I'm still working on shaping up the garden after last week's neglect.
This is what those blasted Jerusalem artichokes have done to my onion bed . . . again. I've actually had a sore right wrist since Sunday when I spent I-don't-know-how-long yanking, twisting and pulling the artichoke shoots out by their ugly little roots. Some had grown to 18" tall.
Just look at that beautiful stand of corn. That is STANDING! I am truly amazed that it came back after being nearly flattened by the wind and rain storm late last week. I am so happy. Good corn stalks, good corn stalks!
This picture doesn't show it clearly, but my first planting of shell peas are finally blossoming like crazy. A little late in the season, you say? For sure. But we'll take 'em when we can get 'em. (Bean blossoms? Well, that's another story all together. Maybe by the end of August? Sigh.)
Here we have sixteen pints of lovely, luscious strawberry jam I made yesterday. Didn't think I'd ever get that batch of berries turned into jam. One thing after another kept interrupting my planned canning session. But they are done now and are ready to be squirreled away for winter gifts and consumption by the Pea Family.
We have a small maple tree on a corner in our back yard. Yesterday I did a double take as I walked past it, my jaw dropping open. This morning I asked my hubby, "Have you see the maple tree in the back yard?"
"Yup," he said, "happens every fall."
"BUT IT ISN'T FALL!!" I wailed.
Please, Mother Nature, don't do this to us after our cold, wet spring. You remember. The one that lasted until July.
28 comments:
That corn looks amazing after seeing it flat on the ground.
THANK YOU for posting about the Jerusalem artichokes ! I had them on my list to put in this year and saw your prior post. Good golly, do you need a nuc to clear them out? OK, on the positive side if you do have an early winter mayhap it will kill them off at this stage? The peas look great! Mine are FINALLY coming in as well. The extreme hot and wet has kept them way past normal growing time. The jam looks wonderful!
The corn looks great. I hope Fall doesn't start early. I have to many plants that still need a little more summer.
Good Heavens! It's WAY too early for those leaves to be a'changin! Whoa Nelly Nature! Your corn looks wonderful - let's hope that it grows its little heart out, and fast. What a wild season this has been - from the left to the right coast and up and down, too. You are going to have a bumper crop of peas!
I had to finally spray jerusalem artichokes and still have some coming up. They would be good to plant out in the wilderness for a survival food but not in or near a garden. I had corn blow down and come back up this year, the younger the better for that to happen.
Hopefully the leaves are changing because of a sudden HEAT wave? I've seen some of our trees change a bit if it's really hot, and didn't kill them. (Which, now that I think about it, is almost every stinking year now). Goodness I hope you don't experience Fall just yet.
I live in Mpls, so I know what your talking about! Our peas are usually done by now and we've only gotten a handful. Our raspberries and strawberries were a month late. I can't imagine if we have an early fall too! The thought never crossed my mind. Keeping my fingers crossed....
Those darn Jerusalem artichokes will choke out what ever it's near. I'm so happy to see your corn standing back up :-)
The weather has been really strange across the U.S. We should be in the temperature range this time of year 110- 117 degrees. Were in the 90's and 80's, very strange. I'm wondering if our winter will be without snow this year.
Tombstone Livestock - Good thing my wise husband kept me from running out there and pounding in 150 stakes to tie each stalk up to, huh? ;o}
Katidids - I had NO IDEA they would be so hard to eradicate! Arrrrgh.
I feel better knowing even your peas are so late. What a whacko gardening year we're having!
Michelle - My winter squash and pumpkins have hardly started to even vine yet. I don't see how they can make it even with a late fall . . . which we all really need this year.
Susan - Here's hoping I really do get a lot of peas. My beets are looking good, too. Sounds like your garden is going really well compared to a lot of others. Keep up the good work!
Sunnybrook Farm - Why didn't anybody warn us about those dang Jerusalem artichokes sooner? (I think they did but we chose to ignore them!) I wonder if we did plant them in the woods if they would eventually take over acres and acres??
