 

Here’s a tribute to gardeners and their helpers. Kind of.

Today In The Garden 6/12/21

 A watering day, beginning at 6:30 this morning.

Next, I finally planted my front gardens. I’ve got pictures in case rabbits eat everything to the ground by morning.  It took over five hours to do these, and I still have mulch to lay down.

My forks and some new tiny trellises from Lowe’s are protecting my pole beans so far. My Burpless Beauty Cucumbers have sprouted, once again in about three days.I put the step stones in the front garden so I could easily get to and water the plants on the northern side.

A Baking Soda Spray for Rose Leaves

 I bought two miniature roses this spring. One I put in the ground very early on. It’s leaves are fine though the plant looks a bit floppy.

Another that has been anxiously waiting for a spot in a crowded flat got a nice pot in the sun today.  I noticed it’s leaves were white in places. The dread powdery mildew. Isn’t there a baking soda spray for that, I thought.  Sure enough! I will see how this works.

https://www.hortmag.com/smart-gardening/safe-rose-spray-recipe-that-really-works

This Could Work: The Amazing Plastic Fork Squirrel Baffler

 My Kentucky Wonder pole beans sprouted in a mere three days. I’ve been worried that the local squirrel would dig around them because he seems obsessed with that particular bed. 

This morning, there was digging all around them, though he didn’t harm any. I put a little chicken wire at the base of one teepee, and a small trellis along one side of the other. Not enough! 

Then I noticed I had a little tin of plastic forks. I’ve seen pictures of these in the garden to deter rabbits, so maybe it will keep the squirrel from digging up my seed babies. We shall see!

There’s A Heatwave: It’s Official

 I’ve been very judicious in my watering in these hot days and nights. So far everything is responding well. I keep thinking of Ken Druse’s admonition to water the garden, not just the plant. This gives the roots plenty of room and reason to spread out. I’ve learned to water the soil in pots not to soak also the flowers and leaves. I think in some mostly shady areas like the perennial garden area, I’ve been guilty of overwatering pots. So they have not done well. An old bozo can learn new tricks!

Today In The Garden June 7, 2021

 We’ve gone from night time temps in the 30s to 50s in late May and early June to low to high 90s every day now.

I was carrying flats upon flats inside and out because I couldn’t chance planting things. Now, I’m racing to get things in pots and in the ground early in the day.  

This morning I filled two raised beds with ten forty pound bags of soil. It’s a young woman’s game, but here I am, still hoisting dirt.

The secret to those heavy lifts is much like the trick for opening jars that are sticky.  Instead of thinking    “ this is so and so’s head” just as you twist the lid, right as you lift your bag you think of something that frustrates you, and the extra oomf is there for you. Works like a charm.

Tomorrow I hoist potting soil while I attempt to plant my tomatoes from their happy red Folger’s containers into five gallon buckets. I plan to keep them on the deck where I can baby them in their buckets.

There are half sized buckets from the same store. I’m going to attempt to put the two mints I have in those and see how they behave.

You may notice a few plates under plants here and there. Things are drying out so fast I’ve been getting pretty floral plates of various sizes to act as a tray for my babies at Goodwill. Treasure hunt city.