Rain, Finally !!!!

Friday, June 29 - I did not mind being awoken this morning by the sound of rain hitting my bedroom window. Finally we had a thunderstorm, typical for South Jersey summer days, especially when we are beginning a heat wave.

The rain we received in my area was the first in 10 days. It is most welcomed with the predicted temperatures for this weekend to be in the high 90's and possibly reaching 100 !!!

Luckily my flower and vegetable gardens are still doing well. We have been watering all areas but as you know, nothing is better than rain water for flower growth and vegetable yields.

My vegetable garden has been providing us and friends with huge numbers of zucchini and yellow squash. Tomatoes are slowly ripening and Thursday I picked my first plum tomatoes.

Another pleasant surprise where the "mystery" plants which have started from the compost pile. We have identified two plants; pumpkins and acorn squash. It is so strange to see pumpkins forming this time of year. The acorn squash is producing long vines which is beginning to tangle with the watermelon and peppers.

Today is a rest day from garden work. Having the day off from work, I plan to head to the shore, hopefully to cool down and relax. This weekend, I plan to do my usual garden chores and hope to begin to clear the brush down by the creek.

Hot Air Balloons

Sunday, June 24 - After taking my dogs out this morning around 6:30AM, I heard the burner sounds from above. Looking over my tree line in the back yard I saw two Hot Air Balloons flying over and beginning to descend.







It was a beautiful site and so peaceful watching and listening to the balloon as they flew slowly out of sight.  The quiet morning added to my excitement as I thought about what I was planning to do the remainder of the day.
I decided with the heat, to cut back those tree limbs which were in the way while I cut my grass. Using a combination of my chain saw, small and large tree cutters, I was able to finish this job in about 3 hours. The task then in hand was the cleanup, picking up all the cut branches and hauling them to the woods.

Summer Time is officially here !!!

Saturday, June 23 - The hot, humid weather we have had the last 3 days has finally left us for a brief time. Yesterday, was a day where I needed to run errands, pick blueberries and also purchase a new weed trimmer.

My wife and I begun our day by going to Mood's Farm to pick blueberries. Mood's located on Rt. 77 in Mullica Hill New Jersey is a great place to go if you want pick various fruits throughout the growing season. This is a place my wife and I visit on a regular basis especially during the early summer and fall. Yesterday we picked 23 lbs of blueberries which we freeze and use throughout the year in smoothies and home baked products.

I have been researching which brand to purchase and decided on a stihl weed trimmer which can use interchangeable attachments. My purchase yesterday included a trimmer and single blade which is used to cut brush.

 Our flower garden is beginning to grow with the hot and humid weather.

 The sunflower seeds, which have fallen from our bird feeders have grown to 4 ' in height and are almost ready to bloom.

 Flowers are starting to bloom and attract hummingbirds throughout the day.

 The vegetable garden is beginning to yield zucchinis, tomatoes, broccoli and yellow squash.

 All of the plants which have grown from the compost pile are doing well and are beginning to flower.

 The raspberries plants are beginning to produce fruit and are now beginning to turn red.

Happy Fathers Day

Sunday, June 18 - Fathers Day 


Happy Fathers Day!!! Today is a day for me to think about and reflect on all my memories with my father. As I think back, I did not appreciate all my father had to offer me as I was growing up and even after I started my family, I did not really understand everything that I had learned from him.

Today, as I look back, I think about the values and the way of life he taught me. Many of the things I learned from him were silent, meaning I learned by the example he set by the way he treated my mother and provided for our family.

By todays standards, he was not an educated man as he finished high school after serving time in the army during WW II. Then thru the mail he taught himself how to become an excellent wood craftsmen which as a hobby he would build furniture, church altars and anything asked of him by neighbors and friends.

It was common to see my father in his garage every weekend and often after work, finishing a project or fixing something that I had broken or needed to be repaired around our home. I cannot ever remember my father calling someone to our home to do repair work as he always had the knack to find some way to fix whatever needed to be done.

I certainly do not have many of the skills that he had. But I certainly try to live my life daily by setting the example he had done for me. To all fathers today, Happy Fathers Day, and I hope you have fond memories like me.

As begin my garden work this morning, I will be thinking about all those good times I had with my father while growing up.

My vegetable garden is really beginning to "take off"! It looks like I will have my first ripe tomato sometime this week and the yellow squash and zucchini are now beginning to mature. The string bean seeds I planted a few days ago are now 2 inches out of the ground and my pepper plants are beginning to form small peppers.

Broccoli and Lettuce Picking

Sunday, June 10 - A hot and humid Sunday in South Jersey today. It is in the 90's with showers popping up in the tri-state area. I hope are area gets some rain soon. The soil is very dry and cutting grass this weekend the dust kicked up reminded me of those hot days in August.

The hydrangeas are beginning to bloom in our garden ! Hopefully by the weekend the plants will be in full bloom. Also, the annuals we have placed in pots, baskets and in our yard are beginning to mature. One of my favorites is this petunia we bought at Kens Gardens. It is beginning to "wave", meaning it is starting to grow over the sides of the flower pot found on our patio.

The blueberry plants are beginning to ripen. We have been getting a handful almost every day and the 3 varieties we planted should give us this amount throughout the month of June.

Today I picked 2 heads of broccoli. Our cool crops have treated us well this year and it looks like with this heat this week, this may be our last week for lettuce.


