Everything is still growing

 The weather is still warm but manageable today so far. Good thing about good soil is it stays moist for longer than you think. Nothing needed watering today due to the heavy soaking I did yesterday. A better picture of the orange amaryllis this time in the evening. Two full flowers open and the color is almost correct, slightly more orange though.

Some little rascal got into the west bed again, thinking it's likely the opossum that I saw months ago. I suppose I'll have to put the cage back over the top just in case. Not digging up the plants just digging in the soft soil and frankly if it's eating pill bugs and worms I'm all for that. There is finally visible signs of growth on the tomatoes and peppers, the squash is even perking up a lot so I think the fertilizer is kicking in now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Three open flowers on the tomatillo now, yay! I could swear those are supposed to be taller plants but this is what I've got and not going to complain. The wilting I noticed the other day was, in fact, the heat. They looked fine when I went out in the evening when it was cooler. The cilantro is still growing plus something odd as well. Not cilantro but similar broad leaf and not one of the grasses that I've seen all over but you never know. I also think that one of the little seedlings is already putting out mature leaves, the almost carrot looking ones. I didn't notice that until I was  circling the larger leaf at the back. I don't remember planting carrots and it would be a total surprise if one came up there so I'm thinking it's cilantro bolting already. Which is not unexpected given how hot it was, that's why I dropped the seeds in the back where they would get more shade and hopefully cooler. 

Four more months of warm weather, which reminds me I need to get some of the peat pellets again before the end of July for seed starting for the fall. It's not even July and I'm planning ahead already. But I have carrots, onions, radishes, lettuces up the wazoo, cauliflower and cilantro to put in for the winter. Have to start planning the potato crate too. Going to need at least a full bag of soil if not two for that crate. 

Wondering if I can finagle some window screen from the maintenance guys for that. Then I have to figure out where to put it.

 

Not much going on as usual

 Weather is gearing up for another hot weekend. We stuck it out as long as possible yesterday but turned the AC on around 3. Might do it sooner today. There were signs of intrusion in the garden today after I loosened the soil yesterday.

Different direction, different day and time. Clear skies today but it was partly cloudy early yesterday morning. The clouds cleared off by around 9 am or so and it was sunny and hot the rest of the day.

Planted the squash last night, piled up the soil a little in the middle to set it on, knowing full well it would settle flat. I 'think' there are flower buds clustered close to the stem but waiting to see what they turn into.

I think the remaining rose and the oregano is getting overwatered. Brown spots on the oregano leaves and yellowing on the rose. I  might have to just leave them be for a while. I then took pictures as best I could of the tomatillo flower and buds. What concerns me is that plant was a bit wilted when I checked on things this morning.

Divots dug in both beds where there was loose soil. Definitely not gophers and most likely skunks or cats. Everything seemed fine so I just watered really well to level everything.

 

I hope a gopher didn't decide to tunnel under that south bed and eat some of the tomatillo roots. It looked wilted and at first I thought maybe it was the heat, checked the soil and it was definitely dry. I tugged on the plant and it wiggled but wasn't really loose. BUT when I was loosening the soil yesterday there was a very loose area almost like a tunnel on the left of the plant. Going to have a conniption fit if one has returned. I know I didn't put any chicken fencing along the back so it's possible. St. Fiacre had better work some protection or there will be a fiasco in my garden.

Due to the way I water, all the perlite in the raised bed ends up in that far corner. I'm going to try and scrape it to the middle and opposite corner carefully. The soil in that bed was just soaking up the water like a sponge but there were some dry spots about an inch down so I made sure to water very well.

The jacaranda is still in f ull bloom outside my window. Foot long panicles of flowers with six or eight on the branch. Bees have been going to town on them. I'm hoping I can wash my windows to get a clearer view soon.

That's it for today and yesterday. Hope everyone else's garden is going better than mine.

Squeeee! Baby Lizard! And other stuff.

 Weather was warm but not too bad.... but the big news is, there was a baby lizard in the raised bed today! I have no idea how it could have climbed in there considering the sides are very slick.

Obligatory tree and sky pictures with a late picture of the amaryllis with two more blooms left to go. Wish I was a bit more nimble and could get better pictures.

Dolores (I assume) fixed the hose yay! Good as new. And I transplanted the little pepper plant into a cup. It'll be much happier I  hope. I fertilized everything again, just sprinkles here and there.

So I went out to check on things today as usual and saw movement out of the corner of my eye and had to restrain myself. A very tiny baby lizard in the raised bed! I have only ever seen one that small once or twice before in my entire life. The fun thing about them is, they are in threat mode and it let me put my fingers up to it and it climbed on (fun story at the end of this about my other baby lizard memory).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am sure that it thought it was trying to look ferocious but it's a BABY! It can only look more cute! No more than an inch long nose to tip of tail. I was trying to get some of the milipedes for it but since it was in a 'danger' situation and the milipedes were not cooperating it ignored the ones I could get near it. Finally, realizing I needed to let it go, I put it in the divot from the squash and it liked it there because the soil was cool but as soon as I moved, it skittered to the back wall of the bed. You numbskull. I caught it again and then released it on the log pile. I'm sure there's plenty of ants and termites and whatever bugs in there for it and it's nest mates and parents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decided to plant the other tomatillo anyway. Me and my impatience seeing empty dirt. It'll all work out and if that small pepper finally grows I'll plant that at the front of the bed. Having all nightshades in that bed is a bad thing I know but there isn't much choice in the matter. Oh! Speaking of nightshades, I had to return my knitting book to the library and of course I checked the seeds and discovered they had put out San Diego Seeds out again. Yay! There were plenty of choices but I saw they had anaheim chilies.... yeah.... my dream of having a full on salsa garden is too much to resist.  They also had basil seeds which I should have grabbed but left them. They had a new system now that they put what's available out on the clip racks and keep the actual seeds in the book some already divvied up in little envelopes. A bit more organized, and I shocked the poor guy behind the desk because I just reached through and grabbed the book. Anyway, I now have Anaheim peppers to add to my garden. Somewhere. Sometime.

