Garden goings on

In between all the big work of the nursery and greenhouse, I snatch moments in my own garden life.  I don't do marathon gardening sessions like I used to.  Even less now.  Here is my list of garden jobs you can do in small snatches of time and still enjoy gardening on your terms:

• Weeding.  You don't have to do the whole garden all at once.  If you have to pick and choose, get the ones that are starting to flower first.  Get a small hand cultivator (single hook for small spaces is my choice) and work small patches.  Something is better than nothing.
• Watering.  Most plants are better off allowing to dry in between watering.  Concentrate on containers first and do it in sections so you aren't out there for hours.  Consider soaker hoses and drip lines where it makes sense.  Turn it on and have a beer.
• Planting.  It doesn't have to get done all at once.  Prep an area and plant.  Have another beer.  Prep another area and plant.  Do a little each day, don't save it all for the weekend.  A hidden reward in planting over time, especially with edible crops, is your garden keeps producing all summer long.  The one caveat is to watch the days to maturity on your seed packets.  Don't wait too long on those long season crops or you will be disappointed.  Space out greens, herbs, and short season root crops for extended harvest.
• Harvesting.  My favorite thing in mid-summer is to take my morning coffee out to the garden early in the morning.  The neighbors are sleeping, but the birds are singing.  What better atmosphere can you ask for if you have some work to do?  Morning is also the best time to harvest many things since they are not wilted by the heat of the day.  Keep buckets or bags in a small deck box or even a plastic covered bin so they are always handy when you find yourself picking more than fits in your hooded sweatshirt.
• Dead heading.  Yup, you really should pull, pinch, or snip off those spent flower heads.  Early in the season, this will keep your plants blooming better.  If you plan on collecting seed, then you should let some go later in the season so the seed can mature on the plant.  Keep a garden scissors or snips in the same box or hang it on a hook by the door.  If you don't have to look for your tools, you are more likely to do the job.  Purchase a couple so you can keep them close to different garden areas.  You can also enjoy a beer while doing this task.
• Smelling the flowers.  Don't forget that the main reason you garden is for the beauty of it all.  Put chairs out where you can sit and enjoy the fruits of your labor.  I like to have sitting areas in the most unexpected places.  It is fun to look at things from various perspectives.  And have another beer.

Vacations and the garden

We just got back from a camping vacation and it is amazing how the garden took off while we were gone. My neighbor took over watering duties and had the fortune of well timed rains in her favor.  After so many weeks of dry weather, she had to only water once even with the heat Milwaukee had this last week.  She should have bought a lottery ticket with luck on her side.

If you have to ask someone to water for you while you leave town, remember a few simple rules to make life easier for that person.  First, move your pots together whenever possible so they can be watered as a group.  They will need it more often so make it a quick job for your friend filling in for you.

Second, leave your hoses off the reels so they are easily moved back and forth for your water person.  If you leave it on the reel, they will feel the need to put it back, leave it out and they will do the same.  So what if you have yellow lines over your grass when you come back, It will recover.

Third, set up sprinklers in the important spots so it just requires a quick hook up and go.  If you have soaker hoses, make sure that using those are an easy task for the person taking over.  They don't know what goes where so make it easier for them.

Fourth tip: Get a quick hose coupler system so it is a quick turn of the spigot rather than connecting and reconnecting hoses.  I have one set to the front yard, one to the back, and the tomatoes are on a soaker right at this point.

Fifth and sixth, keep all the tools visible and keep the pots close to the water source.  It shouldn't be a game of hide and seek for water heads, hoses, or plants.  If you have things that need more water, keep them close to the water source so a quick hit can be done easily.

Seventh tip:  Stake the plants before you go.  Plants put on a lot of growth in a week.  Make sure they will be staked and trellised in anticipation of the growth that will take place while you are gone.  This will keep the plants up out of the way for watering as well as secure them if a wind storm should hit while you are away.  Your plants and your neighbor will thank you.
Finally, remember your friend with an appropriate gift when you return.  They did bring your garden through the week for you.

