Updates About Stuff I (Mostly) Never Blog About

I have noticed that lately my Monday updates have been a little tomato obsessed. Today, I'll break from that trend, lest it start leaning towards a sickness. Instead I'll update on some of the other pleasures and frustrations currently in my garden.

My roses have started. I don't know what this is named. I call it weather rose because it's color varies greatly depending on the weather the buds develop in. Last year my roses were dessimated by Japanese beetles, so I thought I get at least one picture of a before they begin to feast. I know they're coming soon.

The astible are at their peak too. I finally figured out how to grow the brightest varieties. Plant them under the drippy hose connection. That's the only sure way to guarantee they won't dry out! I have no trouble growing the more tolerant varieties elsewhere, but a beauty like Rhineland needs it moist all the time or it's frizzle city.

The peas have gotten way taller than I remember peas getting and they are now covered with buds. My staking of these is pretty much of a joke. Thankfully they are doing a good job supporting each other. It's amazing to me how fast this plant goes from bloom to decent sized pod. After all those weeks complaining about zero pea progress all of a sudden they are bed bursting and covered with pods!

The leeks also seem to have finally decided to wake up. I am reasonably confident that they are now safe from my helpful family members ripping them out and calling them grass. I have leeks planted in five different locations in the yard because I wasn't sure what they liked best. These are my largest which apparently means leeks like growing on the edge of a sawdust pile under a norway maple. My plants are weird.

I'm still harvesting broccoli. I know most people pull these plants when all they keep putting out are these little heads. I really like they way these little guys taste though. To me they are even better than the big heads, so for now, they stay!

Broccoflower was one of my few purchased plants. It was an impulse buy. It's very healthy looking but is very slow. It probably needs more light than it gets in the green bed. I've never grown this before so when to harvest will be a bit of a gamble. For now, I'm putting row cover on it. I don't like the paint job the birds are giving it.

In the fruit department we are where the peas were a month ago. Nothing much happening. Here is a honeydew melon. Underwhelmed? Just wait until you see the watermelon!

But first, what's this? One of my seven cherries has a tint of red on it! Whoo hoo, it's almost ice cream time. I know I really should cover these now to protect them from the birds, but I won't. Covered trees look sad to me, and well covering them is a lot of work! I'll take my chances and hope the blueberries divert the birds long enough that they leave me a few cherries.

Finally here it is, the new Persimmon. Blacktail watermelon. That white thing is the tip of my shoe for a size reference. I am not a giant. Blacktail is pathetic. At least it has two leaves which is one more than my watermelon attempt had on it last year. Hopefully the arrival of something resembling heat will get this guy to grow. I'm not holding my breath though. I have a ways to go before I figure out watermelons.
I'll end with a pretty flower. Delphinium. I finally figured out how to keep these alive too! What you do is buy new plants every year until you find one that will tolerate your neglect. That plant is a keeper!

Oh, wait speaking of Persimmon. (You didn't really think I wouldn't mention a single tomato did you?) On my entry on the third I threatened it with one more chance and put it in a container. It is wisely responding. Several inches of growth since then. Not bad for about a week's growth!