Looking Forward, Looking Back

I expect this to be the last post for 2010. It has been a good year for the garden. 2011 should be even better. Looking forward…Looking back. There were lessons learned that should improve the garden next year. Fortunately some of them were learned from successes. A few were learned from disappointments.

The greenhouse did very poorly last year. I think it was mostly my fault and changes have been made to this year’s procedures. The tomatoes were delicious, but there were not enough of them. Everyone whom I spoke with seemed to have disappointing results in the tomato department. The things I did this past year have worked well in the past, so the only thing to really change is the location within the garden, which changes every year anyway. The problem seems to have been the extreme heat, which is not normal. The summer squash and cucumbers got wiped out by the spotted cucumber beetle. A lot of control methods were discovered on the internet. Most of them project a marginal success at best.

I have been accepted into the NC Agricultural Extension offices “Master Gardener Program”. It is hoped that I will learn enough to avoid some mistakes and improve results. By learning to help other people with their gardens and yards, I should learn to help myself.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Pepper Seeds

The name won’t be shared yet until the seeds are tried, but an internet search this morning found a new source of pepper seeds. They even had the seeds for the “ghost pepper”. The seeds were extremely reasonably priced. The “ghost peppers” were the most expensive thing I saw and they were only $4. Shipping is free on orders over $7.50.

My order included California Wonder Bell peppers, ghost peppers, cayenne peppers, jalapeños and cherry peppers. Other vegetables were available, but those were purchased before the planting season ended, because they have not been available when the greenhouse needs planting.

The snow has kept me out of the garden and the yard. My laziness has kept me out of the greenhouse. Today the weather is really beautiful, but the snow is still thick upon the ground. There is no excuse for the greenhouse, so maybe I will spend some time there this afternoon.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Santa Claus Visits Charlotte Gardeners

He was actually a day late, but he brought a gift of Snow. It was about 6”deep and it has not melted yet. Snow is wonderful for gardens for several reasons. It makes a wonderful blanket of insulation for any plants that have not already succumbed to the heavy frost. It also fixes nitrogen in the soil. Rain does this too, but the rain runs off fast and takes a lot of the nitrogen with it. It may actually take more than it gives. Snow melts slowly and the nitrogen seeps into the soil.

The snow of course forced me to take refuge in the greenhouse. 6 flats got planted this weekend. Three of the thyme plants have come up from the 5 flats that were planted last Sunday. The bottom heat from the heating pads is the only heat being used this year as a buffer to the weather. There is a small electric heater in the greenhouse, but that is to keep me warm.

The woodstove has made two fairly generous contributions to the compost bins so far this year. That means that the PH of the compost will need to be tested as it is used. If the PH is too high, some sulfur can be added.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Finally a Break in the Weather

47 degrees may not be “balmy”, but it is better than days that barely go above freezing. Tuesday provided a chance to work in the yard a little. The woodstove was cleaned out and the ashes added to the compost. A small patch of yard was cleaned with the bagging lawnmower and the mulched leaves were added to the compost as well. A little bit of compost even got turned.

The crucifers that were damaged by the frost have not recovered yet. Who knows if they will do so? The leaves that were tied over the cauliflower heads wilted. The cauliflower is a kind of brownish color. The broccoli leaves and cabbage leaves are drooping too. The turnips and mustard seem to be totally wiped out. Last year they did that and then came back so they will be left alone for a while.

The oregano is the thing that really surprises me. The cold does not seem to bother it at all. The onions collapse but they are still good and they come back when the weather warms up. Our meals may not feature items from the garden for a while, but at least we can make the store-bought food taste good.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

2011 Garden Plan (Cont.)

As the assessment continues for the garden plan, the next step is a list of what will be planted and approximately how much we need. There are never enough tomatoes and egg plants, so they get 1st consideration. If all of the G-beds are planted to tomatoes on 2’ centers, there will be 3 12’ beds with 7 tomato plants each or 21 plants. E-2 is 8’ and can accommodate 5 plants for a total of 26. That should be enough.

E-1 is 16’ long. That will accommodate 9 egg plants, which is 1 ½ times as many as we had this year. Basil, parsley and cilantro will be planted between the tomatoes and eggplants. That will be a total of 30 plants or 10 of each. We don’t really need that much of any of them, but they keep the bugs down. The excess can be given away or dried. A row of onion sets will be planted down the middle of each row. E-1 will also have 9 cabbage plants. G-1 will have 7 broccoli plants.

The 4 foot rows will have different varieties of squash. Like most of the crucifers they will be direct seeded. The un-bedded rows will be dedicated to okra and peppers. These rows are about 40’ long. The okra will be direct seeded, but 21 pepper plants of differing varieties will be needed. The okra will be planted by itself. There will be some odd herb varieties inter-planted with the peppers. That will require 20 plants of various herbs and flowers. A few of the herbs inter-planted with the tomatoes and eggplants will be substituted by nasturtiums and marigolds, so the extras can be used with the peppers. This gives an idea of what will be planted in the greenhouse.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Garden Plan 2011

It is time to plant the greenhouse. The first step in that is to plan the garden. The garden has 7 rows of 3 raised beds and two rows with no beds. The no bed rows are 3’ wide and 4’ wide plus of course the paths. When planning last year’s garden, the beds seemed to reduce the number of plants that could be planted. When actual planting began this was not the case.

This years garden will have a lot of changes from last years. There will be no potatoes or corn. There will be more tomatoes, eggplants and squash. There will be a lot more beans. The beds will all have corner posts for attaching trellises or other types of support. The okra is the only plant that will use soaker hoses and it will be planted in a no-bed row. There will several new varieties of tomatoes and some cherry peppers. Mick McNeely made some stuffed cherry peppers. Just thinking about them is making my mouth water.

A few beds are planted with fall crops and they will not be available for the early spring planting. They will be used for succession planting of squash and cucumbers. There will also be a few beds used for early planting of sugar peas and various greens. Onions will be inter-planted with almost everything. There will be more specifics about the garden plan in the next post.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Hardy Herbs

Rosemary, oregano, thyme and sage seem to be holding up well in the icy weather. Rosemary and Thyme are evergreens, so I am not too surprised at them. The oregano and sage are holding up just as well. The broccoli, Brussels sprouts, collards, cauliflower and cabbage are not. The normal staples of winter, turnips and mustard are totally wilted. They will probably come back as will the other crucifers.

The rain on Sunday seemed to be reviving things. It was followed by two nights (and more to come) of low temperatures in the teens. The whole garden is a pretty sad looking affair. This weekend is to be dedicated to cleaning out the dead beds from summer and reworking them and mulching them so they can sleep through the winter.

If time remains after that, the soil will be tested and the garden plan for next spring will be made. This is necessary before the greenhouse can be planted.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Outside of the Garden

It has been way too cold to work in the garden for the last few days. The temperature has been in the low teens. Even the broccoli is drooping. The rain gauge had a little water in it from Saturday a week ago. It froze and broke. There is some other stuff going on though…

The Thomas St. Cookbook has been published and is available from Lulu.com. I hope there will be a button on this page soon to buy the book. All of the profits from this book are donated to several charities. More information on them is available at: http://www.StuffTheStockingsWithART.com

The pictures in “The Incomplete Garden Book” were printed in black and white to keep the book affordable. The color versions have been posted on the http://davidsegrest.com webpage for anyone who would like a little more detail. A new book has been started called: “A Year in the Garden”. This book is being posted on the above website in serial form.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Winter Color

Fall still has some blooms and the trees upstage the flowers with their great show. Now the leaves are falling and the fall flowers have frozen. Time for something colorful to cheer up the dull, gray days. How about Camellias and pansies? The name “pansy” seems to be something of an oxymoron. That was the name applied to anyone who was just a little bit wimpy when I was a kid.

Pansies are not “pansies”. Their blooms shine out in the snow. They are one of the few bright colors all winter. They don’t die until summer.

There is still plenty of green stuff in the garden too. Collards, turnips, arugula, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, mesclun, spinach, radishes and onions are not just green; they are producing food.

