Despite the drought, most of my plants are growing. I water the plants, if I didn’t, they would die. The ground is deeply dry. It is too dry to cultivate. The only weeds that are growing are some very annoying grass-type-producing bulbs that are all over my garden and morning glories are spouting here and there. I have been pulling the weeds by hand.
I’m a real grouch today (it happens), so I thought I would take a few pictures of the garden. I’m not sure what ‘grouch’ has to do with garden except for the Mary, Mary quite Contrary rhyme. Earlier today, I watered the plants. Each plant has a well to hold the water and rows have a ditch to hold water. It’s the only way to insure that the plant gets the water and not the surrounding plant-less area; I certainly do not want to water paths and encourage weeds to grow.
I am happy with the tomatoes. Yesterday, I picked the first cherry tomato and another plant has one that is ripening. The big tomatoes have grown 22 inches since May 24th – how many days is that – 17 days. That is good. In this area, they typically grow up to 15+ feet during the summer. They usually grow out of the 5-foot cages, grow down to the ground (another 5 feet) and if I weave them back in and they will grow out of the cages again. They are vines, after all.
I have images and please feel free to look at them, or you can close your eyes. I just don’t mind either way. 😉 (Remember, I am a grouch today)
One of the regular tomatoes with a yard-stick. I actually carried a yard stick outside to take this picture.
This is mint. Did you know that plants in the mint family have square stems? I will dry the mint for mint tea.
This is one of the sunflowers in my garden. I have dozens of them, somewhere between 80 and 100.
A zinnia flower bud. I love zinnias. I plant them from seed and some years none germinates. This year they all did. I have red ones and pink ones. Goldfinches love the ripening seed heads.
This is a shot of the garden showing daylilies in the foreground. I planted them here many many years ago.
That is all for the garden subject.
Have a nice evening!
Donna Young
Sheri says
I’m here to be grouchy with you! 😉
Oh, and I love your garden pictures. A house down the road has some blooming sunflowers and I’ve already decided I will plant some of these next year, but not 80-100!
Donna Young says
Miss grouchy is enjoying the company. 😀
My sunflowers are from seeds scooped off of the ground from under the bird feeder. 🙂
Melanie says
Mary, Mary, quite contrary 😡
😆
I’ve always liked that rhyme. I like taking care of my plants when I’m feeling contrary. They never complain about my attitude. 😉
I planted an entire package of spearmint seeds, and can you believe that only one germinated? And it’s still so tiny and miserable looking I can hardly stand it. I plan to buy some mint plants every time we go out, but then I start feeling contrary and change my mind. My mint had better shape up soon.
Donna Young says
Melanie, I grow both plain mint and spearmint. The spearmint smells wonderful, it reminds me of winterfresh chewing gum! Anyway, the spearmint is less vigorous than plain mint. If it lives, it should eventually do fine. Mint is invasive and spreads by underground runners. You may already know that. 🙂 We control our mint by mowing one side and tilling the other. It is mingled into my daylilies, but that is ok with me. When mint blooms, the insignificant spears of lilac blooms attracts small beneficial bees. 🙂
Elaine says
Your garden is looking quite good. 😎
I like that rhyme (I’m glad that Melanie had that typed out already because that is one of those words that always gives me fits 😐 ) it fits me sometimes as well.
I just did some planting, not what I had dreamed of doing a couple of months ago but I couldn’t get my family behind me on doing it – w/o their help the plants would probably die so why bother.
I’ll take pictures later to post of my pretty flowers.:)