So much for the cucumber

 Got out and watered yesterday, really thoroughly and maybe a bit too forcefully. The weather is in the upper 80's and even crested into low 90's the last few days and with my random doctor appointments didn't water as diligently.

 You can see how few roots were cleared out of the moss pellet so that is word to the wise that I will wait and take that covering off when transplanting. So that's one down and the other one looks just fine so far. Not much in the way of any fruit  other than one small white looking one that may not be fertile. Oh well. Looks like it's tomatoes and peppers this year.

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Two of the bushes have flowers, even though they aren't completely grown. I just do not have luck with peppers it seems. I'll dump the rest of the fertilizer on them next time I water and hope for the best. I  know they and the cucumbers need a LOT of water and I just am not good about getting out there often enough, I need mulch for sure to help with that.

 

The cherry tomatoes are really pushing now and I should probably trim the very tops off for convenience. I actually knocked an overripe one off when I was shifting the cucumber around. It was way overripe, tried to eat it when I got upstairs and nope... way too squishy and it had that half rotten taste. Oh well. Guess it's time to get my trimmers and thin out some branches.

Not a very good picture but Marigold seeds! Dolores was puttering around with her plants when I went down today. I noticed she had a nice little square pot with some orange and yellow 'french' marigolds. The smaller variety. So we were chatting and then I asked if she had any flowers that went to seed and she handed me a handful she had just culled off her plants. Yes! So I sprinkled some in the west bed and stirred the dirt around, then the remainder I brought upstairs and got them pulled apart and into an origami seed envelope. Dolores seems to think the soil in that west bed is really good. I told her actually there's very little amendment and it's mostly native soil. She must think that heavy black soil is good. It can be but depends on what you're growing.

 Of course I technically needed to water immediately but will see about that tomorrow. Another thing I need, a good watering can for just such a situation. 

So that's it for today. One plant down but hopefully seeds will be growing, such is the way of nature. 

 

Wonky weather not much else

 It's warm enough now that we have had to turn the AC on earlier than 3pm. It was into the low 80's outside this morning which meant that by noon or more it was going to be a bit too warm for comfort. So it's been running today since about 11 am. due to various atmospheric issues and some wildfires the air quality and light has been odd. Not quite overcast but hazy though not so much with smoke. I can look outside my window and 'feel' what it's like outside.

                                                           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The largest cucumber is now about two inches long. I'm pretty sure that's the same cucumber  a day apart. The other smaller cucumbers may not have been pollinated. One of them is yellowing at the blossom end which is a sure sign it wasn't.

 Will see how many survive. The vines are doing pretty good grabbing onto the tomatoes or the trellis as they go. I have to hook them a few times if they're going astray but overall doing what they're supposed to. 

The Terra Cotta tomato isn't getting as big as I hoped, I was under the impression they would be standard slicing size. The coloring in the photos is brighter than what they actually were and that was two days ago. I will probably pick that one today but there aren't any cherry tomatoes ready yet. This bunch was over two or three days but judging from the fruit that's ripening now, I may have my hands full, literally with cherry tomatoes in a week.

 The oregano is still sending up flower stalks, I broke off a few the other day and forgot to bring them with me so they're just dried up and laying on the side of the bed. Oh well. It's an ornamental plant for me now that I've figured out it's Greek Oregano and not Italian. 

 I got tired of the over long leaves on the peppers now that the side branches are growing out so I nipped those off yesterday and they look much better. Maybe more energy will go into the new growth more with those gone. Again, the coloring is darker than it should be otherwise I  would have picked that tomato in the back.

 This sure is an over achiever bush! I'm debating whether to nip off the top growth because I'll never be able to reach the fruit up there. But look at how much is growing!!! Those are all about the same size too, so yeah in about a week or two I'll have a constant harvest going on. Still kind of bummed they aren't Roma, those are more useful than cherry size. C'mon Terra Cotta!

Won't water again until Saturday since I just did it yesterday and surprisingly everything is still moist despite sunny weather.

Summer is a'comin! 

 

Wins and losses

 Weather is cranking up and down as usual, slightly breezy morning and evening, even in the middle of the day. Cools down considerably when the sun goes down. Currently it is absolutely clear to the horizon with a touch of brown haze due to a wildfire to the south near the border.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just another full shot of the cactus in bloom and bud with branches growing from where a main branch was broken off. People who don't understand how plants grow end up surprised and butchering the plant even more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speaking of losses, the rose bushes have been stripped once again and I don't know who to talk to. Completely bare sticks in June. SIGH. Just.... facepalm. And then the bougainvillea they hacked down because it was leaning and now it seems they have standing orders to keep it a stump. I'll have to talk to Mike again and ask him to pass on the word to leave that one alone despite there being an electrical outlet. 

