We have had rain this year here in the mid-Atlantic. Lots and lots of rain. For the past several years we couldn't buy rain. This year, it won't stop. It seems we can no longer just hit a happy medium. So, you deal with the circumstances and move on.
It's funny how things work. One would think that lots of rain would be good for the garden. And it certainly is true that you need to keep your garden well watered. But too much water can have an adverse effect. In addition to rain, fruits and vegetable plants also need plenty of sunshine and warm temperatures to thrive. And they need for the soil to dry out between waterings to prevent root rot. Unfortunately, the weather is working against the garden this year.
A recent stroll along the Earth Box wall was not encouraging. We started the season strong with vigorous growth. But an overabundance of cloudy, rainy days are starting to take a toll.
I think the hardest hit are the tomato plants. They are producing but the fruit is very small. And, as you can see in this picture at the upper left, the leaves are taking on a yellowish color.
This was a recent harvest. You see the tomato on the left is split. That comes from too much water. If you have tomatoes on the vine and they split, you should pick them straight away. Even if they are small. This is an open invitation to ants.
I know from my many years of gardening that calcium in the soil helps tomato plants with regulating the amount of water they take in. So I decided it was time to add this wonderful product from Miracle-Gro called "Shake 'n Feed. Actually, this is good for all the plants in the garden, so I added some to each Earth Box.
Here, the leaves on the cucumber vines are turning yellow and withering. I showed you the picture last week of the cucumber that was forming.
It looks the same now as it did last week.
Here, the box with the bell peppers.
The cantaloupe box. There is a watermelon plant in this box also. It has all but withered away to nothing.
One of the two tomato boxes.
The one bright spot in all of this is the strawberry box. I cannot explain this because strawberries like lots of sunshine and well drained soil. I gave them a shake also. It won't hurt.
This Boston fern is enormous. This was a tiny $10.98 potted fern I picked up at Lowe's Garden Center in the very early days of spring. It is gigantic now.
There are three maidenhair ferns in this re-purposed birdbath bowl. All healthy and loving the rainy weather.
Another of the flourishing Boston ferns in planters along the the deck railing. They are so large and lush that you cannot see the rail planters in which they are planted.
This is not a pleasant picture, but one important to share. This bucket has been sitting on the deck for several weeks in an obscure place where I could not see it. On Friday evening I was on the deck and the mosquitoes were positively unbearable. I could not imagine where they were coming from. A little investigation turned up this culprit. Each of those tiny black specks you see in the water is mosquito larvae, just waiting to mature. You can watch them wiggling around in the water. This was immediately emptied. If you have any standing water around your house, empty it immediately. It takes only the tiniest bit for them to multiply.
It's funny how things work. One would think that lots of rain would be good for the garden. And it certainly is true that you need to keep your garden well watered. But too much water can have an adverse effect. In addition to rain, fruits and vegetable plants also need plenty of sunshine and warm temperatures to thrive. And they need for the soil to dry out between waterings to prevent root rot. Unfortunately, the weather is working against the garden this year.
A recent stroll along the Earth Box wall was not encouraging. We started the season strong with vigorous growth. But an overabundance of cloudy, rainy days are starting to take a toll.
I think the hardest hit are the tomato plants. They are producing but the fruit is very small. And, as you can see in this picture at the upper left, the leaves are taking on a yellowish color.
This was a recent harvest. You see the tomato on the left is split. That comes from too much water. If you have tomatoes on the vine and they split, you should pick them straight away. Even if they are small. This is an open invitation to ants.
I know from my many years of gardening that calcium in the soil helps tomato plants with regulating the amount of water they take in. So I decided it was time to add this wonderful product from Miracle-Gro called "Shake 'n Feed. Actually, this is good for all the plants in the garden, so I added some to each Earth Box.
Here, the leaves on the cucumber vines are turning yellow and withering. I showed you the picture last week of the cucumber that was forming.
It looks the same now as it did last week.
Here, the box with the bell peppers.
The cantaloupe box. There is a watermelon plant in this box also. It has all but withered away to nothing.
One of the two tomato boxes.
The one bright spot in all of this is the strawberry box. I cannot explain this because strawberries like lots of sunshine and well drained soil. I gave them a shake also. It won't hurt.
* * *
As for the ornamental plants in the yard and on the deck, they are loving all the rain. Things are as lush as I can ever remember.
This beautiful white blooming crepe myrtle has gone crazy. The new growth on this is unbelievable. Once the blooming period is done, we will need to do some rather heavy pruning.
A close-up of the beautiful white blooms.
This beautiful white blooming crepe myrtle has gone crazy. The new growth on this is unbelievable. Once the blooming period is done, we will need to do some rather heavy pruning.
A close-up of the beautiful white blooms.
This Boston fern is enormous. This was a tiny $10.98 potted fern I picked up at Lowe's Garden Center in the very early days of spring. It is gigantic now.
There are three maidenhair ferns in this re-purposed birdbath bowl. All healthy and loving the rainy weather.
Another of the flourishing Boston ferns in planters along the the deck railing. They are so large and lush that you cannot see the rail planters in which they are planted.
This is not a pleasant picture, but one important to share. This bucket has been sitting on the deck for several weeks in an obscure place where I could not see it. On Friday evening I was on the deck and the mosquitoes were positively unbearable. I could not imagine where they were coming from. A little investigation turned up this culprit. Each of those tiny black specks you see in the water is mosquito larvae, just waiting to mature. You can watch them wiggling around in the water. This was immediately emptied. If you have any standing water around your house, empty it immediately. It takes only the tiniest bit for them to multiply.