This weekend saw camellias and pansies go in the ground and leaves come off of the ground. Today will see the publication of “The Thomas St. Cookbook”. More about that in the next post.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Pruning Figs

This weekend the fig trees had lost all of their leaves, so they were cut back to eye level. The center branches were also cut out to let more light in and any branches that crossed were cut off. Last year only one tree was pruned. This was a major mistake as that tree required a saw for much of the pruning. It is amazing how fast fig trees grow.

The broccoli has heads about 3” in diameter now. It should be ready to pick. One of the cauliflowers has a head about 2” in diameter. This weekend it will have the leaves tied over to keep the head white. It is also time to make another planting of radishes and onions too. Like the other crucifers they will produce practically all winter.

The rest of the green tomatoes were pulled off yesterday. This was done about 3 weeks ago, but the tomatoes kept growing so there are more now. The plants are really frost bitten this time and the temperature is supposed to go to 25 degrees in the morning. This weekend the eggplant and tomato plants will head for the garbage and the beds will be put to bed for winter.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Dividing Iris Bulbs

The bearded iris which is the most common variety actually has rhizomes instead of bulbs. Some varieties such as the Dutch iris have bulbs. Division is simple and can be done at almost any time. Fall or very early spring is the best time. The first step is to carefully dig the bulbs. Some of them will break, but this doesn’t really matter.

Next the bulbs(rhizomes) need to be cut into pieces about 2 inches long. Use a knife dipped in bleach or wiped with a bleach soaked sponge to make the cuts. There are very few pests that affect iris, but good garden sanitation will prevent spreading disease. Discard any pieces that have rot or insect damage. Put them in the trash or burn them. They are not suitable for compost. Each piece of rhizome should have some root-hairs attached.

The bulbs or rhizomes should be planted very shallowly. A “W” shaped trench is good to let the bulb sit on the center and let the roots go into the depressions. The bulbs should barely be covered with soil. It is better not to mulch irises as this just buries them deeper.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Tomatoes Still

The tomatoes were picked green a week or two ago, when the 1st frost was predicted. There have been a couple of frosts since then. The tomatoes were pretty much forgotten. Monday as the figs were being pruned, I found some red tomatoes. Wow.

The figs were pruned to eye level again. Last year one fig tree was left un-pruned and one tree was pruned. The yield from the un-pruned tree was marginally greater, but the figs were harder too pick. The decision to not prune that tree was really regretted when pruning was done Monday. Some of the branches were too thick for a lopper and had to be cut with a bow saw. The city has a 5’ long rule for curbside pickup. Many of the branches from that tree had to be cut again.

Kale has been picked 3 times now. Salad greens have been picked twice and I have lost count of how many times the sallet greens have been picked. The lima bean vines are still health and blooming, but the lima bean pods have not filled out much. A different variety will definitely be in the works for next year.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

The Perfect Garden (again)

The garden will soon be perfect. At least the one in my head will. It is time to plan for next year. Step 1 is to review the garden plan for last year and read through the garden journal, totaling up the yields of the different plants. Some things did exceptionally well. Those successes will be replicated. (I hope.) Some things did not do well. That is where the challenge comes in.

Is it worth the trouble to try again? Charlie Brown kicking the football that Lucy holds comes to mind. Potatoes…no way. Speckled lima beans? The vines are loaded, but the beans are not filled out yet. They were planted on Good Friday. This is Veterans Day. Maybe a different variety will work. The bush type speckled limas from the grocery store dried beans worked great, but bush beans are a pain in the back, literally.

Next the plan comes. The blank garden map is copied and the soil is tested for PH. The soil can be amended where necessary, but it is much better if the PH is appropriate for what is being planted. It is also important to consider plant height and sunlight to get the plants in the right place. Then, of course, many of the crops should be rotated to avoid or at least minimize pest problems. It is a lot of work, but at least the garden will be perfect until it is planted in the spring.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Sweet Greens

The greens are getting more and more plentiful. Even though the leaves are getting really large, they are tender and tasty. I picked a bunch last night and washed and stemmed them this morning. The will be delicious tonight. We will even eat them with breakfast tomorrow morning. The leftovers are a great addition to vegetable soup. The “pot likker” is a tasty and healthy drink.

The days are getting so short that there is little time to work in the yard and the garden in the evenings. These short days also affect the setting of blossoms on the tomato plants that were moved inside the greenhouse. One of the weekend chores will to be re-rig and set the lights in the greenhouse to extend day length.

I don’t have as much wood as I thought to build new raised beds. Another weekend chore will be to mulch down the bare dirt in the garden. The beds that were planned for those areas will have to wait until more wood is scrounged. The compost is building up in the finished compost holding bin. It will have to be put on a tarp and covered to prevent all the goodies from leaching out.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

First Frost

The first frost came on Monday morning. It did not kill anything, so we won’t call it the 1st killing frost. It did make me nervous. So I picked the green tomatoes last week. Usually the kiss of 1st frost improves the flavor of crucifers. We haven’t picked any yet so who knows. They were pretty good before.

Getting the leaves up is a real pain. The leaf blower is really hard to start and even when it is started it takes forever to warm up enough to blow leaves. I used the mulching lawn mower to reduce the bulk of leaves. The side delivery lawn mower will be used to go around the edge of the beds and blow at least one pass into them. By then maybe the blower will be warm enough to finish the job.

My wife gets really irritated at me for blowing our leaves into the flower beds and natural areas instead of picking them up. We need leaves to mulch in the garden, but it is much easier to pick them up in nice neat bags from the side of the road.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://davidsegrest.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

The Incomplete Garden Book

My new book is now available on Lulu.com. There is a button on the blog for ordering. This is a pretty basic how-to book on home vegetable gardening. It starts with the soil and soil building techniques and ends with cooking and preserving the harvest. Many of the recipes come from my friends. Some of them have been featured in this blog already.

For someone who wants to garden organically, this is a really good guide. Everything possible has been done to keep the price as low as possible. The paperback edition is under $10. The download edition is under $5. This is not a coffee table book. It is meant to stay in the garden shed and have dirty fingerprints all over it.

There will be a companion website developed in the coming weeks. The pictures in the book are black and white. The website will offer color versions of the pictures. There will also be 8 ½” by 11” versions of the planning pages that can be printed out for the gardener’s personalized planning notebook.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

If You Got’em Pick’em

The temperature should drop to 33 on Thursday night (Friday morning). That is too close to freezing for comfort. If you have tomatoes, peppers or eggplants in the garden, this is the time to pick them. The peppers and eggplants can be eaten at almost any stage. The tomatoes can be put on the windowsill to ripen or fried as green tomatoes or chopped for chutney.

Greens, lettuce, spinach, and other brassicas don’t mind the cold. If the promised rain for today and tomorrow arrives, it will be good to mulch them, if it hasn’t been done already. A little frost actually improves the flavor and kills most of the bugs.

This is a good time to test the soil so that it can be prepared for spring. Take samples and put them into the free soil test boxes from the agricultural extension service or use the test meters or kits that can be purchased from almost any garden store or catalog. Some people just assume that the soil needs lime. Many garden plants require acid soil and the lime may actually inhibit their growth.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Kick or Treat

That’s what the little tree that I cut down on Sunday said to me. The tree was tied up with grapevines. I cut the grapevine and the tree. The tree was only about 2” in diameter. It bound when the saw was almost all the way through. I thought the grapevines were holding the tree so I just cut from the side. When the stump let go the tree flew up and hit me in the face like the kick of a mule. No treat.

Sunday’s plan was to build another raised bed. Instead I lay around with a bag of ice on my eye.

October is gone. The lowest temperature was about 39 degrees. There were frost warnings for Saturday that chased the topsy-turvy tomatoes into the greenhouse. The frost didn’t happen. Saturday was dedicated to splitting wood and filling the wood ring and the kindling box in the garage. The wood in the yard is stored in a beehive.

A beehive is a vertical wood pile. A post is planted in the ground. The pieces of wood are stood up around the post. As the bottom expands a second, third and fourth layer of wood is added, all standing up. This helps green wood dry faster and causes rain to run off rather than soaking the firewood. The whole thing could be covered with a tarp, but that just adds a couple of steps to the task of bringing in firewood. The name beehive comes from the shape and appearance of the finished stack.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Putting the Beds to Bed

It is almost time for the dirt in the garden to begin its winter rest. If your garden has raised beds there are a few little things to be done. Old vegetation should be gotten rid of. If there was even a hint of pest infestation, it should be burned or put in the trash to be hauled off. Any beds not used for winter crops should be gotten ready for the winter sleep.

