August Garden Report

Result of Letting a Radish Go to Seed!

Beets and Tomato Bushes

One Wee Pumpkin, Three Vines

Nice Broad Basil (Planted From Seed)

Awesome Sage!

Not Parsnips! Rutabagas!

Kale Coming On

Brussels Sprout

From dirt farmer to water wielder, I am a gardener. Learning the soil and weather and seeds of Elmira Pond has been fruitful. Here is my official report for review this winter when dreaming what to plant again.

1. Save seeds. In fact, start a club with friends and family who save seeds. How do I dry my wet seeds? I have left some beans and peas in pods to dry on the vine, but how do I dry zucchini and tomato seeds? Territorial Seeds is a good place to start. Might have radish seeds to transplant. After all, I grew a radish flower-monster!
2. Plant earlier. Grow some plants indoors, things that transplant well. Stagger planting. Plant peas and other cool crops outside as early as the first showing of dirt. Planting peas after the heat came on was not great for the peas.
3. Successes: potatoes! Squash, of course. Brussels sprouts, surprisingly enough. Rutabagas (that I keep calling parsnips). Rutabagas. Rutabagas. Tomato plants...but only a few ripe tomatoes as of the end of August. But fruiting like crazy. Lettuce; kale if watered well and in the shade. Mustard greens and seeds; dill. Sage is lush and tarragon a tree.
4. Marginal successes: beans (okay, I killed one in haste by removing the germinating seed hull, and the wind snapped another full-grown plant in half). Pumpkins...gorgeous vine, lots of blossoms, one wee green pumpkin. Beets were hit and miss. Germinating wasn't always successful. Cauliflower resulted in three out of ten planted. Only one scarlet runner out of 30 beans actually germinated and grew...not an utter failure. Basil from seed...better than plants. Cucumbers yielded, but not enough to can and I think they have powdery mildew.
5. Utter failures: what the heck, carrots? I soaked you, planted you ever so carefully...sigh. I will try tape. Radishes actually did well: I was bad at harvesting too late. Basil plants never produced any leaves of use. Containers might work better. Nary an asparagus bean came up!

While there is yet daylight in northern Idaho, I will try late planting of carrots (tape) and kale and broccoli. Not sure why, but Territorial Seeds will not ship garlic to Idaho (from Oregon). Overwintering onions and garlic is next on the sowing list.

My garden is a mass of plants and powdery black dirt. I like the un-row look, but plan to cover it with clover. Not sure what amending would help with the dustiness as it is simply dry.

So proud of the fact that no chemicals whatsoever were used and yet my plants grew as if on steroids and pest and disease has been minimal. Birds, spiders and bees actually seem to help keep down grasshoppers and aphids and wormy things. The garden spiders love green bean and tomato plants which have the healthiest leaves. No coincidence I am thinking.

Definitely scouting for Tonka trucks at garage sales. I will build roads and play in the dirt.