I was very glad our corn wasn't at its full height when we had the storm. I'm sure it would have been the end of it then.
Carolyn - You and I BOTH hope we don't have fall coming at us this early. If so, our goose is cooked!
Julie Sews - Oh my gosh, I had no idea you folks down in Minneapolis were having such a slow season also. What's going on here? Let's all keep our fingers crossed for a LONG fall. We're gonna need it!
Sandy - I've almost come to believe that we can't predict what the weather is going to be to any extent at all. We must be in a period of deviation from what we've all known as normal for the past 40-50 years. It's probably nothing new to the big picture, just seems unusual to us that have not known anything like this. It sure feels crazy though.
Thanks for the info on the JA...I have been saying for 3 years that I want to plant some,. and still haven't done it. Now maybe I won't.
I have butternuts now, but even down here things are late. Gosh--I am still eating snow peas, which is unheard of for late July. I still don't have any ripe tomatoes. But the green beans have been canning for 2 weeks now.
Hang in there--hopefully thre will be no early Fall. But I am seeing ome of our trees starting to turn too. hmmmm.....
Criminey-I'm sorry those blasted artichokes are giving you such a rough time. I'd come up there and wrestle them for you, but they look kinda mean! I sure hope you can get the upper hand on them. I'm STILL fighting the raspberries. I see I have them coming up in most of my strawberry beds now. Sigh.
Your corn looks great. Really great. I wish I had some. What was your address???? Snicker!
I had to BUY GREEN BEANS at the Farmer's Market yesterday. I'm so humiliated. How can a person NOT have green beans?????????????????
What a year. Drives a gal to drink.......
Oh man, that maple tree sends shivers down my spine for you....praying the cold hold off so you can get a good harvest in. The garden looks so good!
I thought about you as our local (SC) weather man talked about Minnesota the other day - with some of your lows getting pretty l-o-w for this time of year. At the same time, he talked about the rainfall our area has received tops most of the nation. Usually we're in a drought - this summer we're dealing with flash floods and wetness.
Your corn looks terrific!!! *sigh* and your garden always looks so lovely and weed-free. PS My wrist and fingers always hurt so after spending time weeding too. Your jam looks delicious too!
Akannie - What do they say? Expect the unexpected? That seems to be the garden mantra for all of us this year. Enjoy those green beans. I sure hope we get some from our plants!
Sue - My raspberries are right next to my blueberries and it always amazes me how far underground the raspberry roots travel before coming up 20 feet away in the midst of the blueberries. The urge to survive, eh?
I'm so happy with the way the corn now looks but, of course, it's got a long way to go before mature ears appear. Keep your fingers crossed for a long fall. We're gonna need it.
When something as easy (ha!) to grow as green beans fail, you've gotta wonder what the heck is going on, don't you?
Seems to me the past three (or four?) years have been down right weird in our gardens.
Stephanie - I really did a double take when I saw the turning leaves on the maple. We really do need "the cold to hold off" for the garden this year.
Lisa - Papa Pea and I were just talking this morning (after he was driven in by a heavy downpour from wood cutting and me from cutting herbs to dry) about how much moisture we've had this summer. If it had all been snow in the winter time, I suppose we'd be complaining about doing nothing but plowing and shoveling all the white stuff!
Thanks for your (always!) kind words.
Yikes at the artichokes but beautiful corn and preserves!
I'm thinking Fall is coming early this year. Our Rose of Sharon which normally blooms end of August/ first part of Sept. is in FULL blown bloom! ugh.... As pretty as it looks I dread what it implies.
Tina H
The Weekend Homesteader - Thank you, ma'am!
Tina H - I just read your comment to my husband and he said, "Ummm, that's spooky." Please, please don't let all of us have an early fall this year. Especially when some of our gardens got such a slow start because of the cold, cold spring.
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