For a 4’ X 8’ bed, about 1 wheelbarrow load of compost should be worked in the top 6” or 8” of soil. An easy way to do this is to dig fairly deep furrows with a hoe. Fill these with compost and then dig new furrows where the ridges are letting the soil fall on the filled furrows. Then the whole bed can be smoothed with a rake and covered with mulch. Leave are great, but don’t use leaves from walnut or hickory as they contain a powerful natural herbicide.

Gardens not in beds should be stripped of old vegetation, covered lightly with leaves and tilled deeply. They should then receive a covering of about 4” to 6” of mulch. Leaves from the side of the road are good for this.
David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Halloween Costume

The bogeyman of the year in our garden was the spotted cucumber beetle. To me that would be a frightening costume. One could also go as a deer or a rabbit. These creatures may not be scary to non-gardeners, but they strike fear into the hearts of anyone who has gone out in the morning to find everything eaten or trampled. Maybe a wolf or coyote costume would be good. It could be stuffed and put in the garden next spring as a scarecrow (scaredeer).

The greens are really coming in well. We have eaten them 4 times and given them away once. Yesterday I told my mother I would bring her some on Tuesday. She dreamed about them last night. They are that good. The onions are almost ready to start pulling. What do you call spring onions in the fall? The spinach has true leaves. The mesclun is growing, but it came up a little spotty. It may need replanting. The arugula was planted late, but is coming in pretty well.

This weekend saw the last available raised bed filled and mulched. There is only enough wood left to build one or two more. That will be next weekend’s project. It is raining now and is supposed to continue tomorrow. If the ground gets good and wet, I may transplant a few little trees.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Punkin’ Shell

Peter, Peter, Punkin’ eater
Had a wife and couldn’t keep her
Put her in a punkin’ shell
There he kept her very well

Michael Swol has a great use for his pumpkin shell. He made a pumpkin stew. The stew is pretty normal. What is different is that he cooked it in a pumpkin shell. The stew was made in the oven. The pumpkin shell needs to be on something secure in case it leaks. Michael’s did. The flavor was fantastic.

With all of the pumpkins on sale all over the place, this might be a good time to try a pumpkin stew. A friend of my wife’s made pumpkin beer last year. It was ok. I would rather have a good traditional brew and use the pumpkin for a pie.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Forgotten Arugula

Somehow the arugula was left out of the fall planting. Someone somewhere mentioned arugula and I tried to remember if it had been planted. No, it hadn’t. It got planted yesterday. The rain is supposed to come today, so maybe it will be off to a fast start. The first of the scarlet globe, white tipped radishes were picked yesterday; but there are no salad greens to go with them. These are beautiful big radishes and they are not pithy at all.

The mesclun and spinach are coming up, but they are still too small to pick. We have had 3 messes of sallet greens and one mess was given away. They are tender and delicious. The stems were even tender enough to leave them in. We are saving the greens from the radishes to mix with the next batch.

The dry weather has really hampered the garden growth. The garden has needed watering every day. Rain is predicted for today and the sky is cloudy. I even heard thunder a little while ago. Pray for rain please.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Green Greens

The first of the turnip greens and mustard were picked Saturday. They were young and tender and clean. There were not a lot of them, but they were delicious. We had some more rain so they should replenish themselves quickly. The spinach and lettuce went into the ground Saturday morning. They were well watered in Sunday night so they should grow quickly. The tomatoes still have fruit on the vine and the new cucumber plant has blooms. Maybe we will get a late salad.

The high temperatures are supposed to increase Thursday, but the lows will stay in the 50’s. This is according to the weather forecast on the internet, if you believe it. The afternoon sunshine should make things grow. The speckled lima beans that were just vines have finally set bunches of beans and they are filling out now.

This is the time for a good side-dressing of compost. Beans and other legumes put nitrogen into the soil until they start fruiting. Then they are heavy feeders.
The weather is perfect for aerating the lawn and over-seeding. If the lawn is full of weeds, and you don’t want to use a lot of chemicals, try planting winter rye grass. The lawn will be green all winter. The rye grass will choke out the weeds. In the spring the lawn can be over-seeded again with an appropriate variety that will take over when the rye grass dies in the summer.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Cool Dirt

Finally the temperatures are dropping to the point that spinach and lettuce seeds should germinate well. This weekend should be a great time to plant if the ground is not too wet. In raised beds that have been kept under mulch this should not be a problem. The weather should be suitable for direct seeding of cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower as well, but it may be too late in the season to get a crop before a hard freeze hits.

Next springs garden plan should be in place by now. Lettuce and spinach and the other crucifers will continue to produce until the very coldest weather comes and they may survive into spring. It would not be fun to pull up producing crops to plant the spring garden.

One big change that will be implemented in our summer garden is that we will not plant everything on Good Friday. The plants of peppers and tomatoes and egg plants will go into the ground at 2 or 3 week intervals so as to keep continuous production. The winter squash, except for spaghetti squash, will be planted in early June.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Not Too Wet to Plow (Tuesday)

The rain from Sunday and Monday gave the perfect amount of moisture to the ground. The tiller bit deep and chewed the ground and the organic matter on top of it to a perfect consistency. Today’s rain would have left the garden too wet to till. It should leave the lawn in perfect condition for aerating and seeding. It should also go deep enough to facilitate trans-planting trees or shrubs. It should also cool the soil.

The plants in the garden looked really happy yesterday. They were obviously getting really tired of city water. They enjoyed the long cool drink. They are enjoying another drink today and maybe tomorrow. The ground will be too wet for building new beds for several days, so this will be a good time to work on the lawn and transplant some trees.

As soon as the soil is dry enough to work spinach and lettuce should be planted. It may grow fast enough to be picked while there are still tomatoes and cucumbers.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Is It Too Wet to Plow?

The ground was hard and dry enough that the little bit of water it has received over the past couple of days has probably just soaked in and been sucked up by the greenery. If it doesn’t rain more today, a shovel full of dirt will tell the tale. I have enough compost and enough wood to make another raised bed. The ground will need plowing first.

There are so many things that need doing that had to wait on the rain. Hopefully this cooled the dirt enough to plant spinach and lettuce. Fall is also the best time to seed grass and transplant trees. The ground was too hard to aerate and way to hard and dry for tree holes. There probably won’t be time for everything. Tilling the garden and building the raised bed will get priority. Next will come grass seed and the trees will go last.

The 10 day forecast for Charlotte calls for more rain on Wednesday and Thursday. If that comes it will soak the ground too much for tilling the garden, but it should help grass seed and make tree holes easier to dig. The ground may already be too wet for tilling.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Fall has Fell

And it is still hot as hell. Wednesday’s (9/23) garden yielded 1 tomato the size of a golf ball and one okra pod. The last rain in Charlotte was Sept. 11. The last rain on my garden was way before that. Finally today, Sunday (9/26), it is raining in Charlotte again. Hopefully it is raining on my garden too.

The mulberries and grapes are so dry the leaves are turning brown. I cut a bunch of scions this morning and put them to soak in water. The rooting hormone, which is always in the way, was hiding this morning, so the scions will be planted in wet sand when the hormone sneaks out and gets caught.

All of the fallow beds have been re-worked and covered with mulch. Everything for the fall garden has sprouted except the spinach and lettuce which haven’t been planted and the onions which are probably waiting on rain. The mustard is almost ready to start picking. If this rain cools the soil a little, the spinach and lettuce can go in the ground.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Best Farmers & Gardeners

It has been said that the best farmers are men (or women) who are out standing in their field. There is only so much to be learned from books. Most of what is learned about gardening is learned by doing. As the gardener spends time in the garden, getting to know it like an old friend, the garden benefits as much as the gardener.

This is a good time of year to be outstanding in the field or garden. The successes and failures of the year are pretty obvious. Also the memory of what was planted where is still fresh. Plan next year’s rotation. This is an ideal time to record mistakes and successes. Make a list of the things that can be done the same way and things that need to change. Maybe there is a little survivor plant that did not get eaten by the bugs that gobbled up its siblings. Save these seeds.

