It’s mid-summer already and the garden ripened vegetables are finally ready. I picked my first tomatoes, peppers, and several cucumbers by July 1st. Unfortunately, the season for lettuce, peas, and beets ended when the consistent summer heat arrived. So far my tomato, peppers and cucumber plants are going strong with little disease. My squash, melons, cabbage, okra, and eggplants are slowly coming along. I’ve seen some beautiful gardens this summer as I’ve been driving around the county. The jail garden in Huntsville is doing very well. The squash plants there put mine to shame!
The drought during the majority of June, at least in my part of the county, made gardening a struggle. I found myself hand watering rows of germinating seeds and newly planted plants daily. Getting my beans to grow was especially difficult. I finally have several rows doing well. Waking up to the sound of rain this morning definitely lessens my work load for the day. I’m very thankful for the rain we have received. Making rain barrels in the future is definitely on my to do list!
The bugs have unfortunately arrived to join in our garden feast; so it’s time to check your plants and hand pick squash bugs and stink bugs to control their numbers. The army of Japanese beetles is also here. Remember if you spray organic insecticides such as sabadilla, do not spray them on blooming plants such as squash and cucumbers when the bees are working in the morning and avoid spraying the blooms altogether. Even though they are organic they still can kill our beneficial insects.
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