More heat, no rain

It is sounding like a broken record (for those of you who know what vinyl sounds like when it's broken) with our weather in Southern Wisconsin.  There is no vacation time without lining up a neighbor to tend to the garden while you are not.  Clouds built up on the horizon Friday to give some a tease while most sat dry after they passed.
I have found it necessary to take two things with me while watering.  I need a bucket to pull the weeds as the ground gets soft from the water and scissors to dead head everything that is going into survival mode and trying to produce seed.
Normally a single cutting on my herbs prevents them from flowering and seeding.  I think this is the fourth time I have trimmed the thyme, oregano, and mints this year...so far.
It is also necessary to dead head flowering annuals so they do not give up and stop flowering all together.  If plants start putting the effort into seeding, they slow or stop producing flower heads.
I have seen large amounts of seed production by trees this year.  Everything is going into survival mode by trying to reproduce.  The linden trees produced the largest seed brackets I have ever seen.  They looked like large white flowers laying around the trees and in the streets.  They sure have blown around in the wind with the large sails they have on their seeds.
If the grass is yellow but the weeds are green it is all about the roots.  Many weeds have a good tap root and are pulling up moisture from levels below the grass zone.  Some of the really annoying ones like burdock and thistles can be stopped in their tracks before they seed over your whole garden.  They are starting to flower now so cut them down to the base.  This will kill the plant all together in most cases.  Stop weeds from seeding whenever possible.  If you don't have time to weed the whole garden, pull out the ones that are flowering and seeding first. Do what you can as you can to save yourself from a bigger problem later.
If you are on water restrictions or your well just can't keep up anymore set your priorities in the garden.  Save the trees first.  Shrubs are easier to replace and will grow to size much more quickly than your shade trees.  I would save my vegetable garden before my flowers.  Grass is on the bottom of my list.  Choose wisely.  

Rain and watering and the first harvest of summer

We finally got a welcome drink of rain after a long spell of heat with no precipitation.  I was out watering my rain garden with the hose last night after 4 days of waiting.  Watering ahead of a rain is not always a bad thing.  When the ground gets hard and dry it tends to repel water rather than soak it in.  Pre-watering will loosen up the structure (we have heavy, clay soils in our area that take lots of additional organic material to amend it) so it will absorb rather than repel the water from the rain.  Slow watering is always better than a quick watering.  Deep watering occassionally is better than frequent, shallow watering.  Using each of these techniques will help your plants to develop a deeper root system which makes it more drought resistant.  Early morining watering is also better so the leaves can dry off during the day to minimize disease problems.  Avoid the heat of the day when the water tends to evaporate faster than it can soak in.  Sun scald can also occur on some of your more sensitive plants. 
I am using soaker hoses around the roots of my tomatoes this year.  Right after planting I looped the hoses back and forth close to the root zones of the plants and held them in place where needed with the wide landscape fabic pins.  We mulched around the plants with grass clippings which is helping to reduce soil splash from rain on the plants and to help retain moisture around the plants.  I have a great spot on the south side of the house that used to be in the basketball zone in was home to spireas until they were removed (a friend took them for another landscaping project) this spring.  Lots of compost was added to the soil here and the plants are thriving!  I am eagerly awaiting the first tomatoes.  I have a Sungold cherry tomato which is in the front running but the Romas are not far behind.  The Celebrity tomatoes will be coming in for salsa and blt's soon enough.  Basketball is now a movable hoop which is no longer welcome in this area. 
We made it through the heat wave in Wisconsin and now look forward to the harvest of veggies.  I picked my first pole and bush beans yesterday and will cook those up for tonight's supper.  The dog was excited about the beans as they are his garden favorite.  He whines outside the garden gate while I am picking so he gets his share.  I hope to gather one more crop of lettuce from my early crop that I shaded with row cover from the heat.  I only plant it on the north side of the raised beds now because of the heat factor and it seems to have paid off.  The soy beans are going to be ready for fresh picking soon.  I hope to beat the field mice to the punch this year as they can strip the plants in short order.  They really are best cooked in the pods and salted with a cold beer to chase them.  I have not been able to find them at the farm market.  Even the Asian farmers in our area harvest them as dried beans. 
Stay cool and keep enjoying those evenings of friends and fireflies.