 

I have about five or six baby cucumbers!  The one in my hand on the right is curled a little but it's about an inch long now. There's three more all in a line up and another hanging out with maybe a smaller one starting lower.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 All the male flowers are at the bottom with the females up higher. This is going to be exciting when they really get going. I had to coax another tendril or two onto a support wire. They all seem to have been fertilized, no shriveling is happening so far ::crossing fingers::.

I also ended up pulling the smallest garlic. It wasn't doing well and was laid over. I tugged on the leaves and they snapped off without the bulb. I then got the trowel and dug up the small bulb. The other two largest ones seem to still be doing fine.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Terra Cotta tomato seems to be doing fine, just not growing very tall compared to the cherry that is now taller than the fence. I picked one of the cherry and was tempted to pick the other one but it was still too green so I left it for another day. The one I picked is sitting in proximity to an apple on the counter. Still waiting on the peppers to kick into high gear but probably going to be late summer before I see any fruit on those. I think it was a bad choice to tip prune them so late but oh well, you spins the wheel and takes your chances.

Watered yesterday but it was another case of water water water water.... okay should be all soaked in... and  nope. Only went in about a half inch in some places and in others it soaked right through.Will see about watering again tomorrow.

That's it for now. 

 

Had to post this milestone

 But first, the weather. Gorgeous, clear sunny day, light breeze, perfect temperatures for now. Night time was also very nice, though I needed my hoodie for that little touch of chill in the air. Full moon was out too.

 

Those flower pictures are without any flash, there was a parking lot light on the building and I changed some setting on my phone for better resolution. The moon is still a foggy blur unfortunately as I don't have a fancy schmancy phone that takes good night photos.

I has cucumbers! One actual fruiting and one hoping to make it. As usual the male flowers come out first and then the females, seems I didn't need to do any manual fertilizing so far. Had to tease another tendril closer to a support which is how I discovered the larger one. So excited! Now if the peppers could just kick into high gear please. 

Oh and I picked another tomato, this one wasn't quite ready but will likely be in another day or two. Slow ripening on these guys, how do professional growers get so many at one time? Simple answer: thousands of plants and artificial ripening.

So very much excitement, hoping bugs stay away and they grow long and healthy.  

 

 

 

Another small loss, the weather goes on

 It may have sprinkled overnight, the air certainly smelled like damp earth and wild brown grasses. I had a poor night sleeping and wanted to take a walk around the complex so took Rocky with me (on a leash of course). It was kind of misty in a few spots but judging from the lack of rain divots in dry soil, not much else fell in our location.

Partly cloudy most of today but that picture is from day before yesterday. Breeze is almost constant with a few blustery moments so weather is being variable. The cactus are at the East end of the property and I believe are San Pedro cactus and primarily bloom at night. It also looks like whoever broke off some branches that were sticking out over the saw horses. Oh well. It's flowering like crazy and gets absolutely no care whatsoever.

So apparently according to other gardeners they sometimes end up with cherry tomatoes when they hadn't grown them either. This may be a spontaneous seedling from the Roma but reverted to a cherry. Oh well, was hoping for a bounty of Roma but here's hoping the Terra Cotta fills that void. The cucumbers are still climbing and flowering but no sign of fruit yet. I didn't have luck last time so will see if that trend continues. I teased another branch with a tendril onto the trellis  so it wouldn't grab itself or the tomatoes. The peppers are surviving, some of the larger ones are developing side growth and the smaller ones are just...growing. The cherry tomatoes are being harvested as they turn red and when I posted that picture in the group someone said they look like Sungold. I told them most emphatically they are not, they turn bright red when ripe, as I said originally. Honestly.

I watered thoroughly yesterday and the little zinnia was flopping around in the swamp water. I put in a stick to help prop it up but I think I may have broken it off. It was definitely wilted today and either I broke it or something ate the root. Poor thing, oh well so much for flowers in the garden this year other than oregano and the veggies.

 

I pulled the larger of the onions and planted five more that where from the last of the store bought onions. I have a container of chopped scallions in the fridge now for whatever I want to put them on. Maybe we'll have teriyaki chicken thighs tomorrow and will toss some of those into the mix.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So I guess Rocky wasn't as traumatized as much as I thought, he did his usual route around the lawn area and I held back as usual since he gets cranky if I follow too close when he decides to go into the garden. He sniffed and snuffled and looked around and then I decided to get a bit closer to see what he was looking at and he hissed and decided he was done looking around. I noticed on the way out that the lemon bush is loaded with fruit now. Must be at least six or eight lemons on this side and maybe a few more on the other. Whatever we're doing it's responding well to it. I do wish we could angle it a bit more to the wall but you can see how it grows more where there's more sun. Once again, whoever planted it there had no clue how plants grow. Judging from the size, even if it was started from a 5 gallon it's been there for at least a decade or two.

That's all for this week, new month in a few days and will see about either some flower starts or fertilizer.