This was the first year for using mostly raised beds in our garden. We learned that the soil stays softer in the raised beds. Good for the roots. Not so good for supporting tall crops. Next year supports will be built for corn, okra and sunflowers. The poles that hold the tomatoes and cucumbers will be set deeper. The beds also dry out faster than flat soil. They need more water.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Don’t Forget the Birds

The current weather is very stressful for wildlife. The browse that the deer depend on is drying up. There is very little water available for deer and birds. The worms and bugs that they like to munch on are hiding from the sun. Even the mosquitoes seem to be hiding. The deer used to drink from the birdbath in the garden. Now there is a fence around the garden. A bucket of water is kept full and fresh for the deer, so they will be less tempted to jump the garden fence. I don’t know where the rabbits get water. They can’t reach the bucket or the birdbath.

The forecast calls for thunderstorms on Sunday. I don’t think I believe them. Two weeks ago we had rain, but it only fell in town. It left my yard and garden out.

This is the first day of fall. It is time to start the plan for the spring garden. The soil Is so dry it is hard to test right now. Rain water collected in the rain barrel is used to soften the soil. City water may change the PH temporarily and give a false reading. Lime or sulfur added now will have corrected the soil by spring. The mulch that is used through the winter could affect the PH, so be sure to check again before spring planting.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Last Day of Summer

…Or so they say. The high for today is supposed to be 94 degrees. The lowest high in the 10 day forecast is 83 degrees. No rain is predicted. The humidity is so low that there is no dew on the grass in the morning. The grass is turning a nice even shade of brown. At least it doesn’t need to be cut.

The topsy-turvy tomatoes seem to be suffering more than anything else in the garden. They get watered every day, but they still have a sad look to them. The peppers and eggplants seem to be thriving. The three cucumber plants that survived the beetles are green and bright, but they are not growing much. Two of them have put out the little runners that they use to hold on to the trellis, but only one is tall enough to reach the trellis.

The soil is still too warm for planting lettuce and spinach. None of the fall carrots or beets has germinated. The kale and turnips were spotty. The mustard and radishes are growing well. The onion sets were put out last weekend. They have done nothing. The mustard should be large enough to pick next weekend. Everything requires daily water.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Irrigation

The Subdivision across the street from my house has (had) a beautiful stretch of grass along the road. The irrigation system comes on and waters the street every morning. It waters the grass a little as well. The grass was a nice even green. Now it is a nice even beige. My yard gets its water from the sky. It was never an even green, because the weeds and the grass don’t match. Now it is mostly brown, but it has some green.

The irrigation system comes on every day. It even comes on when it is raining. It obviously does not put out enough water to sustain the grass. It probably causes more harm than good by not watering deeply enough. The roots are used to just hanging around at the top of the ground and not digging for water. The weeds and grass in my yard have to work for a living. If they don’t dig, they don’t get any moisture except when it is raining.

If the rain gauge does not show 1” of rain a week, the garden gets watered every day if it hasn’t rained for 2 days. It is watered directly on the plants with a garden hose. The nozzle is set on “shower” for most plants. For the new and tender plants, it is set on “mist”. The water is directed to the plant until it puddles on the soil, then the foliage is sprayed. Some of the tomato plants have milk jugs set into the ground beside them with holes in the bottom. These are filled and the plant’s foliage is sprayed lightly. The milk jugs are the most effective method we have found and their use will be expanded next year.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

The Lima Mystery

It has been mentioned several times in this blog that the Lima beans are making great vines and no beans. Two possible reasons have been discovered through internet research. The first is that Lima beans take a long time to set beans. Several articles have mentioned that lima beans are very late to produce. The second reason is that they are very intolerant of low soil PH. They like the soil PH at between 6 and 7. At the time they were planted the PH was 6.8 in the spot they were planted. The vines have been sprayed with sulfur to fight the cucumber beetles. This could have acidified the soil.

The cucumber beetles seem to have disappeared. There are no cucurbits left either except for 4 cucumber plants from the late planting. If they make cucumbers, seeds will definitely bee saved for next years planting. Cucurbit seeds are hard to save because they are so promiscuous. There are no other cucurbits around so these should be rather pure.

The greens had a fairly good germination despite the warm weather and the drought conditions. They have to be watered every day. The cabbage and broccoli plants will need to be replanted, but the weatherman is calling for continued high temperatures and no rain until next week. There is no reason to plant lettuce, spinach or onions until things cool down some.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

The Just and the Unjust

The Bible says that the rain falls on the just and the unjust. I’m not sure what I am in that case, because it is not falling on me or my yard. At my office in Charlotte it rained all afternoon. At my house, there was not a drop in the rain gauge. The grass is brown and there are huge cracks in the yard. It is a good thing we have a leash law, or someone could lose a small dog in the cracks.

The garden is being watered every day except for the speckled lima beans. They are staying green and healthy, but they have no beans. There is no sense wasting water on them. The crucifers, except for the little plants I bought, are doing great. Of the bought plants, 3 out of 16 have survived. All of the ones from the greenhouse are flourishing.

About 4 cucumber plants survived the spotted cucumber beetles. They are growing pretty slow, but if they make cucumbers they will be ideal candidates for saving seeds. They are either resistant to the beetles or they don’t taste good to them. Either way works for me.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Master Gardener Program

This is a program of the USDA, but it is provided on a state by state basis. In NC it is the NC Agricultural Extension office that provides the program. It is not a particularly easy program, but it provides a very valuable service to the individual gardener and to the community.

The applicant who is accepted for the program must do 40 hours of classroom activity and 40 hours of community outreach work. There is a small fee of $120 for the education part of the program. Classes are 4 hours twice a week and there are two exams. After completion of the classroom work, one spends 25 hours answering the phone at the agricultural extension office to help other gardeners.

The community service part of the requirements is done by manning booths at the farmers markets or festivals. This program is a great way for the gardener to expand his or her knowledge and reach out to the community and get to know other gardeners.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Strange Weather

The forecasters have changed the 10 day forecast again. The thunderstorms predicted for Saturday have been downgraded to scattered showers. Friday the 17th thunderstorms have been predicted. One thing stranger than the weather is me. I like to pick up bagged grass and leaves on the side of the road for compost and mulch. This time of year it is mostly grass, but yesterday it was only leaves. Is the dry weather causing this, or is it just that time of year?

Figs and tomatoes are ripening at a rapid rate. The okra is still producing even though most of the plants are on the ground. The peppers are doing well too. The cabbage and broccoli plants that went into the ground Sunday will probably have to be replaced. Some of them look like little strings laying on the ground. They received a good misting last night. Maybe that will help.

The turnips, mustard, kale, collards, radish and carrots that were planted Sunday and Monday have not come up yet. When they do they will have to be watered like everything else. I can’t remember having to water the fall garden other than the transplants. This would normally be the time to over-seed the yard, but I think it is just too hot.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

2nd Crop Figs

The second crop of figs is getting ripe. The dry weather could have something to do with it. The birds are inflicting less damage than they did on the 1st crop. The bird bath was almost empty yesterday. Maybe the birds have decided that I was a poor host and moved on. The bird bath is full now. It is okay if they come back. I hope they won’t eat the figs.

Yesterday’s temperature was up to 90+. The poor little cabbages and broccoli looked like they had expired. They got misted really well, but it may just be too hot for them. It is supposed to go to 91 today. Is this really September 8th?

NPR had a program about climate change yesterday. They explained the difference between climate and weather. It sounds almost like the stock market. We have to watch the trends in climate. For weather, we watch the sky. The 10 day forecast is calling for thunderstorms on Saturday now. Yesterday, they were not calling for thunderstorms on Sunday only.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Bone Dry

Yesterday was the traditional day (Labor Day) to plant the fall garden. The soil is so dry in the raised beds, that it is hard to work the dirt. Everything did manage to get in the ground, however. The broccoli and cabbage plants were first on Sunday, and they were well watered in. Then radish and carrots were planted together as filler between the plants, and collards and turnips went into another bed. On Sunday the mustard and kale went into the ground.

