Finally getting some cucumbers, got four this morning off one plant, looks like there will be four more tomorrow. I am amazed the peppers made it, it is too hot!
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In 2008, I grew a Jalapeno in a container. Since this was my first time trying it, I had no idea that the plant was quite successful. I have since tried to grow such nice peppers in the ground, but it rarely works. This plant is well over 4.5 feet tall.
Total pounds (Garden Plot is about 26′ x 28′): 226 pounds Tomatoes: 87 pounds Watermelon: 30 pounds Sweet/Hot Peppers: 29 pounds Cucumbers: 27 pounds Strawberries: 14 pounds Carrots: 12 pounds Green Onions: 5 pounds Lettuce: 4 pounds Peas: 4 pounds Radish: 2 pounds Broccoli: 2 pounds Snow Peas: 2 pounds Zuchini: Less than 2 pounds Turnips: about 1.5 pounds Potatoes: less than 1 pound Tonight, a low of 28 is predicted. A low of about 30 last week destroyed the tomato plants, but seemed to have left the fruits OK. So I harvested everything today. Here is the last of the tomatoes, peppers, and some onions.
I am getting regular pepper harvests, and this week started adding Sungolds. There will be some tomosas later, and I saw two Parks Whoppers have pollinated and are growing. Maybe they will make it to blush stage. The garden has produced 198 pounds this year.
A drop of five degrees and I get two pounds of peppers today, and a pound the day before! The pepper plants have been producing a few small peppers over the past few weeks in the heat. I have kept the plants watered and my fingers crossed. All of the pepper plants have survived. The Sungold and Parks tomato plants look good. The Cherokees might make it too. The rest probably will not. There is a small chance for a couple, but for the most part they have suffered greatly through the heat.
Starting mid-July, the heat and pests overcame most of the garden, and the gardener. I am still able to harvest peppers, both sweet and hot, about every other day. I also was able to harvest 27 pounds of cucumbers before the pests took over. I definitely feel fortunate and that I got my fair share. Today, I harvested the first watermelon. The watermelons are my strategy to get to my 300 pounds goal for the year. If the melons can outlast the pests, I might just make it. My other strategy is to plant 3 or 4 more hills of very resistant and self-pollinating cucumbers. The photo below is of the watermelon. I believe it started growing about 1 July and I harvested today, 7 August. Although the taste is wonderful, I think it could have lasted another week. It is really hard to tell when they are ripe. Overall, I am very pleased. It is 21 pounds, and the taste is outstanding. I may err on the side of caution and pull them a little early. The pest “pressures” are extreme right now.
The garden looks pretty good considering it’s July. Over the past week, 25 pounds were harvested mostly from the tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Some of the tomato plants look much better this month than last. Below is a sample of what is on the counter ripening.
Here is another shot, showing some of the cucumbers and peppers:
Some garden photos follow. They were taken today and show remarkably healthy plants. This one shows the squash in the potato box. Growing around the box is the cucumber plant.
Another cucumber is shown below. I planted it next to the fence thinking it would want to climb. But it seems happy coiling over itself creating a very effective shade for the fruits. Below is the first Crimson Sweet watermelon. I hope there are more.
Below is the first zucchini. These are way late and along with the other squash are being visited by the Squash Vine Borer wasp nearly daily. You can even see some of the solitary small eggs on the stem and leaves. I inject with a biologic control, Thuricide, and hope for the best. Some of the puncture marks from the needle can be seen as well.
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