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/