Sunday, June 12, 2005
Waaaaaah!
I guess its just easier at this point to name off the plants that are still viable than to list what has died:
Acorn Squash
Tigger Melon
Golden Sweet Melon
All six Lavenders
Sage, Oregano, Mint, Chives
Plus the hot peppers and loofah, but only because they were still residing on my kitchen counter the night of the (doot-doot-daaaah.....) FREEZING RAIN.
Monday night around 10 pm, I'm sitting here at work, and I notice some kind of movement outside my window. I peer out, and wouldn't ya know... it's snowing. Not a flurry, not a sprinkling, but all-out snow. My window overlooks the dumpster and the parking lot of the Mexican restaurant next door, none of which was visible because of the DRIVING SNOW.
So I finish up here, race home, and it had been raining down there. Bad news. I would've probably been better off if it had been snowing down in the valley. DH followed me around with a flashlight in the back garden while I put plastic bottles, kitchen bowls, cardboard boxes, basically everything I could get my hands on, over my plants. I brought in everything that I was still hardening off.
The temps continued to dive during the night, and when I checked on everything in the morning, the tomato plants were all standing tall and proud and bright green, but only because they were completely and perfectly frozen in place. As soon as the sun hit them, they collapsed in a black and soupy mess. As did the pattypan squashes. And the basil and lemongrass.
I went to the farmer's market on Wednesday and bought a few plants: SugarPie pumpkin, Rainbow scallop squash, Green Zebra tomato and Black Plum tomato. The plant booths were doing a booming business, because everyone's plants here in the area died Monday night. That was comforting at least, to know that it wasn't just me. The lady that I bought the squashes from had the audacity to tell me, "Terrible, just terrible... but GREAT for me!"
Last week, I dug up all my winter squashes and tossed them out on the compost pile, and started new with seed. The only one to sprout so far is the Black Futsu.
I also decided last week to pot up the lavenders instead of putting them in the ground. A lot less work, and more portable in case we move anytime soon. Six lavenders sold as the "Learning to Love Lavender" six-pack from Mountain Valley Growers: Alardii, Sweet, Dutch Mill, English, Fred Boutin and Provence. They're in 10-inch pots right now. A bit on the small side, but I'll either put them in the ground next spring or pot up into bigger containers. Assuming I don't kill them before then.
The entire family went to the farmers market, and we bought shaved ice and ate it in the park afterwards. I fell in love with the little garden area where we sat down and ate. The picnic tables are underneath a shady, trellised area, and right next to that is a beautiful little perennial garden with a gravel path and raised beds. The only things I could identify without a book or anything were mullein, japanese maple, russian sage, lavender and artemisia. I've been obsessing about it ever since. It would be so easy to put together something like that if we actually lived in a place that we owned.
Everyone's roses are obscenely prolific right now. It's so disheartening to drive around town and see people's ugly-ass, neglected, weed-filled yards, absolutely EXPLODING with gorgeous roses. They didn't do a god-damned thing in the way of gardening, but are rewarded with these beautiful displays of roses. I, on the other hand, have worked my ass off this spring, only to be rewarded with fresh fodder for the compost pile.
Boy, this is the worst garden of any garden anywhere, ever. Meanwhile, I still torture myself with episodes of Victory Garden, Curb Appeal and City Gardener on television, thinking to myself, yeah, try growing some o' that shit *here* in one of the most inhospitable environments on planet earth.
This is all too much to bear...
Acorn Squash
Tigger Melon
Golden Sweet Melon
All six Lavenders
Sage, Oregano, Mint, Chives
Plus the hot peppers and loofah, but only because they were still residing on my kitchen counter the night of the (doot-doot-daaaah.....) FREEZING RAIN.
Monday night around 10 pm, I'm sitting here at work, and I notice some kind of movement outside my window. I peer out, and wouldn't ya know... it's snowing. Not a flurry, not a sprinkling, but all-out snow. My window overlooks the dumpster and the parking lot of the Mexican restaurant next door, none of which was visible because of the DRIVING SNOW.
So I finish up here, race home, and it had been raining down there. Bad news. I would've probably been better off if it had been snowing down in the valley. DH followed me around with a flashlight in the back garden while I put plastic bottles, kitchen bowls, cardboard boxes, basically everything I could get my hands on, over my plants. I brought in everything that I was still hardening off.
The temps continued to dive during the night, and when I checked on everything in the morning, the tomato plants were all standing tall and proud and bright green, but only because they were completely and perfectly frozen in place. As soon as the sun hit them, they collapsed in a black and soupy mess. As did the pattypan squashes. And the basil and lemongrass.
I went to the farmer's market on Wednesday and bought a few plants: SugarPie pumpkin, Rainbow scallop squash, Green Zebra tomato and Black Plum tomato. The plant booths were doing a booming business, because everyone's plants here in the area died Monday night. That was comforting at least, to know that it wasn't just me. The lady that I bought the squashes from had the audacity to tell me, "Terrible, just terrible... but GREAT for me!"
Last week, I dug up all my winter squashes and tossed them out on the compost pile, and started new with seed. The only one to sprout so far is the Black Futsu.
I also decided last week to pot up the lavenders instead of putting them in the ground. A lot less work, and more portable in case we move anytime soon. Six lavenders sold as the "Learning to Love Lavender" six-pack from Mountain Valley Growers: Alardii, Sweet, Dutch Mill, English, Fred Boutin and Provence. They're in 10-inch pots right now. A bit on the small side, but I'll either put them in the ground next spring or pot up into bigger containers. Assuming I don't kill them before then.
The entire family went to the farmers market, and we bought shaved ice and ate it in the park afterwards. I fell in love with the little garden area where we sat down and ate. The picnic tables are underneath a shady, trellised area, and right next to that is a beautiful little perennial garden with a gravel path and raised beds. The only things I could identify without a book or anything were mullein, japanese maple, russian sage, lavender and artemisia. I've been obsessing about it ever since. It would be so easy to put together something like that if we actually lived in a place that we owned.
Everyone's roses are obscenely prolific right now. It's so disheartening to drive around town and see people's ugly-ass, neglected, weed-filled yards, absolutely EXPLODING with gorgeous roses. They didn't do a god-damned thing in the way of gardening, but are rewarded with these beautiful displays of roses. I, on the other hand, have worked my ass off this spring, only to be rewarded with fresh fodder for the compost pile.
Boy, this is the worst garden of any garden anywhere, ever. Meanwhile, I still torture myself with episodes of Victory Garden, Curb Appeal and City Gardener on television, thinking to myself, yeah, try growing some o' that shit *here* in one of the most inhospitable environments on planet earth.
This is all too much to bear...
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