It is so dry that the compost had to be watered. Even the spotted cucumber beetles seem to have dried up and gone away. The watermelons and cantaloupes are finished and can be pulled up. The fence can be removed. The okra in the raised beds is still green and producing even though it has all fallen down. The okra planted in the dirt is mostly dead. The stalks on the raised bed okra are over an inch thick. The stalks on the dirt planted are about an inch thick.

The only thing planted in dirt, and still producing, that will stop the fall tilling are the peppers. They are really producing a lot of peppers. The lima beans are still green and growing, but they are so close to the fence that they won’t hamper the tilling.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Is It Really September?

The ten day weather forecast calls for 95 degrees today (Sept. 1), 93 degrees tomorrow and 98 degrees on Friday. The weekend cools to the low 80’s and next week shoots back up to almost 90. There is no rain called for, despite the coming hurricane. This is going to bring problems for the garden. Pollen does not set well above 90 degrees and the soil will be too warm for most of the crucifers from the fall planting to germinate.

What should be done about the fall garden? The beds or rows are ready. The seeds have been bought. Everyone is excited. Maybe a mixed approach is best. Planting half of the seeds now and leaving the other half for another couple of weeks. It should be ok to put out the cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts plants. They will need lots of water though. Spinach and lettuce will be a waste of time, space and seeds. It will be better to wait a week or two before planting them.

My dreams have been haunted with fresh spinach ever since the spring crop bolted. The mesclun did not die. It just disappeared. The complete salad will not have cucumbers, because the battle with the spotted cucumber beetles was lost. There are new plants coming up; but they are ragged. Extensive research on the internet has yielded quite a few organic remedies for these little buggers, but none of them are better than about 60% effective.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Are You Ready for Labor Day?

Labor Day is the traditional day for planting fall gardens. The ground should be ready for planting. For gardens planted in the old standard way or rows and paths, everything that is not still producing something should be tilled under, and the rows should be laid out nice and straight. Usually 3” is a good width for the type of things that are planted in the fall. PH should be tested to see if lime or sulfur is needed. Three trenches should be dug with a garden hoe. These should be filled with finished compost and covered with the dirt from three intervening trenches dug with a garden hoe.

When planting these will be the rows for the seeds. What to plant in the fall? Virtually all of the crucifers (collards, turnips, mustard, radishes, etc.) can be planted now. Broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts will do better if plants are used. Lettuce, arugula, mesclun, carrots and spinach will add variety to salads and should be ready to eat before the last tomatoes are picked. With any luck at all there will only be a few weeks all year, when there is nothing to eat in the garden.

Labor day is also a good time to plant things like asparagus, blueberries and artichokes. They will get established before the really cold weather comes and there seems to be less stress from drought in the fall. Just be sure that everything is well mulched before the first frost.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Three Days is Not Enough

The spotted cucumber beetles in my yard are developing a resistance to BT and to Sulfur sprays. For three days in a row they have been sprayed. There are still a few there. They got sprayed again yesterday. Who knows if that will work? The only cucurbits left are some new cucumbers and some new yellow squash. They may make it. They may not.

Rain has been threatened all week, but the garden is dry enough that it will need watering tonight. The upside down tomatoes are the canaries in the coal mine. When they wilt, it is an indication that the soil is getting dry. Soil in pots dries fast. Soil in raised beds dries almost as fast.

The vacant raised beds are ready for the fall planting now. The official time to plant is Labor Day. Our garden may get planted this weekend. The weekend is supposed to be cool and dry. Good for the gardener.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

A Different Way to Fix Eggplant

My wife has invented a new eggplant recipe. The eggplant is peeled and sliced in about 3/8” slices. These are chopped into pieces no more than 2” in any direction and stir fried in olive oil until they are done. Onions are sautéed very slowly. The onions and eggplant is put together and olives, capers and anchovies are added. A few hot or sweet peppers could be thrown in as everything is heated. This is poured over any pasta of your choice. The taste is a little strange, but very tasty.

The spotted cucumber beetles seem to be resisting the sulfur spray. The BT is getting rid of the larvae; but the beetles themselves are hard to defeat. Today will be the third day in a row to spray them. In the past three days in a row of spraying has worked until the next rain. Yesterday when the bugs were sprayed the infestation did not seem any less than the day before.

There are little tomatoes on the upside down tomatoes that were planted mid-season. They haven’t required tying up yet. When the fruit gets heavy they will probably need tying. That is going to make it very difficult to move them into the greenhouse when frost threatens.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Unproductive Weekend

In the last month 2 weekends have been spent traveling. This weekend was the weekend to get the garden ready for fall planting. It did not happen. The wet weather made the grass grow so fast that it needed cutting. I managed to cut down one of the Arbor Day trees that survived from spring. Now there are only 2. There is also a little crepe myrtle that survived transplanting from the back yard.

The tomatoes are coming along nicely again. They don’t come fast enough for canning though. The fig trees seem to be between crops. They are loaded with figs, but they are not ripe. The lima beans are the biggest disappointment. They have lush vines and almost no beans. The hot peppers are producing very heavy. We don’t eat them, we just give them away.

The squash bugs and spotted cucumber are eating the squash, cucumber and cantaloupe plants faster than they grow. They don’t seem to bother the watermelons. The rain washes the sulfur off of the plants almost as fast as it gets sprayed on. It takes about three sprayings to wipe out the cucumber beetles. One spraying seems to have destroyed the squash bugs.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Arbor Day Trees

Join the Arbor Day Foundation for $10 and get 10 “free” trees. Of the 10 from last year, 3 are still alive. This fall, for taking a survey, there are 10 more trees plus a crepe myrtle. They won’t be labeled so it is really fun to guess what they are. They will be planted between the street and the sidewalk. If 3 live each year and I only want 9 trees, someday my part of the streetscape will be tree-lined.

The Arbor Day trees are just tiny little sticks, some of them don’t even have roots. I’m excited that 3 of them lived. Of all the blueberries I have planted, there are only 2 plants alive. I have planted at least 10 or 12. They were a lot more expensive than the Arbor Day trees. This year, I will clone some blueberries and mulberries for a hedge on the inside side of the sidewalk. The birds seem to beat us to the mulberries in the back yard every year; but we like the birds too.

This is a really good time of year for taking most cuttings. Snip a 6” to 8” piece of new growth with a tiny bit of old growth. Dip this in some rooting hormone and plant it in some wet sand. Cover with plastic to maintain humidity. Mist the young plant every couple of days. Place the plant in indirect light rather than in strong sunlight. When the plant has developed roots and begins to show signs of growth transplant it to a pot for about a year before planting it in the ground.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Preparing Raised Beds

Raised beds are much easier to get ready for replanting than traditional rows, but some work is required. The old plants and any weeds should be pulled. If they are put in a compost pile, it should be hot and the new material should be buried in the center to burn up any pests or diseases. Any remaining mulch can be raked off of the bed into the pathways to deter weed growth there. If this bed had any type of infestation the mulch should either be burned trashed or placed in a hot compost pile.

Next, the bed should be raked smooth. Compost should be added to top the bed up and a thin layer of dirt should be used to cover the compost. If several beds are being prepared at once, dirt can be rotated between the beds, otherwise just throw some dirt in a wheelbarrow before beginning the renewal of the bed. If the bed has not had a major reworking in the past several years and if the soil is getting packed down, it may be good to double dig the bed and add compost in layers. Be sure to note what was done in the garden record.

Finally the garden record should be consulted to see what has been planted in this bed and when. The ph should be checked, noted and modified if necessary. If sulfur or baking soda sprays have been used or if compost has been added the ph will probably have changed since the last use.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Equality Among Figs

When it was time to prune fig trees last year only one tree was pruned as a kind of experiment to see how production would be affected. When the figs first started ripening the un-pruned tree out produced the pruned fee at least double every day. Wednesday both trees produced the same amount. There were downsides to not pruning.

The un-pruned tree is harder to pick. It also shades the garden more. This year both trees will be radically pruned. The birds get about 1/3 of the figs anyway. The birds pick the taller tree more easily than the shorter tree. We enjoy birdsong and seeing the birds. It is a fair trade.

