its been almost a month? really?

I spend all my winters in anticipation of summer and it disappears before my eyes.

Lets get this out of our system ahead of time. This will not be a spectacular year, it will be another year of lessons.

There is too much of a good thing. that being rain 5 of the last 7 days in july and 17 of 30 days in june. And even when it was only a few drops it has been overcast. Things are moving sllllloooowly. I should really consider adding another row of boards to the raised beds which only sit about 4-6 inches above ground height.

I am willing to try starting peas on st patrick's day again, but only if they are pre-sprouted. It took forever for them to germinate.

I should start my curcurbits in pots first. The soil just does not get warm enough early enough to get them going, I am going to end up with a lot of things just getting in under the wire if at all.

Slugs are a serious issue now. A duck is unfortunately out of the question.

Garlic spray is a great japanese beetle deterrant, I haven't seen them since.

I should have planted trees years ago.

fried beet chips are a reason to get out of bed in the morning!

My frontyard bed definitely needs more organic matter.

I need more grape vines.

The black tips on the kiwi is likely a water issue, too little I think, and with the rain I have not seen any since.

Scratch that!

this weekend I was going to dig out the rest of the potatoes this weekend but it rained, hard, again.

the cherry tomato plant in the hanging basket has some yellowing leaves, too much water probably. I started some beets, turnips beans and leeks for the fall. They along with some others will be occupying the bed the potatoes vacate. The healthier better tilth soil of the two beds. No signs of ripening yet from either the cherry tomatoes or the brandywines. Anticipation is killer isn't it.

In other news, the grape vine (lakemont) which was growing strong appears to have weakened growth at the tip and there looks to be some very light brown streaking at the last inch of it. I topped it off right above a node, if its a disease, hopefully I got the infected part of it and it can continue to grow from the node. The Male Kiwi is being ridiculously sluggish. I know its position is not the greatest but it will have to do, I may give it some worm tea and see how it reacts. Hopefully I can give it another couple inches before fall and let it get established.

I've seen more than a few japanese beetles out and about, and managed to "get" all of them, I hope they aren't somehow involved in all this.

I love grape juice

And heck, who doesn't love to eat grapes right off the vine. Anyhow, to recap I took some cuttings from our daughter's great aunt's vines this winter and wadayaknow, one has sprouted. The unseasonably warm april has turned cold and wet on us, so this little stick has to wait indoors for another few days, taking trips to the front porch to get used to being outside. I've got the spot picked out, (actually I planned on having grapes there to begin with.

If you can look past the stunning beauty of the dilapidated cherry tree for a moment, you will see lattice instead of a fence section. Its a full 8 feet that ought to provide better air circulation than I would otherwise have against a fence. Circulation being key with grapes which are prone to various fungal infections. It gets plenty of southern exposure and a toolshed for shelter on the western side from wind, which is where the winter snow assaults us from.

Here is one of the few spots in the garden where I really think I have an ideal location. EXCEPT...the ground can and does get soggy. The last piece of this puzzle will be to mound up some soil (or maybe split a wine barrel) to keep at least part of the roots high enough to keep from getting flooded.

And I have a hyssop plant that reeeeally needs to get in the ground. I've seen few references to any compainion plants to grapes but hyssop has been on that short list, so in it goes

weekend progress

I managed to get the garden area staked out and got a real treat. I haven't seen a chickadee in ages, almost 10 years to be exact. But yesterday, I saw four of them, in addition to our resident pair of cardinals, at the feeder, the hedge and points in between.

and even though I know they're fine, I put the grape cuttings in potting soil anyway. Sometimes anxiety gets the best of me.

potatoes and timing

onestraw reminded me that I hadn't ordered potato seed yet either. The problem is actually 2fold. First, I calculated the actual number of days in the ground I need according to the 100 sq ft plan in How to Grow... based on frost dates and things are going to be tight. Jeavons says that the plan is for people with 6 months of growing season, which is just a touch more than we get here in zone 5. Not enough for me to say"Well, I just have to forgo one of the succession phases" But its just enough to make it ...tight. It means the zone devoted to early salad crops like peas, lettuce, carrots, radishes, broccoli etc get about 55 days, which thanks to the wonder of genetic diversity is doable if using some of the heirloom seed stocks available...like my favorite Alaska Peas. Back to the matter at hand if I am to follow them with the late crop of corn, then potatoes get a window of 65 days. (Which by the way is exactly what Jeavons suggests).

So bottom line is I need to find some good seed potatoes that grow to maturity in 65 days. Unfortunately most online sources do not list days to maturity, only "early" "late season" etc. Second, is finding a quantity that is cost effective. I need about 10 lbs and a lot of the sources offer 2.5 lbs which at 4 quantities costs the same as the 20 or 50 lbs quantities being offered. And not to be too picky but I need a potato that keeps well, with only two adults and 1 eight year old we will not go through them too quickly. Why not plant less? two reasons. First, having more on hand means we will eat more home grown produce, and I will get to cook more, and share more with friends and family. Second, ego. I haven't actually declared as such but I am going for a poundage goal. 100 lbs from 100 square feet. I think its a reasonable goal given my level of experience. For comparison, Path To Freedom averages @ 1.5 lbs per square foot of garden space based on their advertised statistics. They also have a ridiculously long growing season and waaaaaay more experience.

Any suggestions?


PS:

Jeeze, how could I forget this one, I got some vine cuttings from our soon to be adopted daughter's great aunt. Great productive vines, the ever popular northern staple Concord. My father the amatuer winemaker was less than enthused with the variety, but as a lover of grape juice and jam, I could not be happier. I took the cuttings based on the Cornell Extension guide, but I'm still nervous, I know grapes are pretty reliable rooters from cuttings, but this is my first time propagating in this manner, so there is always some apprehension I suppose. If these take off I might try a hardy table variety like Himrod or Niagra next year. I don't have the space to do any large scale production for wine grapes, which is no real big loss, we're not far from Western New York's wine country which spans from somewhere near Rochester all the way out to Fredonia, which is where my Dad goes for his big juice buckets every year. I'm so excited, even though I know It will not be of age to bear fruit for at least 3 years. Given the space and number of vines I have I should be able to get around 14 quarts of juice once the vines are in full swing per year. Not enough to sell or live off of, but nice for the occasional treat.