Zucchini Plant, RIP
Gardening brings surprises.
Here I was, feeling confident that we'd enjoy a surplus of zucchini all summer. It's one of those things that just grows well here...not everything does, alas. But I've had a run of bad luck with my zucchini plants. One croaked early on--not sure what happened. Another one, simply too big for where I'd placed it, had to be removed so that the tomatoes could "breathe." Down to just two plants (I'd given the other two in the six pack away...), I snapped the above photo two weekends ago, planning to share a picture here of the most impressive of the pair.
The very next day, I discovered the stalk broken in half.
I guess the weight of the downpour and the wind took their toll? There's no sign of bores or disease. Am I missing something? Feel free to weigh in.
On a brighter note, I did not kill the tomato plant. Not only is it ALIVE, it has a new baby tomato on it. "Well, don't that beat all," my paternal grandmother would have said. Barring further wind and rain casualties, we're due for a tiny mid-summer crop of tomatoes...much to my surprise. I really thought we'd planted them too late to get much of anything. As of Sunday night, all of the patio tomatoes have multiple fruits waiting to ripen...or be pecked upon by Mr. Mockingbird or one of the several leaf-footed bugs that have turned up (more on that development later--and it involves a handy vac. Additional advice still welcome!).
As for the rest of our produce, we've got a few cukes, a couple of yellow squash and even a wee zucchini coming forth on the one remaining plant. I have to say that I credit this horticultural progress...in a drought and rising temps...to the burlap cover that I fashioned for the bed just two weeks ago (and credit the rainwater...got some more this weekend!). Earlier I shared a decision to use shade cloth, but it was too heavy, dark and, well, ugly. The burlap is working nicely. I even bought another roll in case I need to cover more of the garden later. You can see a picture here. And, yes, the rocks are gone from the bed's perimeter...no need to tempt Mr. No Shoulders with a shady spot to relax. (To my knowledge, he's still alive and slitherin'.)
Am trying to keep an upbeat perspective on the Victory Garden project. On the whole, for a first-year veg garden in a challenging climate, am doing okay. And it looks attractive, which I guess is a positive thing. But our entire family couldn't subsist on it, that's for sure. Which is a touch depressing. Oh, well, we're certainly learning a lot about will and won't work here. Trust the process...let's see where it leads us.
That's the story from our Victory Garden this week...what's new in your veg bed?
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