I've been griping, with much justification, that my garden stinks this year. I know I have only myself to blame, though I would just like to make sure everyone knows that we had over 17 inches of rain in June and July, creating a swampy mess, and then, basically no rain in August! So the ground was either complete muck and mire, or hard as concrete. And I was lazy. So there it is.
However, yesterday was very nice, and I spent the whole morning doing battle with all the bindweed that managed to grow in the last two weeks or so. Made me feel like, if I had a machete, I could have been in the jungle. Between that and the suckers I pruned from the crab apple tree, I got some good piles of yard waste going. I didn't have to mow, because the grass went dormant. At least I accomplished something!
I do have sedum starting to bloom. These were swarming with bees. I noticed that it "sounds like" September now. Where I live we have a certain kind of small brown cricket with a very high-pitched chirp that sing all day at the end of summer. I think they wait until then so they don't have to compete with the cicadas!
I felt a little better when I went over to my neighbor's garden and noticed that he was getting more casual about his weeding, too. But wait, you want to see the pumpkins, don't you?
I always come back to the house singing "Bibbidi, Bobbity, Boo!". I wonder why?
To see who else is strolling, visit The Quiet Country House.
9 comments:
Wow! Any idea of how much those monsters weigh?
They remind me of a nursery rhyme in one of Andrew's books. Those are almost big enough for Peter, Peter pumpkin eater's wife!
Donna, last year he took one to the competition that wieghed about 900lbs. I think this year's will be a little larger, because we had some good rain early on. The look bigger to me, anyway.
It seems a little greedy to be asking for rain after all that we got earlier this summer, but you are right--we really need it now!
Don't be too hard on yourself; this is the time of year I succumb to garden apathy. I want to enjoy the garden while it lasts, but really don't feel like weeding or pruning anymore.
Bibbidi, Bobbidi, Boo, indeed! I actually saw these carriage-sized pumpkins the other day. I was driving down the street when I spotted the garden. I didn't want to stop so I got only a quick glance at the pumpkins. Even with your great photos, it's hard to visualize just how big these guys are until you actually see them!
Woo-hoo! rose, I'm glad you got to see them! Aren't they incredible?
I cannot picture a 900 lb pumpkin in person. We get really small ones in our markets down here. A contest would be such fun. What size usually wins?
I laughed when you said "But wait, you want to see the pumpkins, don't you?" - I was enjoying reading about the rain and the bindweed, but, yes, I did want to see the pumpkins!! :<) Not often I see any vegetable that big! What kind of soil do you have at your house; clay, sandy, loamy??
Eve-I guess you are still at home, reading blogs. Hope the storm goes west of you! I'm not sure what the contest winner was, but I know the gardener said his would not quite make it. I think they shoot for around a thousand pounds.
Nan-If only I could claim these pumpkins as my own! Our soil is great; it's good black loam down for several feet, and then hard-pan clay. That's why we're swampy. Between the flatness and the clay, the water has no where to go. But most people envy us our soil, which is really some of the best in the world. Unless it's too wet. Or too dry. It's never in between!
Those pumpkins are amazing!!
If it makes you feel any better, if you saw my garden, you'd feel like a gardening champion. :)
Joyce, I liked your pictures and loved your narrative. It sounds like autumn here too, or at least like all the wild critters (bees, etc.) know that it is coming soon. I'm so glad you strolled this week!
I think it's ok to let the garden have a "lull" year once in a while. I've been leaving my butterfly garden to tend to itself this year. In the fall I may add some more bulbs for spring flowers, but I don't even have any big plans for moving anything or dividing. Some years are like that.
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