July in the N&C Midwest...

Can’t quite decide what the several little plants around the tom are ? oh, and I did reply on the celery but it has scrolled off now.

westie42 wrote:Can’t quite decide what the several little plants around the tom are ? oh, and I did reply on the celery but it has scrolled off now.

I have basil and oregano around the tomato plant, westie. I also stuck in a couple of rosemary.

I read the celery post, thank you so much. I wrote in my january notes to get ready to start the celery.

I bought a garden book this week "Gardening in Iowa" by Melinda Myers. I have enjoyed it it! It gives month by month lists and ideas of what to do in the garden. Of course I have a list of my own lol...but it is nice to read about other peoples lists! And since it is targeted at Iowa by an Iowa expert I knew it would at least be basically accurate. It is an interesting read.

Saw that book in the Woodsmith book stacks and did buy the Grow Iowa Herbs one think it’s by the same author or at least the same publisher series. Hope you have checked out the bluebird pic link above it has really nice photography.

westie42 wrote:Saw that book in the Woodsmith book stacks and did buy the Grow Iowa Herbs one think it’s by the same author or at least the same publisher series. Hope you have checked out the bluebird pic link above it has really nice photography.

Rofl..I had to keep from going to the link till I had my final done for college lol..I would so waste time!

WooHoo! I am on break till November 1st!

Good going Cindy! I hope you enjoy your time off from school!

westie42 wrote:BBG is this the site you talked about with bluebird shots. There are 13 pages of fabulous pics here.
http://secondcousindave.smugmug.com/Eastern-Bluebirds/Eastern-Bluebirds-in-flight/6385684_TPwxK#440221874_YkA4K
Stripesmom the pickles look luscious.

Nope. But, it's great!! Thank you for finding it. Funny, I've been racking my brain since I posted to remember where I found it. Within seconds of looking at the link you provide, it hits me......his name is Kenn3D. I google his name and instantly get linked to his SmugMug gallery.

http://kenn3d.smugmug.com/

Thanks for also jogging my memory....lol.

If I took a million pictures possibly one mite make the cut for an album like kenn3d has. Besides good equipment and extraordinary skills do they shoot in bursts and then select from that to get these results.

stripesmom wrote:Good going Cindy! I hope you enjoy your time off from school!

stripesmom, I have been going for two years non stop..was supposed to get AA/IT(Web Design) last May but due to 4 close family deaths during that time (grandma, aunt, two nephews) and daughter getting out of bad relationship of 5 years and needing help with 4&1 yr old sons, I just could not get my brain going ..I am three classes short and decided it was time for a break to get MY head on straight!

But it is a dream I have always had and now have a hubby that supports it. So I AM going to "Get R Done" lol... I hate that saying but so apt!

Cindylou, I understand. I am glad your taking time off. It's important for people to take care of themselves now and then. Seems like there are times, when a person spends most of their time doing for every body else.

WOW! Can you believe that July is almost over? We are getting ready to plant some fall crops in the garden: Radish, spinach, lettuce. Only 8 weeks to go to our average first frost date here! We have had some carrots, beans, onions, tomatoes, our peas are done and so is the cabbage. In a couple of days I will have 3 cucs ready to eat and I can't hardly wait. Our corn is tasseling so I hope we get some good sweet corn. The peppers are starting to set fruit and I will have a jalepeno here very shortly. So far the pumpkin has not had any female flowers. My 10 year old checks every day. I hope he gets at least one pumpkin.

Unmade - don't give up on the pumpkins, I just found my first one this evening!



GG

The butternut squash is now up and over the top of the 8' trellis. The lone watermelon has long escaped the short trellis it is on.

Sadly, I still only have one watermelon and one cantaloupe...

However, I saw one of the large toms starting to redden! The cherries are ripening finally too.

We left for vacation at the beginning of July when the peas were drying up and the green beans were just starting to produce. I had just transplanted a tomato bought at the nursery after my seedlings died....ditto with bell peppers and cukes. I also transplanted my cantaloupe and watermelon seedlings, fully expecting them to be dead when we got back. Friends watered the garden and picked beans while we were gone. We got back Thursday and found a tomato that had exploded and taken over the box, and cukes, cantaloupe and watermelon that were doing the same thing, and beans that were exploding. Onions are about done. The potatoes look a bit sad, but I had to cover some little potatoes that were poking up out of the dirt. The peppers don't look much bigger than when I left, and don't have any flowers. I cleaned out dead peas, severely pruned the tomato and trained it up the trellis (I hope it survives....it has 4 tomatoes and lots of flowers, though fewer since I pruned it), and I tied up the cukes, and melons, too. Looks a lot more tidy. Now I have to trim those strawberry runners! The cukes have lots of fruit, one almost big enough to pick. The cantaloupe has flowers, but no fruit, and the watermelon doesn't have any flowers. Fall peas are up, time to plant fall lettuce, spinach, radishes, etc. Whew!!