I can't remember ever having had a garden this far behind where it should be at this time of year. I've never had so many seeds not germinate. Or transplanted seedlings do so poorly when transferred to garden soil.
There should be Sweet Peas climbing halfway up this trellis by now. The couple of tall plants you see are the only ones that germinated from my first planting. I only got about 50% germination from the second planting.
These beans are doing okay considering when I planted them (June 8th). They're a French filet green bean that is my hubby's favorite. You pick them when they're no more than 1/4" thick. I'll admit they are very, very tasty, but they don't freeze worth a darn so these will be strictly for fresh eating.
This bed of alternating rows of scallions and kohlrabi don't look too bad, but there is nary a kohlrabi bulb starting to form. And I planted them on April 29th. Considering kohlrabi needs to grow quickly in cool weather to be sweet and tender, they may be a bust. Maybe the chickens will be able to play soccer with them.
I set my peppers out three weeks ago inside a cold frame to give them a good start. I sincerely think they have gotten smaller since I transplanted them. And something is chewing on them. Are they not pathetic looking? Sigh.
My Morning Glories were started inside. Babied and talked to. After transplanting outside around the tepee trellis, they all died. Deader than door nails. Kaputz. Withered up. Fell over. The ones you see here I direct seeded after that. Something is chewing on them, too.
These lettuce plants that are finally, almost, barely, just about big enough to harvest were ones I saved from a bed of lettuce I planted on April 29th but had terrible germination. I transplanted them to this bed and totally replanted the first bed on May 17th. Nuthin' came up that time. Nada. (Is there a Lettuce Curse going around I don't know about?)
I'm doing a little four-row experimental patch of corn this year. It was totally flooded last week so I guess I should be happy the little corn sprouts have all survived. They're about 4" high. Knee high by the Fourth of July? Ha! We're hoping for ankle high.
This shot shows my three rows of shell peas and main crop of green beans. Today I came across a picture taken May 25, 2010, and the peas and beans were bigger than these are today on June 26th of this year.
One of my beds of storage onions looking pretty good. They got a little beat up by the heavy, incessant rains last week but have bounced back. No bulbs showing yet though.
More transplanted (rescued) lettuce and a few plants of Swiss chard that were originally planted on that fateful April 29th day. It's not even quite big enough to start harvesting yet. I wonder if it (along with the lettuce) is going to be bitter?During the flooding of the garden last week I lost all the kale that had just sprouted, some lettuce and two cherry tomato plants. The beets are looking a little spotty but I think I'll get enough out of what's left.
Even my flowers in the garden don't look good. I hadn't mulched anything when the rains came so they are all splashed heavily with mud. I had started all of them inside but right now they're looking a little the worse for wear and not as healthy as when I set them out.
As I said, I've had some insect damage. I don't know what's been dining on the peppers or the potatoes as I haven't been able to find the culprits yet. Today I did see quite a few very small grasshoppers in the garden. Yeesh, I thought grasshoppers were only a bother during dry conditions.
Even the soil in the garden doesn't feel "right" this year. I suppose that could have something to do with the fact that it was dry for so long and then flooded for several days.
I need to concentrate on finding a way to make friends with my garden. Maybe something in writing saying I'll never let it lie fallow again?
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