Not going to do mid-year fertilization this year, to see what happens

Usually I do a mid-year application of alfalfa, mrp, etc. but this year, well, I'm lazy and want to see what happens if I don't.  I figure between all the leaves I added last year and all the good stuff ongoing (grass, etc.), maybe it will be ok.

Spotty appearance of the July 23rd bush beans!!! Started more INSIDE

What the heck, I have the worst success rate with getting beans started!!  ~30% of the July 23rd bush bean sowings have popped up.  What happened to the rest of them?  Your guess is as good as mine.  They were covered with a layer of tulle for protection...

So, today started yet more bush beans (both kinds: brown-speckled and white) -- however, these I started INSIDE in the 9-trays, in pure ProMix (didn't bother doing my home-made mix for this small amount).  Soaked them in water for just a few hours before putting into the ProMix.

Allotment: Big bush bean harvest!

The yellow-bean kind looks very appetizing!

The green-bean kind doesn't!

And the results....... drum roll...

The yellow-bean kind are pretty delicious!

The green-bean kind is okay too but more bean-y.

Potato blight update: Progressing slowly but surely, but slower than last year

At least I'm pretty sure it's a slower progression than last year.  It just seems like by this time last year a lot of the leaves had fallen off.  Granted, this year a new thing is wrong too, which is the curled leaves on a lot of them.

Bush beans and buckwheat sowed where broccoli used to be

The bush beans:  The SW corner is mostly the white bush beans; east of those are the brown-speckled bush beans.  And the top-most line along the section is all the brown-speckled beans.

Buckwheat is just scattered on the top of the soil along the north part of this patch.

Hummingbird eating from wild evening primrose flowers!!

Happened to look out the window at the right time and saw a hummingbird flitting from flower to flower among the wild evening primrose!  Very cool, didn't know they like that.  The yard also has zinnias (which I've seen them eat from in past years) and scarlet runner bean flowers currently, so hopefully lots to attract them back.

Pulled the remaining broccoli -- wasn't doing much

Decided it was time to pull it out.  Did a final harvest of decent leaves and a few flowers.

My hypothesis is that making sure the plant doesn't touch the tulle, by harvesting leaves as well as flowers, worked to prevent cabbage butterfly worms, but the loss of the big leaves had a harmful effect.  As I remember the plants being so much more productive last year, when I allowed them to push up into the tulle by not harvesting any leaves.

So, I'm not sure I'd really do anything differently in future, short of maybe trying to find a way to have a higher / wider tulle enclosure so that I wouldn't have to remove so many big leaves.

Beans: First harvest! -- Kentucky Wonder Wax (pole) and one or two of the bush types

Includes first bean harvest from the allotment (bush).

All were tasty steamed with margarine and salt, though not as delicious as I remember from last year.  Still very enjoyable though.

Tomatoes not looking great -- blighty and stunted

First I noticed one of the Mortgage Lifters looked very determinate.  Ok fine.  But now, many of them look determinate or just have failed to thrive.  Jasper looks good though.

I'm wondering if the Mortgage Lifters may have been mislabelled perhaps.

Oh, and looks like blight is arriving too.

Oh no!! 3 female zukes and nary a male in sight!! Pulled them.

^^^

Bush beans actually runners!?!?

One of the "bush" bean varieties seems to be quite viney!!  Will see how long/tall they grow...

Scarlet runner bean flowers not resulting in beans :-(

A good amount of flowers, but so far not a single bean appearing!  Google says could be any number of causes... too dry, too wet, not enough insects... Oh well, we'll see what happens.

The white beans on the other hand do seem to be appearing.

First cucumber harvest! x2

First two cucumbers (Eureka) harvested!  There have been tons of male and female flowers, but I haven't tried hand-pollinating and apparently the critters haven't been doing much of it either.  But anyway one or two a week is plenty for me.

First SVB seen (but I'm sure they've been around before)

Saw two at once today, from a distance, so didn't notice if they laid any eggs...  Given last year's success with the tulle, I'm not too worried... (fingers crossed).

However, if the potted one next to the central bed gets taken down, it will be no surprise, as multiple times the too-small piece of tulle has had gaps.

I think the tulle buffer is working -- have seen multiple cabbage moths, none landed/laid

Fingers crossed, but so far it seems to be good in terms of success by making sure the target plants aren't touching the tulle.  The moths flutter and flutter, and circle and circle, but haven't been landing (at least, from what I've seen).

I do think that one oddball caterpillar a few weeks ago must have been one who spent the winter there somehow.

 

Planted 2 potatoes where removed 2 low-producing broccolis

The two broccoli in the northwest corner continue to not do much -- has been a piddly harvest from those two.  So, today I chopped them down (left roots intact), and planted the last two "Chieftain" seed potatoes from Ritchie's.

Runner beans flowering

So far mostly the scarlet ones that are flowering.  Pretty!

Ok seriously -- where are all the cucumber beetles and japanese beetles!?!

I only ever saw the one cucumber beetle (relocated) -- nothing since!

Have seen one japanese beetle and a couple that looked like that but not quite.  

They should be going crazy by now...  

(I haven't kaolined anything at all this year.)

Even flea beetles were a non-issue this year.

Not that I'm complaining though!

First cherry tomato harvest of season (Jasper)

2 cute lil' tomatoes!

FOY Japanese Beetle (on lemon balm patch)

^^^

Potato blight gradually spreading -- I haven't been fighting it

Que sera, sera... The plants overall still look good but I know it's just a matter of time.

Both container zukes having an "ouf" moment after harvesting

Hmmm, both of the container zukes are looking pretty exhausted after I harvested one or two from each of them.  One of them is starting to look promising again; hopefully the other will soon too.

In-ground ones have done this too in the past, so not necessarily due to being in containers...?

Used up the last carrots from last year's harvest -- as good as new!

Used them in carrot-dill soup.  Had the whole soup in one sitting.  Oops!  But so good.

The carrots were in fantastic shape.  A little bit of leaves growing but hardly any.  The carrots had been in the fridge in a twist-tied bag, mostly in the lower right drawer but then for the last month or two in the unlidded green cripser bin thing on the lower shelf.

Basil started rotting in the fridge after only a day or two!?!?

So weird.  A couple of days ago I harvested some basil; didn't wash it, just put it into a plastic container in the fridge.  Then today when I went to use it, several leaves had turned black / rot-y.  Most of it was fine, so I tossed the bad ones (and won't return them to the yard).  Not sure why this happened -- the plants in the garden look fine.

Pea harvest in full swing

And they are nice and sweet after all (despite my earlier post).