Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Plodding Along


Well,  there still isn't a lot going on in the garden.  Things are growing steadily, but not quickly.  The temperatures have been up and down so the cool weather plants aren't sure what to do and the hot weather plants are just wishing it would get hat and stay that way.  The only thing that seems to be unaffected is the grass.  We got the yard mowed this morning since the next two days are supposed to be stormy.  Notice the "we"?  Elijah helped me today.  The first time he's ever mowed!  He did a pretty fine job too.



I did have on place to weed, or maybe I should say grass.  The marigolds along the outside of the garden were starting to have company.  Not too bad yet, but Bermuda grass doesn't wait around too long before it becomes that guest that just won't leave!  I think I did as well as the ducks.


Friday, May 14, 2010

Good link

http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/gardening/top-gardening-mistakes-00000000034632/index.html?xid=yahoobuzz-rs-051410&xid=yahoo

More Strawberries


I decided to go ahead with more strawberries.  This time in the ground.  I have a spot at the garden entrance that grows pretty much just weeds.  It gets enough sun for grass, but it just never really has grown there.  There were several decent sprigs of Bermuda there, so I dug them up and will sprig them in  few  bare spots we have in the yard.  I added some organic garden soil to the area and dug it in.  Then put in may new plants.   I also put the roots from the ones in the Topsy Turvy.   If they grow great, if not it only cost me 5 minutes of work.



Maybe these will grow!

I got the rest of the garden covered with hay (strawberries too).  At least the ground.  The potting soil bags that we planted in I will leave uncovered until it gets a little warmer and the plants are bigger.  This way the soil will get warmer and encourage growth.  After the days are staying warmer I will cover them to keep them moist and cooler.  Seems a bit odd, huh?  Trust me, it's Oklahoma.


Finally covered!

We got the laying box that was in the yard moved into the duck pen and filled with hay.  Maybe they will start using it.  We have to hunt for eggs every morning because they don't seem to want to lay in the same spot for more than a couple of days.


Laying box gone

Got a lot accomplished this week.  Got a lot of rain too.  So far about 1.5" and it is supposed to rain off and on all weekend.  So much for Senior pictures!



Panoramic view

Thursday, May 13, 2010

More Storms to Come

At least that is what we were expecting.  Since this was the case, I got out in the yard and garden and got some extra work done.  The garden is still taking care of itself for the most part.  I helped it along a little bit by fertilizing it and I dug up a few Bermuda sprigs.  As you may remember, they are a great evil in the garden!  That will be a summer-long battle for years to come.  The garden is doing okay, I have a small eggplant and a bell pepper.  There is one tomato plant in the garden that has blooms, but it is still small.  All of them are.  The plant in the Topsy Turvy is doing really well, as is the one in the bucket.  Since they are not in the ground, their roots are able to get warmer. They are both blooming.  The strawberries are finished.  If you are in Oklahoma, i would get the strawberry Topsy Turvy.  I may get some more and plant them near the garden.  We'll see.



Oh, it would figure, but my rotten potatoes from under the sink and the clearance marigolds that were almost dead are doing better than almost everything else.





I did a little work in the flower beds to.  I split my hosta.  It was so pretty before, but is was crowding out another plant.  Now it is three, not-so-pretty plants, but they should do fine.  I also planted some "Black Dragon" coleus.





Right now is the nice time in the gardens. The weeds aren't trying to take over yet, it is still fairly cool out, so even in the middle of the afternoon, it is still pleasant to get out and do what little work there is.  Where there is a lot to do in the yard.  Well, not a lot, but it does have to be mowed at least once a week.  That takes about 2 hours.  I was very happy to get it done yesterday before the rains came last night.  We got 1/2 inch and could get quite a bit more in the next few days.

After the Storm


After Monday's storm, it turned out to be a beautiful evening.  At least here.  There was a lot of damage and two deaths south of us in the Choctaw area.  Anywhere else there would have probably been many more but we have great weather men and storm trackers.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Weather

Well, right now we are under a tornado watch.  Nothing unusual about that in Oklahoma, in May.  Hopefully we will not see any hail or tornadoes.  It is raining pretty good right now.  I think my rain gauge is up so I should be able to get a reading.  Oh, and my kids are jumping on the trampoline.  Trust me, I could be a much worse mother.


When you live in Oklahoma, you need to have a healthy fear of thunderstorms.  There was no lightning near us at the time, I would never actually let them jump if there was.

The garden is in a pretty slow stage right now.  My bib lettuce finally came up, but other than that, and the potatoes, nothing much seems to be going on.  I'm glad I didn't fertilize earlier in the day or it would be washing away right now.  There are some tornadoes on the ground in the area, but they are still a ways from us so I am not too worried.


Now they are in the house and even though you can't see it, there is some very light, pea-sized hail in this.

As I finish writing this, it has passed us and there is a tornado in Norman.  Now we are hearing that a truck stop in that area has been hit.  We hope there are no serious injuries.  We hope all in the area were listening to the weather.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Failure

Well, the strawberries are probably a complete loss.  The Topsy Turvy and Oklahoma wind do not go well with the strawberry plants.  I may plant some more, but I hate to waste the time and money.



The tomato plant seems to love the Topsy Turvy.  It has blooms already.  The peppers we are waiting to see.  Some are pretty wind-whipped and others seem fine.



I go most of the rest of the garden covered with hay.  I will have to get more to put where the okra and sunflowers are, but they are just coming up so Ill wait a little while.  All the rest of the garden has sprouted except for two of my lettuce varieties.  I'll give them another week to 10 days, then I'll plant something else in their place.



The rest of the yard and flower beds are doing fine.  I will need to respray with weed killer because the last round didn't do anything.  In a few weeks I will have to start spraying for grass burrs.  That will be an all summer battle that is wel worth winning!