Future challenges

It would seem that the coming climate change will make the dismally wet summers I've notice the last couple years even more pervasive. And while I seem to have gotten a handle on insect issues recently, other forces have taken note and decided to fill the misery void. Namely fungus.

With wetness comes fungal infection, most noteably, the mildew twins (powdery and downy). I also noticed some scab previously on the leaves of my apple tree. Thus I have the following considerations when proceeding with next year's plan.

Physical: The current height of my raised beds is about 6 inches. This puts the garden foliage only minimally higher than the surrounding environment. In an effort to lower the relative humidity I will raise the bed surface another 6 inches. Hopefully this will have a tangible effect on the micro climate of the soil.
Second, any vining plant will be grown vertically. Rampant overlapping foliage proved a haven for fungal infection.

Plant selection: Despite its success at bringing squash pests to a minimal level, nasturtium grows rampantly and contributes to the overfoliated conditions above. In the future I may switch to a dwarf variety or reduce its use.
Best efforts will be made to find open pollinated cultivars with desired resistances. I have noticed that the waltham butternut variety of squash did not succumb to PM despite living in contact with infected delicata squash. Purely anectdotal of course but worth noting.

Human intervention: Despite my desire to create a homeostatic balance and let nature take care of the problem, it may become necessary to spray. I will only explore the use of compounds which can be easily and safely produced at home in keeping with my ethos of limited dependence on external system inputs. I tried a milk spray this year with only limited success, and next year will attempt to more closely follow the proceedures outlined in the study. Humans created the climate crisis and its side effects, so I guess I needn't worry too much that a little human intervention may be required. Attra has a publication about the use of compost tea as a possible deterent of late blight in potatoes. Given the close relation between potatoes and tomatoes I don't see a reason why the resistance might not be effective there as well.

If anyone wants to share their fungal woes please feel free.

Something old, something new

First the old, as in old friends. I recently got back in touch with an old college room mate who as fate might have it, has also taken up organic gardening. Coincidence? Something in the wind? I'm glad he's into it, but I can't count him as one of my five, so the score is still at 3/5.

Now the new. The first of the tomatoes are almost ripe. Brandywines. No sign of ripening from the Cherokees or Amish paste, though there are several nice plump specimens of each. I hope they ripen soon, I've spotted early blight...not good. Not good at all. This pattern of horrifically damp summers is not just depressing, it could be a definite problem if it continues long term.

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.

Still in the thick of things

Well as can probably be guessed by my extended absence, my work life has eaten my blogging time. But as I have a spare moment right now, I'll try to hit the highlights.

1.)First pound harvested! radishes put me just over the top of 1 pound composed of radishes, lettuce and arugula.

2.) the peas and most of the broccoli are beyond hope. Something ate them, and this time it wasnt the dog. I suspect its the neighborhood cats. They seem to have mowed it to appropriate height. So in went seeds for zucchini, delicata, and waltham squash, as well as french melons, nothing germinated yet.

3.) The situation in the bed out front seems to be improving, though I definitely lost a couple tomato plants, the survivors seem to be bouncing back.

Our daughter had to compose a persuasive paragraph for school on any subject...and completly unprompted she chose:

Gardens vs. Grocery Stores

I think people should have a garden instead of driving to the grocery store. If people make gardens in their backyard they can get their fruits and vegetables from their backyard.
You can buy packets of seeds for 10 cents which would be less expensive than buying produce. Gardens can keep people on a healthy diet. If you have a garden you wouldn't pollute the air as much because you wouldn't put gas in the air. People wouldn't have to pay money for gas. Plants take in carbon dioxide. Gardens look beautiful. When people come over they would be surprised by how much effort you put into it. My dad is growing his garden.

Some of the things I think you should have in your garden are tomatoes, potatoes, strawberries, corn, zucchini, and blueberries.

Needless to say I was beaming when I found out.

In other news, The area behind the bench I have dedicated to native species has borne fruit, or rather its inhabitants have been fruitful. More specifically, baby spiders, thousands of them. Go forth my pretties and feast on beetles and cabbage moths.


Speaking of the area behind the bench, I have a lone, but alive nonetheless ginseng plant coming up.



And speaking of the bench, I give you the view from the bench a.k.a. my favorite spot in the yard, overlooking my second favorite spot in the yard.


This picture was taken about ten days ago, since then the fennel (between the wormood and valerian) is taller than the fence, The valerian has exceeded six feet, the pond has cleared slightly from the lilly pads out competing the algae, and the wormwood threatens to take over the universe.

beetdown

After picking the majority of the beets which amounted to about 9 oz. I got brave and pulled a few carrots. Lest you all think I became a master gardener behold the dismal results.



The bigger ones are about 1/2" wide. I'm not familiar with the carrot growth habit, do they widen first and then grow deeper? Is there hope for the ones still in the ground? or is this as good as they get.

The Beets faired better:


They are nice and round, it doesn't look like anything got into them, I don't think I have enough to pickle them, so I think its soup for some and I'll just cook the rest fresh. They have a nice red and white striping, so maybe I can get some good high res shots when I cut into them.

Ping Pong and puzzles

ping pong of course being the weather, 20 one day, 40 the next. The mint and valerian are doing well if you cant see the phone photo clearly.

the puzzle is lemon balm. Seems that the seed stock I have is succeptable to damping off. I have started it twice in the aerogarden and both times it has turned belly up a few days after sprouting. This to me makes little sense. I thought damping off was a soil born infection, wouldn't hydroponics by definition not allow for such a thing. Second, the aerogarden uses a single water reservoir for all the growing pods, so everyone shares the same water. But I have started a half dozen other seedlings during the same time, and none exibited any signs of damping off. No batch had any of the same species of seedlings, to avoid the possibility that perhaps something was antagonizing it. Even stranger still, chamomile was in the mix this time around. Chamomile tea is supposed to be a preventative for damping off, so I figured on a whim it might have some kind of positive effect. Nuthin, nada, zip. After a few days (I am still amazed with how quickly perennials germinate in this thing.) I see green baby leaves emerge, then die, then another seed germinates, wilts and dies and so on. I have started a couple seeds in sterile mix to test, but if those go belly up too then I am thinking that the seed itself is the culprit. If so I'm sure the company will give me a refund, but I'd rather have a Lemon Balm seedling. Oh well, a friend has offered a cutting if it doesn't work out.