August for the N&C Midwest..

Finally have blossoms on my pole beans! Yay! Brussel sprouts are about marble size at the bottom. Basil just keeps on keeping on. My corn is silking now, and the acorn squash has 3 small squash. One is about the size of a baseball. I hadn't seen it, cause it was hiding under a leaf. I have 2 peppers. They're supposed to be jalapeno, but I don't think they are. They're long and slender. Anybody have any ideas what kind are like that? My romas are ripening, and they're still making new tomatoes! Usually when they start to ripen that's it for me. They are so healthy looking. It has to be the Mel's Mix. My cukes are also going nuts. I've already canned some bread and butter pickles, and should have enough soon to be able to can some dill slices. Never tried dill slices before, but I figure it can't be too difficult. Anyone else done them before?

Overall, I'm very pleased with my All New SFG, this year.

I've pulled my lettuces and spinach out, as well as the remaining radishes, and the one poor lonely beet. It was delish! I was planning to grow some sugar snaps this fall, but my cukes and pole beans have taken over the trellis, so I guess I'll wait till spring to put more in. My carrot tops are growing like crazy, but I don't think there's anything underground but a skinny little root.

I'm planning to put in some broccoli, cauliflower, rutabagas, kholrabi, mustard greens, mizuna, and maybe a cabbage (never grown a cabbage) for the fall. They'll all be direct seeded. I tried to start my own on my patio table outside, but they got flooded out after our last storm, even though they were under the gazebo. The wind was really blowing. Plus, they were very leggy. Hopefully, the direct seeded ones will germinate. Our temps have dropped to normal (low 80s), finally.

Whew!! Didn't mean to write a book. That's all for now!!

Hello all. Sorry I've been missing in action. Like everyone else, it was so darn hot here for so long I pretty much ignored the garden except for "survival" care.

I am definitely going to need some advice on pest control for next year. I've always been a "plant and pray" gardener but this year I lost a lot to pests. So far this year I have had: bean leaf beetles, Mexican Bean Beetles, Japanese Beetles (these are gross!), Cucumber beetles, flea beetles, squash vine borers, squash bugs (just discovered last night that this is what is on my zucchini plants) and last night I found a nice big juicy tomato hornworm on my pepper plant (luckily he was not very bright and missed the 10 tomato plants). I have about had it with pests. I would like to have a good bug or two in the garden! Maybe BBG can send me a few toads to reduce my population. My theory is that since I'm pretty much the only person that gardens in my subdivision, they all come attack me!

That being said, I have managed to harvest a bunch of cherry and Roma tomatoes, a few acorn squash, some cukes, some fabulous carrots, one jalapeno (yep, just one) and some zucchini in the past few weeks. My round zucchini plant succumbed to the dreaded SVB and my potato harvest was pitiful (trying something different next year). We got one small meal out of the corn (it wasn't pretty, but it was yummy!). I will plant fall stuff here in the next couple of weeks. My sweet potato and acorn squash are trying to see who can grow the longest vines and we should have cantaloupe in the next week or so.

All together a fairly good year if I could just get the pests under control.

here is why we thin seedlings:







i've pulled all of the garlic, onions, and carrots. not a great harvest, but still better than last year and i'm tickled. there will be no floods next year and it will be better!







and finally a monarch has been laying eggs in my yard. these two hatched about 30 minutes before i took this. i'm up to 17 caterpillars and i think there are more eggs to collect! these are the ones that will fly to mexico, so i will bring in every one i can find.







and BBG - i now have a pair of downy woodpeckers! cutest things ever! and the goldfinches are eating like crazy even tho' the purple coneflower has gone to seed.

I know we don't want all of our carrots to look like that BUT that is one cool lookin carrot. LOL



how do you know about no floods next year? did they put in drainage ditches for your community?

and BBG - i now have a pair of downy woodpeckers! cutest things ever! and the goldfinches are eating like crazy even tho' the purple coneflower has gone to seed.

YAAAAY!!

the power of positive thinking - no more flooding!! i have to believe that or i may not plant there again.

Yesterday I checked on the cantaloupe and when I turned them to see if the underside was still green, they slipped right off the stem. I cannot wait to cut into them today.