State of the Garden

   This was an odd weather year right from Day One. The temperatures oscillated all winter and into the late

 spring. The summer has been mostly temperate with most days around 80F. Precipitation has foresaken the immediate area, nonetheless, there have been numerous mornings with dense fog until the sun burns it away. At the moment, its quite dry; the patio plants and garden need frequent watering (the patio plants are largely watered by the condensation gathered in the house's two dehumidifier units which milk about six gallons of water a day from household air).

   The other two food gardeners along the road are experiencing most of the same problems plaguing the garden here. Generally speaking, the annuals are far behind in their maturity. There are six types of peppers in the garden and only the banana peppers are producing fruit; the others are small and just beginning to flower. They are perhaps three full weeks behind the stage typical for this date. Germination, even in special media, was slow and erratic (they certainly were not slow due to lack of warm germination temperatures!).
 

 On the other hand, most perennials are out doing themselves this year, from echinacea, iris & lilies to roses. And in the case of the zinnias and cosmos, even the annuals are at the top of their form. The iris are long past but they were outstanding in the spring, not only in prolific and sizable blooms but in generating new rhizomes. The early and mid-season lilies are bloomed out and the last two late season varieties are coming to the close of their annual performance on the patio stage.

The corn did very poorly, probably not a single edible ear from 80 stalks. The garden here does not seem to favor corn of any variety, based on seven summers worth of trials.

If the blasted squash bugs and vine borers can be controlled, the winter squashes may make a decent yield. The cucumbers are just coming on, also quite late.

We will have to see how the remainder of the summer plays out. Much will depend on the timing of the first killing frost.

Warm regards from Stratheden's flora to yours.