Hello, gardeners! 👨🌾 👩🌾
I hope you are doing well and finding time to tend to your gardens and fields. I mentioned starting work on my garden over a month ago and said I would post an update sometime in May.
However, I didn't get around to it due to the rainy weather in May, which felt like a tropical monsoon, with 25 out of 31 days being rainy. My wife keeps a planting calendar and records the rainy days, so at least I don't have to worry about planning what to plant! 😎
And the first decision that came up was that we had to have a shelter for the tomatoes. Who will be responsible for that? Me, of course. Well, madam, your wish will be granted.
I found some old stakes and some plastic for the roof, and, DIY-style, I put together a canopy, loaded it into the pick-up truck, and brought it to the field.
Then, I put in the tomato planting stakes.
On the right side of the picture below is one nettle pot. My wife read somewhere that when you plant tomatoes, it is a good idea to put nettles in the holes first. Nettles are known to be very good as a fertilizer. Well, we will try that too.
We planted four sorts of tomatoes.
Perhaps I should mention that I have purchased a handy battery-powered soil loosener, which has proved very useful. I was surprised that the battery lasted a few days, and we used it often.
Next were the stakes I put in for the green beans.
And then it started to rain. In a few minutes, the field became mud, and nothing could be done. We went home.
It rained for a couple of days, then again for two days without rain, and we went back to see what was happening if everything was in place.
The potatoes were planted a month ago, as described in my first post. They are progressing quite well.
But the parasites don't rest :(
I have already found some Colorado potato beetles on potato leaves. Now, I go every day to look at the potatoes. I have bought Neem tonic, an extract from an Indian tree that stinks, and then they don't come, but I can't use it because it rains every day, washing it off the leaves. I have to wait at least a week or so without rain. So, I removed these insects by hand. I hate them! 😡
This Neem tonic can be used on all vegetables because it's entirely natural and cadence-free. But it's pretty expensive. Half a liter is €20; there's no point using it if the rain washes it off.
We planted some cabbage and above-ground kohlrabi last month, and they are doing well.
Peas are also growing well. It looks like it has moisture and wetness.
And what lies beneath the white cover?
We planted Chayote for the first time, which is called "prickly courgette" here. It is mainly used cooked but raw in salads. The leaves and roots are also edible, not just the fruit.
It interests me because once you pick it, it lasts a very long time (all winter) and does not rot like ordinary courgettes. We shall see if it succeeds here.
And now, finally😂, I have to mention that I have entered the Hive world pumpkin championship hosted by @hive-world-champ. I must also thank @beeber and @der-prophet for inviting me to the session :)
So, I planted pumpkins, as I do every year. Four seedlings, two Hokkaido, two Muscat.
Hokkaido grows on average, but Muscadine can be huge. The one pictured below is from last year. It was almost seven kilos.
But I am not the happiest this year. They are not doing very well, whether because of the rain or the snails.
However, pumpkins are resilient and very tough. I believe that once the weather stabilizes, they will spread as they should.
Anyway, I'm planning to plant some more pumpkins from seed. It's just that this rain has to stop for a while.
I will continue to report on everything that happens in the field.
It's raining again :(
Thanks for your attention!
And here's something else:
I post everything in the @ecency front-end. So, I invite you to support Ecency Development And Maintenance #4 Proposal because I (and many others, too) would like to keep using it.
Support and vote for those exceptional witnesses:
@good-karma, @liotes, @fbslo and @detlev.witness.
NFT Showroom
3Speak Channel
Photo Manipulation
Beer Tasting
New Tunes
Foodies
