August *Garden Chat thread*

[3lilbubs]

"Dirty hands, iced tea, garden fragrances thick in the air and a blanket of color before me,
who could ask for more?"
- Bev Adams, Mountain Gardening

Well here we are ladies, in the last bountiful month of the year.. this month is always bittersweet for me because as I fill my baskets to the brim I know it is the last for some time.

Last night was our first full moon of this month and there will be a second "blue moon" on the 31rst. The next one isn't until 2015! Dh and I sat and watched it come up through smokey pink clouds. Absolutely gorgeous. Crickets chirping, corn waving in the moonlight. How silly with happiness these things make me.

[sarahannecloud9]

Yay!! Another month of gardening. it's bitter sweet for me to know it's comeing to an end. It was 59 deg. the other night. I adore fall and winter, but will dearly miss my summer garden. I have a great jump on the fall crops though.

[DCAMama]

We usually have until mid September, at least, until most of our garden has to be picked. My tomatoes are doing great. I'm picking a minimum of 6 a day. I just wish I knew when my Black Krim were ripe to pick. I've never grown them before so I have no idea. There are about 3 that a pretty purple color right now. Not a bright purple, a deep purple color.

I have one bell pepper total on 6 plants. I don't think they are liking the heat as much as the tomatoes are. The sweet banana are doing pretty good, I've gotten like 12 off 4 plants. Jalapenos are starting to fruit. I have one head of cauliflower. And the broccoli is about done.

I have 2 pumpkins now I just hope they will turn before Halloween.

And I got my cherries done. I'll have to post the picture I took as soon as I can find the cord for my camera.

[sarahannecloud9]

Can't wait to see those cherries!!! Wow, sounds like the garden is hoppin!
Black toms are new to me too. What I have been doing is picking when the bottom is dark and the top is still green. For some reasion my tops are just staying green forever. I also let the bottom start to get a bit soft.

here are some pics I enjoyed.

As my corn get's to be a good size, some are just snapping off or ffalling over? What the heck?


My helper.

Some of the mellons that are finally makeing it!



Boys will be boys. They actually broke the thing.

Purple beans starting to blossom.

My early mornin helper!


Crazy black tomato.

A cuc Gramma missed.

The little boys playing on the tractor, classic, lol.

[Marianna1988]

I have a little more time, now I can really catch up

Originally Posted by sarahannecloud9 Can't wait to see those cherries!!! Wow, sounds like the garden is hoppin! Black toms are new to me too. What I have been doing is picking when the bottom is dark and the top is still green. For some reasion my tops are just staying green forever. I also let the bottom start to get a bit soft. here are some pics I enjoyed. As my corn get's to be a good size, some are just snapping off or ffalling over? What the heck? My helper. What a cutie! Some of the mellons that are finally makeing it! Yay! So teeny lol Boys will be boys. They actually broke the thing. Purple beans starting to blossom. My early mornin helper! Crazy black tomato. that looks so funny! A cuc Gramma missed. whoa! HUGE! The little boys playing on the tractor, classic, lol.

[brookglen]

Hi guys! I have been mia. I'm finally starting to feel like a human being again and am now in the second trimester. It was a rough one.

So I have yet to taste a single tomato from my garden because the very thought made me want to throw up. I failed to pickle any of my cucumbers because I was sleeping 10 hours a day. The whole gardenis a jungle of weeds right now and I'm half tempted to just till everything and start my winter crops.

On the plus side, I got four pumpkins off of one vine (and it looks like one more is one the way!). My mom says my corn looks better than anything they are growing in Iowa right now (there has been a water shortage this year). Anyway, I think I'm ready to get back in my garden, I just have to figure out where to start, because there is a ton of work to be done.

[Marianna1988]

Originally Posted by brookglen Hi guys! I have been mia. I'm finally starting to feel like a human being again and am now in the second trimester. It was a rough one. Glad you're feeling better! The first trimester kicks my butt too. So I have yet to taste a single tomato from my garden because the very thought made me want to throw up. I failed to pickle any of my cucumbers because I was sleeping 10 hours a day. The whole gardenis a jungle of weeds right now and I'm half tempted to just till everything and start my winter crops. On the plus side, I got four pumpkins off of one vine (and it looks like one more is one the way!). My mom says my corn looks better than anything they are growing in Iowa right now (there has been a water shortage this year). Anyway, I think I'm ready to get back in my garden, I just have to figure out where to start, because there is a ton of work to be done.