The new planting of cucumbers from Thursday had sprouted when we got back from Charleston on Sunday PM. The rain had washed off all of the spray and the cucumber beetles and squash bugs are back in full force. BT was sprayed with the sprayer from Lowes. The sulfur is in the sprayer from Home Depot. It has a pressure relieve thing that won’t hold pressure now. The sprayer is about 2 months old. Someday I will learn not to buy anything from Home Depot with moving parts.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Grandchildren in the Garden

Grandchildren are visiting. They are lot’s of fun especially in the garden. Yesterday they wanted to help pick. We started with the figs. They are small enough to duck under the branches and pick the low hanging fruit. Little Caitlin enjoyed pointing out the high ones and then she got the idea to climb the tree to pick them She and I picked one tree, my son and Samantha picked the other.
The okra was out of Caitlin’s reach and of course one can’t climb an okra plant.

She did a good job of finding the okra pod’s though. It was the same with the tomatoes except I had to lift her to pick the tomatoes. When we cut grass she stepped on a fire ant nest, so we had to stop and take care of the wounds. Then we started murdering fire ant hills. We dug them with the hoe, sprinkled them with mound destroyer and Caitlin sprayed them with the hose. When she ran out of fire ant nests she decided to spray me. I retaliated of course, so we had to go inside and the rest of the day’s projects just didn’t happen.

I went to Renfrow’s yesterday for the fall seeds. I was told that the bugs would get all the cucumbers if I replanted; but a pack of seeds was 89 cents. One cucumber costs that, so I got them anyway. They will hopefully be planted today if there are not too many distractions.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Fall Cleaning Progresses

The garden part of the weekend was dedicated to getting ready for fall planting and cleaning out the accumulated debris of the season. The accumulation bin of the compost system was pretty much filled with old squash plants, grass and old sunflower stalks. Some of the grass was so bad the lawnmower was used. That is in the section that will be tilled anyway. The fence-line between the neighbor and the grapevines was trimmed back as well; but that stuff went on the street.

The vacant beds (there are 5 of them) still need to be raked and refreshed. A new addition will be added to each one. They will get a permanent “corner post” in each corner just like an old four-poster bed. It will be either bamboo or fence post that can be used to attach trellises or other supports. The okra has mostly been beaten down by the rain. The corn suffered the same fate earlier. Maybe a few bamboo poles around the edge would have given enough support to stop this.

The lima bean vines have some little beans on them; but are still not ready to pick. They made beautiful vines really early, but took a long time to flower and to make beans. They do not seem to be very prolific. Everything has slowed down anyway except the weeds and the bugs.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Adventures in the Jungle

Everything in the garden is so big that one has to walk over to the bed of interest to see what’s happening there. Visibility is limited. The birds are everywhere. They are feasting on the figs. My greatest fear is coming around a tall tomato bush and meeting a tiger or some other jungle creature that decided the garden would make a good home.

The struggle to get ready for the fall garden is intensifying. There are several beds with old non-producing stuff that can be pulled off. There are so many desirable items for the fall and so many items that can possibly be replanted for a second crop. It is a challenge to plan the layout. I think I will just spend the weekend reworking the space available and then come up with a planting scheme.

The garden needs another planting of cucumbers and mesclun and some spinach and sallet greens. The broccoli and cabbage plants in the greenhouse will be ready to transplant by labor day or maybe a little sooner. There are enough plants, but the soil was too warm for good germination.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Cucumber Beetles Almost Defeated

The sulfur and BT have almost eliminated the spotted cucumber beetles. The rain keeps washing the spray off of the leaves, but I would rather spray than water. The problem is that the yellow squash and zucchini are pretty much destroyed. The yellow squash has been replanted and is almost ready to bloom.

The yellow patty-pan squash has little squash on the vines. They seem really small. I hope they don’t turn out to be the little medallion sized squash. Cucumbers and zucchini will need to be replanted. There may be time for a crop before first frost. The tomatoes are doing great and we are still getting mesclun. The mesclun is looking ratty but maybe it will last until the fall planting comes in.

The figs and hot peppers are the real stars of the garden right now. We are getting 3 to 5 pounds of figs a day. Yesterday Ana made preserves. We will probably have to make more tonight. The birds are eating a lot of them, but there is plenty for them and us. The tomatoes seem to have slowed down ripening a little in but there are still plenty on the vines. The upside-down tomatoes are growing rapidly and should be producing before frost. They are going to be heavy for the rafters in the greenhouse. They may need some special support structures.


David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Summer Rain (again)

The garden got 1 ½ “ of rain last night. It was sorely needed. That means of course that all the BT and sulfur was washed off of the plants. This makes a feast for the bugs. The plants will make a feast for us. Everybody wins for a little while. This afternoon the BT and sulfur will be restored to the foliage. A lot of the dead squash leaves and stems will go to the compost.

The infested plants that are put into the compost need to be the center of a hot sandwich. We put grass clippings on the top of the pile. The infested leaves are put on this and more grass clippings are put on the top. In some neighborhoods in Charlotte, people bag their grass clippings. In most neighborhoods they don’t. A lot of this bagged grass goes into the bed of my truck and eventually into the compost pile. Grass clippings are about as close as some city gardeners can get to manure. It is the main ingredient and first stage in most manures anyway.

The eggplants are producing again after a little lull. One plant produced a few eggplants then quit. Now all of the eggplants are producing. So are the watermelons and the cantaloupes. The tomatoes and cucumbers are still chugging along, but the squash is out of business. There are a few patty-pans on the late planted plants. The second crop of squash is growing well, but does not have blossoms yet.


David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Finally Figs

The first figs were picked yesterday finally. The production from the two trees was kept separate to see whether pruning or not pruning makes a difference. One picking, of course, will not be definitive. The un-pruned tree produced 1# 8 ounces of figs. The pruned tree produced 8 ounces. There are other considerations besides production. The un-pruned tree is much harder to pick. It also shades the garden more.

For the last 3 mornings the garden has been sprayed with sulfur spray. Unless it rains today, that should finish off the spotted cucumber beetles. I only saw 1 this morning. The plants will get a good examination this afternoon. Hopefully the beetles will be gone. The other pest is birds in the tomatoes. It is not fair to complain too much since they are planted by the birdbath. If the problem continues a bird net may be necessary.

We had a complete salad last night, but the mesclun is looking really scroungy. It may be time to go ahead and plant a fresh crop. The soil temperature is still pretty high, maybe we will have to plant bib lettuce or something more heat tolerant. It is almost time for the fall garden anyway. Labor day is supposed to be the day, but need can be an important influence.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Mystery Solved

The “mystery bugs” are spotted cucumber beetles. During the research phase, I found striped cucumber beetles. These are the same thing with a different pattern on their uniform. Mr. Blackley at Renfrow’s Hardware identified them. They can be defeated with neem oil, pyrethrums or sulfur. Pyrethrums are considered organic because they are made from daisies. They are still a poison. This limits a true organic solution to the sulfur or the neem oil. I already have sulfur.

When sulfur is used in a garden spray one must pay careful attention to the PH of the soil. Even a little bit of sulfur will acidify the soil. The best time to spray is early in the morning to avoid damage to the foliage. If watering is required as well, that should be done first.

The first cantaloupe and the first watermelon came off this weekend. The cantaloupe was very sweet. We haven’t eaten the watermelon yet. The tomatoes and okra are coming in well. The cucumbers are looking shabby. The summer squash is done, but new patty-pan squash and yellow squash have been planted and are doing well. Most of the butternut squash and all of the spaghetti squash has been picked.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Mystery Bugs

Yesterday’s blog mentioned a mysterious looking bug that was eating the squash leaves. All of the plants were treated with BT Tuesday afternoon. There was no immediate result, but this morning while watering, I did not see any of them. The watering took place at 5:50 to 6:15 AM so it is possible that they just had not gotten out of bed yet. I saw one or two when I was picking the garden yesterday; but they did not look like they were feeling too sporty.

The okra is still producing well. The ones that fell to the ground with the heavy rain are still growing and producing as well. They have to be moved to pick the pods. The ends of them are growing up but the stalks are not making any effort to stand up. Possibly I can pack some dirt around the stalks to support them. The yellow squash is totally gone. The spaghetti squash and the butternut squash are ready to pick.

