May 2018

This is what is going on in my garden May 2018!

Total grocery bill: $34.55 (vegi only total $16.18)

Month’s To Do List:

(not done) Rototill the back corn area by the grapes
(partially done) Finish shed organization
(not done) Buy last 2 grapes
(done) Sift rocks from dirt in remaining 1 raised bed
(done) Add wire to rebar to finish espalier tree supports
(partially done) Pull all weeds
(not done) Plant/Transplant in remaining pots
(done) Finish all direct seeding
(partially done) Level dirt around the corn/okra/fruit tree areas
(partially done) Set up scalloped brick around remaining fruit trees (to match our plum trees), so that it helps when deep-watering and fertilizing, and now also discourages Tyson from peeing on the trunks…….sheesh!…..male dogs!
(done) Get in a solid routine of weekly feeding and protecting all plants. Proposed (every) Sunday plan: week one/ 3-3-3 foliar food, week two/liquid kelp, week three/neem spray…….repeat. Goal, have healthy, thriving plants, and NO MORE powdery mildew!

Harvesting:

Planted:

What am I doing?:

Musings:

Flowers are coming up and blooming all over the yard, and looking healthy (echinacea, butterfly bush, fuchsia, marigolds)
Already in May we have gotten raspberries and cherries……you know, not lots, but some! :]
Slowly I feel like I am getting things done, but when I look around I see so much more I still have to do. Wondering when that feeling will subside a little.
I believe I lost my grapes, they are not showing signs of life and some stems are breaking off. I feel as if I will need to replace them.
Eating garlic scapes was cool. We were expecting them to be a bit more garlicy than they were…..I mean yes, you could taste garlic, but it was not overpowering. We will need to try that again next year and have a recipe ready.
I am getting very few swiss chard leaves. What the leaf miners (fly larvae) are leaving behind the birds are sitting on and eating…….I don’t mind the birds eating the leaves…….but it is disheartening.
Potatoes are doing FABULOUS this year!
I am having a lot of stray seedlings because I did direct composting and left seeds in (seeds to melon, tomato). I am rethinking what to use for direct composting, as it is very hard for me to tell what I want to come up there and what is hitch-hiking my bed.

Photos:

Here are some progress photos……