From Soggy Spring to Summer Swelter!

Hello and welcome back.  And, many thanks this Memorial Day to all of you who have served in our armed forces!

My apology for not writing sooner, but it's been a busy time here. We've moved quickly from a monsoon-like rainy and cool season to mid-summer heat in just a short span of ten days. It's above 90f here in Lancaster which is way above normal for the end of May. And many changes have occurred in the gardens.  Here's a quick rundown on our "home" garden. I'll get to the county park garden plot later in the week.

I recently discovered leaf miners on the spinach and beet leaves. These little guys are the larva of some small creatures who specialize in burrowing into leaves and feeding until mature. If left to multiply, they can do considerable damage.  The only organic remedy I am aware of is the use of pyrethrin sprays to halt their progress.  I used some on the affected beet leaves, because we do not consume those leaves. I chose not to spray the spinach since we use it for salad. I was able to get control by removing affected spinach leaves, which is really just a partial solution, but one I thought best to take. While pyrethrins are organic, they are, in fact, a poison.

The roses have really taken off this year. We seem to have many more blooms than usual. The salmon, yellow, and red are prolific. The "blue" rose seems more temperamental when its comes to rainy weather and the blooms are opening with brown spots caused, I think, by too much water,

The strawberries have been a bit strange due to all the rain while the first ones were ripening. The excessive amount of rain diluted the sugars in the berries which left them bright red, but bland to the taste. The ones shown below, a bit over a pint, ripened during the dry warm spell and are good in size and quite sweet.

The peony below waited to blossom until after the rainy spell. Good choice!  As they became full, though, a thunderstorm hit and the blossoms became heavy and bent to the ground. They browned out a few days later. They are beautiful, but not long lasting, with a period of flowering that lasts just ten days or so. Then they just show green until the following spring.

The snap peas are beginning to flower and set pods. These are the variety Lois bought at Longwood Gardens. The brand name is "Renee's Garden" and these are excellent!

The pole beans and zucchini are coming along. The beans are stretching to start their climb up the trellis. The zucchini in the foreground now has two blossoms with fruit developing.

All in all, things are going very well. It's always a pleasure to be able to go outside the kitchen just a bit and pick vegetables to serve with our next meal! And not long from now, it will explode with squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and much more.

I hope to see you again later in the week!