The tomatoes are doing great. There are a lot of blemishes but the flavor is good. The cucumbers are still coming and the mesclun is still producing. We have a whole salad from the garden at one time.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Garden Cleanup Continues

There is a lot of old biological material in the garden right now. Some of it comes off everyday and goes to the compost. This old material harbors a lot of the garden’s enemies. There is some type of bug that is shaped and colored like a lady bug but bigger that is gobbling cucurbit leaves. It was sprayed with BT yesterday with little immediate effect. The little rascals have not been identified yet. If they are still there today they will get a dose of sulfur. I will also catch a few and take them to Renfrow’s.

The old squash plants and kale need to go. Likewise, the cornstalks will head for the compost bin. The three sisters experiment was a big failure. We got a few ears of corn, but when the corn got knocked down something ate the rest of the ears and all of the green beans. The only survivors are the butternut squash which is ready to pick. It and the spaghetti squash will come off today or tomorrow.

The greenhouse is coming along well. Some little cabbage and broccoli plants that were planted Sunday have already sprouted. They will be misted instead of bottom watered now that they have sprouted.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Out with the Old, In with the New

Not New Years, just a turning point in the garden season. The old squash is getting raggedy. Some of the new squash is blooming. Some of the new squash is just getting planted. The sunflowers are almost all on the ground now. When they hit the ground they are finished whether they are finished or not. They will be pulled off this weekend and the bed will be freshened up for something in the fall garden.

The greenhouse is torn all to pieces inside. It needs to get back together for the starting of cabbage and broccoli plants. The spaghetti squash is coming off this weekend. A lady I met in Renfrow’s said that winter squash planted later in the season would taste better. It is too late to try that this year. Next year not everything will go in the ground on good Friday. Some of the plantings will be staggered. Winter squash is one of those things.

Another lesson from this years garden. The beds will either have two inch plastic pipes embedded in the corners or they will have bamboo poles set very deep. This will be to anchor any trellis or other structures needed to support growing plants.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Planning the Winter Garden

It is mid-July and the garden is getting blah. Good rain for the last two day has helped a little to raise the garden’s spirits. A trip to Renfrow’s to buy greenhouse seeds raised mine. There is space for another bed of squash. The yellow crookneck is looking sad, so the new crop will be planted today or tomorrow. The broccoli and cabbage plants will go in pots as soon as the greenhouse comes back together.

What is good for the winter garden? Maybe some radish and mesclun would be nice. There may still be tomatoes and cucumbers to go with them. Kale, Mustard and Turnips are a must of course. The cabbage and broccoli plants should be ready to transplant by labor day. Labor day is the time to plant a winter garden around here.

Space in the existing beds is at a premium right now. There is almost enough compost to fill another bed in addition to the one that was filled on the weekend of the 4th. There is enough lumber to build 2 more beds, but there is only space for one right now. There will not be enough compost for more than that anyway. The black gold from the city is ok when there is no compost, but it is a sad substitute.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Clean Green(house) Again

This weekend started the annual clean-up of the greenhouse. Everything in there that might be rain-sensitive was put in the wheelbarrow and stored in the shed. Everything else was piled up in the yard. All the shelves and heat mats were taken out. Even the bricks on the floor were taken out.

The inside raised bed was something of a failure. The tomatoes were planted as upside down tomatoes last week and they can be brought inside of the greenhouse and hung from the rafters so the raised beds won’t be needed. They will be covered with plywood and more benches will be built along that wall with concrete blocks and boards. They will be very temporary in case it doesn’t work well. The floor will be smoothed and re-bricked. The shelves will be repainted and re-installed with more support on the long ones. The lights will be re-hung.

All of the pots and flats will be sterilized and brought back ready to plant. The heat mats will be on the window side of the greenhouse. The new benches will be used to mist the plants with water instead of bottom watering. The last two years the greenhouse has been a failure. I think the bottom watering is the problem.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Lessons from this Years Garden

There are things to do and things not to do. A big to do is to get the whole garden into raised beds. Another thing to do is be more diligent with the pepper spray. Both fig trees will definitely get a heavy pruning. The things not to do deal mostly with what not to plant.

There will be no potatoes and corn. The melons do well; but they all get ripe at the same time and we don’t eat them. The jury is still out on the melons. The three sisters will have sunflowers in the place of corn. There will be more varieties of tomatoes, peppers and squash and more eggplant plants. There will be lots of cucumbers, the same amount of okra and more pole beans. There will be green beans and speckled limas.

The spaces between the beds will be mulched much earlier next year to avoid grass. The mimosa tree that shades the garden will come down. It is possible the poplar tree will come down too.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Powdery Mildew

The powdery mildew has made its annual visit to the garden. It seems worse this year than it has ever been. A part to the sprayer was lost when spraying started Sunday. Today the spraying needs to be finished up. There are two good organic remedies for powdery mildew.

A sulfur spray works well and fast. Just put about 3 oz of powdered wettable sulfur in a gallon of water and go to it. A little dish soap helps it stay in solution and stick to the leaves. The good thing about the sulfur is that it does not seem to damage the leaves. It also stays visible on the plant until the next rain. The sulfur will increase the acidity of the soil.

A baking soda spray works equally well. About 4 tablespoons of baking soda in a gallon of water with a little dish soap does the trick. The baking soda spray does seem to kill the leaves on which it is sprayed. It increases the alkalinity of the soil. Because it is invisible in the solution, it is difficult to tell if it is still there. For this reason we normally use the sulfur. We add cayenne to the solution to deter the deer and rabbits at the same time.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Firecracker 4th

The promised rain did not materialize, watering was needed. The weekend of the 4th did show some progress in the garden however. The tomatoes are coming in fast enough to give a couple away. Not quite fast enough to can. There are several egg plants almost ready to pick. We are getting over 1 pound of cucumbers every day. The potatoes were pulled off. There was a net loss on the amount of seed potatoes and the harvested potatoes. I really mean it this time. No more potatoes!!!

One of the beds where the potatoes were planted was filled with compost and covered with dirt. Also the upside down tomatoes were planted. This year a rack was built to keep them high enough off of the ground that they will be hard for deer to browse. Last year just as the plant was loaded with tomatoes, a deer ate the whole thing. This year it is hoped that they will last long enough to come into the green house and produce some late tomatoes.

The corn is finished. Something ate the ones that were on the ground and knocked the rest of the corn down. In the three sisters bed, the beans hit the ground as well and got eaten by whatever ate the corn. The butternut squash grew into the yellow squash bed and all the way through it. There are loads of butternut squash. The powdery mildew is back and I tried to spray it, but the sulfur stopped up the nozzle on the sprayer. When it was being cleaned a part was lost so today I have to get a new sprayer.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Sweet Summer Rain

I love it!! It is too wet to get in the garden if the rain falling at my office is falling at home as well. This is the perfect rain. Hard enough to get stuff wet. Soft enough not to smash everything down. The vegetables will sink their roots into the blessed water and live. As soon as the sun pops out, it will suck all of that water up into the plants and swell up the fruits. This is all the rain that is called for until July 9. It might be enough. The weather man probably doesn’t know anyway.

The mustard greens are starting to go to seed. We are tired of them anyway. I think I will pull them off this weekend. The potatoes come off too. There are either potatoes down there or not. I am ready to fill the beds with compost and dirt and plant something else. It is hot and early for mesclun and spinach, but maybe, I’ll plant it anyway. Worst case, I lose my seed.

About ½ of the sunflowers are still standing. They look to be at least 10’ tall. The little flowers are turning to the sun. They are only about 4” across right now. If the rain doesn’t knock them down, the sun will make them grow. There is a little 2 year old boy in the house behind me. I can’t wait to give him one of those big sunflowers.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Yay! A Tomato

It must be admitted, the tomato has a little green on the top. It was too close to the ground to trust the small creatures. It had to go in the kitchen window. It will be ready to eat tonight or tomorrow. This of course will be a special ceremony. We will make some special bacon and get a loaf of Nova’s bread. There is lettuce (mesclun) and cucumber in the garden. My wife likes mayonnaise. I prefer aioli.

The okra is going to town. It has to be picked every day or else it turns giant. There is an abundance of squash. A friend says he dries it. We will check into that. Freezing is probably the easiest way to save food. Frozen squash sucks. The problem with squash is that it is mostly water. The water separates in the freezing or canning process.

