Catching Up

Come June, there are always a lot of things that start happening with the garden. I'm just going to race through some documentation so that I might be able to keep track of when I started things and how things are proceeding at this point in time.

Jason and I planted 24 cucumber plants from seedlings that I had sprouted indoors. Half (12) were Parade, which I believe are for pickling. The other half were Japanese Climbing cucumbers, which I believe will be for salads. Each of the 24 seem to have taken hold. I have one that is ready to climb the trellis I installed. I added a little fertilizer and compost. They seem to be doing well, but things are going slow.

The tomatoes are growing but I have yet to see any set fruit. The exception is the box where I planted Hungarian Hearts, followed by Rutgers. All but one of the Rutgers have died. I suspect I have what Clarence Brown refers to as tomato wilt. But, i planted more Hungarian Heart seeds and have at least half a dozen of those that have sprouted. Sort of a lame bed in many ways. I had such high hopes. Perhaps the seedling Hungarian Hearts will yet grow and produce.

The yellow squash (below) and zucchini are disappointing so far. But, I understand why. The beds they are planted in have very poor soil that is really just mulch. The only reason the Italkian Heirloom tomatoes are doing well (I am convinced) is because of the soil I added when I transplanted them. Nonetheless, they are now starting to grow. I added a little fertlizer to get them going a bit better. It's keeping them watered that is the real challenge. The mulch doesn't hold water well.


I planted three varieties of green bean Saturday and this morning in the same poor soil. I added as much compost as I could and then stole some soil from one of the older beds to try to boost water retention. I also fertilized heavily. I guess time will tell. I believe I will have to water morning and evening until they sprout. It's rained the past several days, which has helped. (The barrels are full again.)

My yellow of Parma onions have gone to bloom. They were so healthy early on. The ones that haven't bloomed have nice large bulbs. I'm at a loss to understand exactly why this happened. I have two ideas: water and spacing. I am hoping to eventually add a drip system and can plant next year's crop 4 per square foot instead of 9. The long red Florence have not suffered this fate.


Finally, I have some peppers that have sprouted and should be ready to plant soon. They are outside now.