 

Actual flowers on the tomatillo, of course they all hang down so it's hard to get a picture but there were at least two yellow flowers hanging out. I pinched off the buds on the smaller plant to try and get it some more growth energy. I know these plants are supposed to be bigger but will take them at that size anyway.

Oh there was a butterfly too, but again moved too fast to catch the inside color of the wings. It had big black eye spots with brown and orange, grey on the outside and internet search says it's a Common Buckeye. But the outside of the wings didn't look like they had any distinct markings. And of course I deleted the photos.

So that's the excitement for today, so happy to see the little one and hope to see more of them skittering around. 

Ditto weather report, only a few pictures

 It is ridiculous that temps in the 80's knock  us for a loop now. It was only 86 this morning and yet it's insufferable in the apartment without the AC going. It is now 91 at 3pm. Bleh. I got out last night and brought the fertilizer with me but didn't use it.

Last nights photos. I discovered another reason to let the coriander go, which was a small red spider that had made it's web between the bush and the planters on the right. The squash recovered nicely and so did everything else. Remember my pictures of the tomatillos just clearing the first rung of the cages?

I brought down a trash bag and my clippers to finish the job. Spider will have to go somewhere else. Bagged the top of the bush first then cut through everything. Works rather well actually and then I pulled the remains of the plant out. There's a lot of roots in that bed and the soil is only about three inches deep. Roots could be from anything and everything that has grown in that bed.

I decided to get the squash out of the bed because it was already looking wilted despite being watered. There were a few pill bugs and of course, the millipedes in the soil under it. Any solution for that problem will have to wait until next week. Home DIY solutions have failed due to poor reading of instructions and insufficient supplies. 

Now that there is room in the west bed I need to consider what to do there. I already have one of the tomatillos and still have tomato and pepper plants. The one pepper that's coming up in the long seedling container, I am crossing my fingers is either a bell pepper or fish pepper. That one I think will go in the west bed but it's still very, very small.

Might have to dig it out and repot it in a single container because those larger 'trays' just  don't seem to do well with anything I plant in there. Might try that tonight and remember to add more fertilizer for it.

Hot as it is, it doesn't cool down sufficiently until after sunset which is around 8 at night. I usually have other things going on around then but will try and remember to do that transplant tonight. I left the fertilizer bag in the electrical closet for convenience so I don't have to worry about forgetting it.

That's it, hanging tight feeling okay about the world and the garden at the moment.

It's still haaaaht

It's up to 92 today, I carried the hose over to the garden and realized I needed to water last night or yesterday as the squash was a bit limp.

 Hazy, streaky clouds that only shows there's humidity in the air and does nothing for cooling. Gives the light an odd edge when the clouds move under the sun but nothing other than that. Wind is up, which it always does in the afternoon and weather app says it will be cooling down only by about ten degrees over the next week. Surprisingly humiditiy is only 29%, feels like more than that but it's just hot.

Hard to see but the tomatoes are gaining some height now and so is the tomatillos which are also putting out some flower buds I think. Those tomatoes are not going to do well this year, it's much too late in the season for them to be that size. I will definitely be getting some seedling pods again for next year.

After I watered today. Again, doesn't show it much but the taller potato is very weak and fell over, the poor cilantro babies were flattened and I adjusted the one leaf on the right but it was folded almost flat as well. Everyone got a good soaking and I buried half that container in the soil again to keep it cool. I will try to get out in the evening to see how they're doing and hopefully remember to bring the fertilizer with me. It's supposed to last for three months but I don't think I gave them a lot. Let's do the math, shall we?

1 cup = 8 oz. They recommend using 1 cup per 10ft row. Might have to break down the oz even smaller. For containers they suggest 2 tablespoons per 1 gallon of container volume. So given that measurement I think giving them about a teaspoon per plant was about right. But I still want to work in some more especially around the squash when I plant it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day before yesterday I went out in the evening with the intent to cut down the coriander. I noticed a black bug on it and got a closer look. Not one, but two ladybug larva on the dying coriander with no green leaves. Well apparently some enterprising aphids were there and that's why the ladybug laid her eggs. So the plant lives another few days. I checked today and didn't see any evidence of aphids or larva so will give it another day and check then cut it down. The seeds are starting to turn brown which means they're ready to go.

 

I also checked again in the raised bed and still possibly hundreds of millipedes in the soil. Research says they are like the pill bugs and feed on decaying matter in the soil but can eat new leaves on seedlings. Well I still want to get a collar or sluggo plus for that squash before I put it in the soil. I then saw that the two other rose cuttings were not doing well and made the decision to cut them out . The remaining one is doing just fine thankfully, and I think the other two had root issues and possibly stayed too wet. Wasn't going to baby them along when the bigger one is doing fine.

I've been seeing butterflies around, I think I saw a Painted Lady flit through the garden today and a Monarch yesterday. Then there was this little harlot likely laying her eggs on the kale plant, I stood there very close to the plant and she kept flitting around because I was too close. I had to go back upstairs though so you can bet she laid a few more. Dolores says she doesn't eat that a lot so isn't worried about pulling it out.

So this is the state of my garden June 23, 2024. A VAST difference from last year where there was more plants than soil showing. Ah well. such is the garden life.