I've heard corn drops are awful. I wish I had started gardening before this year. This year is really a test run and I don't expect to be able to put up a whole lot. Food prices are supposed to get more insane

[3lilbubs]

Hey ladies, how are your snap bean crops doing? I know a lot of us have had heat and when I search the specific issues I'm having with my crops I find that it all points to too-high temps. My bean plants have deeply grooved dark and curled leaves, blossom drop and what beans do set are small and curved into a perfect "c" shape. The only beans I'm getting perfect lovely beans from are the bush beans. I can't complain about them. They are pretty and the beans are huge. But I won't get the same crop from them as the pole (runner) beans. It stinks. Is anyone else having trouble? Last year I had beans coming out my ears... maybe it was a cooler year?

[DCAMama]

When I was out picking my zillion tomatoes, I checked on my 2 pumpkins. The borers are getting at the zines closer to the plant end but the vine ends are still looking good. I'm just hoping that there is enough of the vine left that my 2 little babies make it. I've never had luck with pumpkins, so I thought I would give it one more shot. I'm not doing any more vines next year. My cukes stink, I had to pull my zucchini, my watermelon and cantaloupe never grew and not the pumpkin is getting eaten

[3lilbubs]

Originally Posted by dmwinge We usually have until mid September, at least, until most of our garden has to be picked. My tomatoes are doing great. I'm picking a minimum of 6 a day. I just wish I knew when my Black Krim were ripe to pick. I've never grown them before so I have no idea. There are about 3 that a pretty purple color right now. Not a bright purple, a deep purple color. I have one bell pepper total on 6 plants. I don't think they are liking the heat as much as the tomatoes are. The sweet banana are doing pretty good, I've gotten like 12 off 4 plants. Jalapenos are starting to fruit. I have one head of cauliflower. And the broccoli is about done. I have 2 pumpkins now I just hope they will turn before Halloween. And I got my cherries done. I'll have to post the picture I took as soon as I can find the cord for my camera.

ooh I want to see the canned cherries too! I think that's all the color the black krim tomatoes get, right? I will find out soon myself. I have some "chocolate cherry" tomatoes planted that turn the same color. Looks burgundy on the seed envelope.

Originally Posted by sarahannecloud9 Can't wait to see those cherries!!! Wow, sounds like the garden is hoppin! Black toms are new to me too. What I have been doing is picking when the bottom is dark and the top is still green. For some reasion my tops are just staying green forever. I also let the bottom start to get a bit soft. here are some pics I enjoyed. As my corn get's to be a good size, some are just snapping off or ffalling over? What the heck?

Aw the boys are so cute and holy cannoli... that is a giant cuke! Aw, I'm sorry about your corn. I wonder if it was wind.. I have had mine look like that after a wind storm. I have a bunch of seeds I'm gonna send you and some of them are short season corn varieties. Don't have as big an ear but they are still tasty. They also stay short, around 4-5 foot tall. It gets too hot, too fast here.

Originally Posted by brookglen Hi guys! I have been mia. I'm finally starting to feel like a human being again and am now in the second trimester. It was a rough one. So I have yet to taste a single tomato from my garden because the very thought made me want to throw up. I failed to pickle any of my cucumbers because I was sleeping 10 hours a day. The whole gardenis a jungle of weeds right now and I'm half tempted to just till everything and start my winter crops. On the plus side, I got four pumpkins off of one vine (and it looks like one more is one the way!). My mom says my corn looks better than anything they are growing in Iowa right now (there has been a water shortage this year). Anyway, I think I'm ready to get back in my garden, I just have to figure out where to start, because there is a ton of work to be done.

Welcome back!! Glad you're starting to feel better. I am willing to bet your garden looks a thousand times better than mine even without tending. LOL Sometimes things grow better without all that fussing about.

Originally Posted by dmwinge When I was out picking my zillion tomatoes, I checked on my 2 pumpkins. The borers are getting at the zines closer to the plant end but the vine ends are still looking good. I'm just hoping that there is enough of the vine left that my 2 little babies make it. I've never had luck with pumpkins, so I thought I would give it one more shot. I'm not doing any more vines next year. My cukes stink, I had to pull my zucchini, my watermelon and cantaloupe never grew and not the pumpkin is getting eaten

Oh no! If the pumpkins have firmed up they'll still ripen if the vine dies. If they are still soft they might not. FX for you! I planted tons of pumpkins and again nothing is doing as well as the pie pumpkins. I planted a short season type to see if I could get some jack o lanterns grown for my boys. They're going to be bummed if nothing makes it. Their white pumpkin vine got 2 baseball sized pumpkins that haven't grown at all.