We are getting a little rain this morning. I got up at 5:30 to water the garden and went outside. After slathering up with mosquito repellant and cutting the water on to the garden, I realized the rain was coming down. Hallelujah!! It doesn’t seem to be heavy enough to do much good, but if it lasts long enough it should help.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Mystery Squash

One has to wonder what type of misogyny goes on in the garden when no-one is looking. The squash seeds we got this year were really mixed up. The patty-pan was a light colored zucchini. The spaghetti squash was mostly true, except for one plant. This plant is producing something that looks like a small watermelon and taste like a cucumber. It is not particularly good.

The first tomato is almost ready to pick. We are keeping our fingers crossed that it will survive to turn red in the garden. There is a great temptation to pick it and put it on a window sill, but we are resisting the urge.

One day in the life of picking okra was skipped. The okra got 7” long. It was still tender however. The new planting of patty-pan squash is coming along well. The zucchini and the light zucchini are still producing strong, as is the yellow crookneck. The leaves on the yellow crookneck are looking sad. It does not look like the powdery mildew. It just looks tired and dry.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Irrigation and Water Heaters

Maybe you are not sure what this has to do with gardening. Last week when I watered the garden and went in to take a shower there was no water coming from the hot water faucet. After a few minutes the water ran. Monday the same thing happened; but the water did not run again until the next afternoon. I did some research on the internet Tuesday.

The research suggested that the bottom was probably clogged. That does not really make sense; but it will definitely be checked. Tuesday night the hot water was fine. When I water tonight, the intake to the hot water will be turned off to keep the water from siphoning out of the water heater.

Saturday morning the heater will be drained. Hot water will not be good for the garden, nor will the water full of sludge. I guess that water will just be wasted.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Trees and Gardens

Trees reach for the sky. They spread their branches to capture the sun and smother anything smaller than they are. A tree in the forest has to grow fast to survive. Some trees, like oaks and walnuts, practice chemical warfare. Their dead leaves have chemicals kill the plants that would try to gain a roothold under them.

In our yards the trees compete with the grass and the garden plants. The gardener in many cases has to choose between the trees and the garden. How many people have you heard say, “I would like to have a garden, but I have too much shade?” When someone buys a newly built home in a cow pasture like setting, they have the luxury of choosing where to plant trees and where to plant garden. Those of us who have bought existing homes, have a harder choice.

One of the reasons for purchasing a home may be the beautiful trees and the landscaping. To buy a house and cut the trees down seems insane. It is worth it to find a place no matter how small, that a garden can thrive. Many people are using pot gardens on decks and porches. How have you dealt with trees and shade issues? Please comment.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Front Yard Garden

There have been lots of article in various magazines lately about front yard gardens. My brother doesn’t really have much of a front yard; but he does plant vegetables in his flower beds. When I look at the lush growth in the vegetable garden, I can’t help but think it would look good in front of the house.

Squash is not so different from elephant ears. The herbs almost all have great flowers. Tomatoes and corn are not actually ugly; but maybe they should stay in the backyard. Broccoli is kind of ugly; but there are ornamental cabbages that still taste good. Eggplants and peppers are down right decorative. Bean vines on a trellis could make a nice privacy screen. We have started eating the flowers and planting some in the vegetable garden. Perhaps it is time to blur the lines between ornamentals and edibles.

Next years garden plan is already taking shape, influenced by this year’s mistakes. It is time for a thoughtful walk with a notebook through the front yard. The neighbors already think I’m crazy, what’s to lose?

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Holey Can be Good

It is terrible to walk through the garden and see holey leaves. Since the home garden plants are sprayed with BT after every rain, it is especially scary. It isn’t all bad however. The holey leaves are very rare. They are probably leaves that were missed by the sprayer. Some of the undesirable insects are necessary to feed the beneficial insects.

The insects that prey on other insects are not attracted to healthy plants. They are attracted to the leaves with holes. This is a signal to them that there may be a meal under that leaf. Organic gardeners know that a healthy garden is a complete ecosystem. Excluding or poisoning the bad bugs also kills the good bugs. This could mean pollinators as well as predators.

If there are a lot of lacy leaves, more attention should be paid to the organic pest control. A few isolated leaves can be thought of as a break room for the beneficial predators.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

1st Day of Summer

Spring has sprung, fall has fell, etc. It is hot and it has been hot. It has also started to turn dry. Today the predicted high is 94. Tomorrow it is 97. Wednesday the call is for thundershowers. In average weather most garden plants need about an inch of water a week. When it is this hot and when the foliage is in advanced stages of growth. More is needed. Most of the plants are fruiting and the fruit largely consists of water.

Water early in the morning or late in the evening. Putting water on plants in 90 + degree heat will only boil them. Sunday morning the water was started at 6:00 AM. Tonight, being the longest day of the year, the watering will start at about 7:00 PM or 7:30. If there is not a rain gauge in the garden leave a bucket or a glass sitting out to catch the water and record what falls in the garden. Every micro-environment is different. Sometimes a heavy rainfall a block away will leave another area dry.

Some plants like to have the whole plant sprayed or misted. Other plants need to be watered only on the ground. Corn for example needs the water at the roots as it may rot the ears of corn.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Will the Real Patty-Pan Squash Please Stand Up

The momentous event actually took place on the 16th. As was mentioned in earlier blogs, the patty-pan squash that was planted on Good Friday, turned out to be a pale zucchini. On Saturday the 11th, seeds were obtained from Myers Park Garden Center. They were Reneé’s so I have confidence they are the real thing. They went in the ground on the 12th and on the afternoon of the 16th the first two had sprouted.

Yesterday some of them had true leaves. I just hope they have true fruit. The other squash are really coming in. The cucumbers, okra and corn are doing likewise. There are some good sized watermelons on the fence and the spaghetti squash is loaded. The corn is the surprise. It has been smashed down by rain several times. The ears are very small for silver queen, but they are fully filled out and they have very sweet and tasty kernels.

One tomato was starting to blush just a little yesterday (Sunday the 20th). Maybe there will be a complete salad in the future. The mesclun is looking a little ratty, but it is still producing. We harvest with the scissors, so we have to pull the leaves off of a tough center stalk now.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Cold Spell

The 10 day weather report calls for today to be downright chilly. It should only go to 86 degrees. The rest of the 10 day report hits 90 + every day. It is still 5 days until summer. The hot weather and frequent thunderstorms are ideal for gardens. We don’t have to water and the fruits swell and ripen fast. The plant growth is lush as well. It is too bad, that it is so uncomfortable in the garden.

The mosquitoes do not seem to mind the weather either. Their job is to guard the weeds in the garden. I must admit that they are doing a good job in my garden. The Mosquito Dunk donuts in the birdbath and the rain barrel help. The mosquitoes do not seem to be as bad as they have in past years. We quit putting out the “Bug Free Backyard”, several years ago, because we were afraid it would hurt the pollinators. Since then we spray ourselves instead of the yard. The mosquitoes appear to be less troublesome now.

Yesterday, I was really excited because I could go home early and work in the garden. It was so hot and uncomfortable that I just couldn’t bear it. Maybe today (6/16/10) will be better.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/

Garden Record-Keeping

A good journal or record of the garden will help prevent making the same mistake over and over. It also is a guide to the micro-environment of the individual garden. Day before yesterday (6/15/10) Charlotte had a good drenching from a thunderstorm. My yard did not get a drop. I wasn’t home so how do I know that? I have a rain gauge. A little notebook in the greenhouse records the rainfall and the temperature and the day’s harvest.

It also records the activities done on that day. There is also a garden map that tells what is planted where. Whenever a bed is fallow, a ph grid is made. The ph in the beds changes some from season to season. If the garden plan will require a certain ph for the next thing to be planted in a particular spot, the soil modification can begin at once. Sometimes the map is needed to identify what was actually planted. The patty-pan squash this year turned out not to be patty-pan squash. The garden map assured me that I had planted patty-pan squash in that bed. Squash seeds are unreliable.

The garden journal also helps with crop rotation and measures the success of certain things in certain places . If problems occur with certain crops year after year, we may just have to accept that those crops should not be grown in our garden.

David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/