Here is a picture of the area I cleared last weekend which contained strawberry plants. I transplanted 15 different plants, all which grew from the compost pile this year. I do not know how many will actually survive this heat we are having, however it looks like I will have a late crop of zucchini, cantaloupe and tomatoes this year.


Here is a side view of my vegetable garden I took early this morning. All of my crops are doing well. I am looking forward to the cauliflower which I planted back in the spring to begin to form heads. This is the first year I have tried to grow this vegetable.

This afternoon, I spent a few hours working on my compost pile. It is amazing the amount of heat which is generated by all the ingredients I have added. When I started to turn over all the matter, it began to smolder as the grass and leaves are beginning to breakdown. I also went to my neighbors and added a load of horse manure. I layered the manure with the other parts. This will be a huge benefit for next years crops when I put this compost in the garden next spring. It also will give the manure time to "age", which will help crops grow and not burn the roots when added. (Yes, Janice, I thought of you today.  :) )

Lastly, here is a pic of my clematis I planted a few weeks ago. As you can see, I have plenty of green and  but no blooms. I did add espoma tomato tone as this product has a small amount of nitrogen which is needed for this plant. If anyone has any suggestions on what I should do, please let me know.

String Beans are planted

Monday, June 4 - Today after work, I went out to the vegetable garden and planted a 15 foot row of string beans. I always start this vegetable from seeds as in the past I have had much success with my harvest which will occur the first week of August.

I also moved my basil plants to another location in the garden. I wanted to put them in a more convenient location for my wife so she could gather what she needs without walking thru the garden.

The rain we received today helped the other plants I had transplanted yesterday. Even though there are a few not looking that healthy, I believe the cool weather and the dampness we have this week will help these plants in their "new home".

Now, I know Summer is here !

Sunday,  June 3 - We had a beautiful day today and in fact, when I woke up this morning, it was a little chilly. I went to work in my vegetable garden around 7am this morning. About 15 minutes later, my neighbor came over to lend me his mantis tiller for the work I had ahead of me today.

Around 8am, my neighbor put on his outside speakers for me to hear, "Breakfast with the Beatles". This has always something we have kidded each other about, as when we are both working outside, he puts on his radio to keep us entertained. Also, we both realize that when the music is on it is also summer time!!!

Today, was a long day in the garden. I ripped out the large strawberry bed I had planted 2 years ago. It was amazing to see how only 25 plants had taken up almost half of my garden. The strawberry plants had produced so many runners which had rerooted many new strawberry plants for us to enjoy.

After removing all the plants, I also tilled the area 3 times to make sure all the roots were removed and also to add air to the soil. I usually wait 24 hours to plant, but knowing there was a chance of rain today and tomorrow, I decided to plant 14 zucchini and cantaloupe plants and 5 tomato plants which had started to grow in my garden from my compost pile. Many of the plants this evening, looked shocked from their move, but I am hoping the water from this afternoon and the possibility of rain tonight, will help these plants stabilize.

Tent Worms

Saturday, June 2 - Out early in the morning, I noticed my new hydrangea tree had tent worms. These small worms were moving around in their nested enclosure as the sun was warming their home. I was concerned as the leaves which were touching their web all had died. Luckily, the nest was at the end of two branches, and it was in its beginning stages, which made it easy to remove by cutting the branch.

After work, I spent the afternoon dead heading the purple and white salvia as well as my knock out roses. I also worked on my bird feeders and baths which is now part of my weekly routine.

Sadly, my snap peas and strawberries are done for the season. I have decided to remove the one path of berries tomorrow and till this area to plant the small seedlings which have grown from my compost bin. As some of the plants have matured, it appears I have some tomatoes, zucchini, and cantaloupe to transplant !

Our area was fortunate as the only remains from the heavy rains and winds were leaves on the ground and my grape vine breaking. I hope to take some time Sunday to repair this vine after working in my vegetable garden.

Mildew found in South Jersey

Friday, June 1 - Today we learned that a cucurbit downy mildew has been reported first in Gloucester County NJ. This mildew affects the yield of your harvest, therefore ways need to be considered to eliminate this problem. Please see below what you can do to control this disease:

Pest: Cucurbit downy mildew

Found: Cucurbit downy mildew has been confirmed on cucumber in areas near Swedesboro/Glassboro (Gloucester County). This is the first report of cucurbit downy mildew in the mid-Atlantic region this year.

 

Crop(s) at risk: all cucurbit crops in New Jersey.

Potential impact: Significant losses will occur if not controlled properly

What growers should do:
Control of cucurbit downy mildew begins with regular scouting, recognizing symptoms and weekly protectant fungicide applications. Now that downy mildew has been detected growers should scout on a daily basis and add a downy mildew specific fungicides to regular fungicide program. As a note, powdery mildew is also active in cucurbits.

           

Remember, all abandoned cucumber and summer squash fields should be sprayed with gramoxone or disced under immediately after last harvest to kill the foliage! Abandoned fields left unattended after use will only serve as a source of inoculum for other fields once downy mildew makes its way into our area.

                       

Please see the 2012 Commercial Vegetable Recommendations Guide for specific fungicide recommendations

 

As we await the severe thunderstorms in our area later this evening, I am hoping the anticipated high winds and predicted hail will not damage any of our fruits or vegetables. Even though I am working tomorrow, I will be rising early to check my gardens for any damages.