Hot. Dry. Hot. Dry.
We're trying to keep up with watering - installing drip irrigation as fast as we can and hoping our baby seedlings can make it. It's not so bad if we think about what we can learn from all this.
When son Andy was born, he did everything by the book (Dr. Spock) - sitting up, weaning, sleeping thru the night.... so I assumed I was a great parent. When Mike was born and no one slept thru the night for 2 years I realized sometimes it's more about luck of the draw and rolling with it.
Last year was way too wet and the squash bugs were monstrous - an hour a day in the evening picking off bugs and eggs. But we STILL have squash in the freezer from a great crop. Beans were total failures - we just got a few bags in the freezer. No bugs tho. Potatoes were great last year so we planted more - but have been slammed with potato bugs. (Internet said try sprinkling wheat bran on the leaves which seems to have worked great.)
This year incredibly hot very early, and no rain at all to speak of (well, not counting the tornado and the windstorms...) We can't seem to keep much squash alive and the ones that are making it are crawling with squash bugs. The beans on the other hand seem grateful for the heat and are bright green and happy with a little water each day.
I've never grown onions before but they were doing pretty well I thought until I turned my back on them. One rain in something like 2 weeks, with lightning, and the next day they are consumed by grass weeds. So, I harvested and they are pretty good but will try to set out earlier next year. Ditto carrots -
I thought we'd started tomatoes way too early - I got back logged by starting in February as there wasn't time to pot them all up and get them thru the greenhouse - then the ground was too cold to set them out. Finally it warmed (yeah for soil thermometerse) and we started planting and now I have my first tomatoes this week. My dad would be proud. But next year I should start on March 1 starting my seed.
luck? Inexperience? Saved by grace and internet wisdom....
We're trying to keep up with watering - installing drip irrigation as fast as we can and hoping our baby seedlings can make it. It's not so bad if we think about what we can learn from all this.
When son Andy was born, he did everything by the book (Dr. Spock) - sitting up, weaning, sleeping thru the night.... so I assumed I was a great parent. When Mike was born and no one slept thru the night for 2 years I realized sometimes it's more about luck of the draw and rolling with it.
Last year was way too wet and the squash bugs were monstrous - an hour a day in the evening picking off bugs and eggs. But we STILL have squash in the freezer from a great crop. Beans were total failures - we just got a few bags in the freezer. No bugs tho. Potatoes were great last year so we planted more - but have been slammed with potato bugs. (Internet said try sprinkling wheat bran on the leaves which seems to have worked great.)
This year incredibly hot very early, and no rain at all to speak of (well, not counting the tornado and the windstorms...) We can't seem to keep much squash alive and the ones that are making it are crawling with squash bugs. The beans on the other hand seem grateful for the heat and are bright green and happy with a little water each day.
I've never grown onions before but they were doing pretty well I thought until I turned my back on them. One rain in something like 2 weeks, with lightning, and the next day they are consumed by grass weeds. So, I harvested and they are pretty good but will try to set out earlier next year. Ditto carrots -
I thought we'd started tomatoes way too early - I got back logged by starting in February as there wasn't time to pot them all up and get them thru the greenhouse - then the ground was too cold to set them out. Finally it warmed (yeah for soil thermometerse) and we started planting and now I have my first tomatoes this week. My dad would be proud. But next year I should start on March 1 starting my seed.
luck? Inexperience? Saved by grace and internet wisdom....
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