This has probably been the most difficult Spring for gardening I have ever seen. We have had record rainfall and unseasonably cold temperatures. Many gardeners have not been able to plant anything yet due to the wet conditions. A lot of those who did plant early have lost their heat-loving plants like tomatoes and peppers to frost. They might also be suffering with blight or fungal diseases. One variety of cucumbers that I planted on the trellis has contracted powdery mildew.
Despite these unusually harsh weather conditions, I choose to focus on what we do have instead. We were fortunate to have been able to plant some things because we got the raised beds ready in late winter. The cool season beds are actually doing great.
We are harvesting plenty of lettuce now and surprisingly there have been zero slugs. In years past,we have always had slugs in the lettuce. Maybe the many toads living in the garden this year are taking care of them (I will show you pictures of our resident toad family tomorrow).
The onions are growing well and the broccoli heads are about halfway formed!
I think its pretty cool how the water collects on the broccoli leaves. They have a very interesting look.
Unfortunately, there hasn't been a single day in the past month when there weren't pools of water on the broccoli leaves. It has been nice getting to watch the broccoli grow this year. Usually I have it covered with an insect barrier row cover to keep the cabbage moths off of them.
I guess because of the cold temps, those little white butterflies have not arrived yet this year. See, another positive. I have to think about these things instead of facts like the tomatoes appear to have shrunk since transplanting them. Oops, I almost started being negative there. Gardening does have its challenges, but it also has many rewards. I choose to than God for those.
Have a great weekend! My toads and I will see you tomorrow!
Keep Growing,
- Marc
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