Trev62-An intermittent gardening blog!

[Trev62]

So, we now have over 100 sacks of hay stored in the barn and with the weather we should get a decent second cut as well.

Our strawberries are coming off by the bowlful and very tasty they are as well. Harvested various herbs which are currently hung up to dry.

Most things are growing well with the warm and wet weather that has been interspersed with some gloriously hot days. Peas, carrots, beans etc. are shooting up. Tomato and pepper plants are looking strong. Melons, courgettes etc. also growing well.

So far, so good but you never know what disaster is waiting just around that corner!

[Trev62]

Really good year for strawberries so far, so many we have had to break out the dehydrators to preserve the excess.

[Trev62]

So, after a violent storm last night we were hit with another even worse one this evening. Thunder and lightning all around and the same strong winds as previously. Our peach trees that were laden with fruit are now half their original height but twice the width. A quick inspection by headlamp tonight and it looks as if most of the branches have snapped then bent in the wind.

Most of the cherry trees on the field border have lost branches that have out of spite decided to leave their tree trunks and then throw themselves into our vegetable beds. I am sure the damage to the veg will not look so bad when the sun rises tomorrow and things are replanted but by headlamp it does not look good.

On the plus side, I harvested a good amount/selection of herbs today, so we now have thyme, coriander, sage, basil, oregano, rosemary, savory, dill, mint, parsley all hanging up to air and dry.

The animals enjoyed all the spare cuttings

[Trev62]

So today we looked at the damaged trees, the peach trees will have to be butchered as most branches are broken. I am in two minds as to whether to just dig them out and use them for firewood. No peaches this year from them.

We spent most of the day clearing branches that had split or broke off from the cherry trees then having to harvest the flattened peas that were under some of them. Bonus is we now have 3.5 kilos of peas in the freezer and some extra firewood, bad new is we have lost a lot of pea plants that were not ready, also fallen branches destroyed the cabbages, tomato plants, melon plants, the list goes on.

Ah well, once we finish clearing up we will replant what we can and hopefully pick up some replacement plants from a roadside stall somewhere.

Worse things have happened

[Mo]

The unpredictability of nature

[Trev62]

In spirit I agree but in my mind they have been using cloud and hail busting rockets over the crops not too far from us these last few days, I have my suspicions the two are linked in some way especially as the Geo Engineers fully admit to not yet understanding the affect on the natural weather when using these techniques. But as I have said before I am just a suspicious and going senile old man with a tin foil hat living out in the sticks!

Anyway back on subject, I have cut back one peach tree today and it now looks like a helicopter landing pad! Sad really the amount of fruit that is on the branches I am having to remove, what a waste. Still the goats and rabbits are enjoying them so not all is lost.

[Mo]

I think I wound be suspicious too in that case

[Trev62]

Today I picked my first bowlful (this year) of gooseberries, hoping to make some wine from them. Strawberries are still producing well as are (unfortunately) the weeds.

[Mo]

I need to thin / pick some gooseberries (When I'm not chopping brambles)

[Trev62]

Now into July and we are already feeling dead on our feet, Last of the potatoes were brought in today, another good year so our stocks are looking good. All the currants have been picked, exceptional year for the red and black but thanks to the geese pruning the white ones last autumn for us there was no more than a handful to pick. First year our small blueberry twig has produced anything they are tasty! Tayberries have been delicious as well. Gooseberries are are all frozen and the raspberries just beginning to be harvested in volume. The Borlotti (?) beans are doing well but all the other beans are a write off, most just never grew, could be a bad batch of seeds. Luckily we still have loads canned and dehydrated from last year. Best year ever for peas (10kgs). The tomato plants are heavily laden and still growing. Carrots, melons, butternut, cabbage, aubergines are all growing well so not doing to bad this year but keeping our fingers crossed as the weather is scorching here (40c) and no sign of it letting up.

[Mo]

"...most just never grew, could be a bad batch of seeds. Luckily we still have loads canned and dehydrated from last year. "


Yes, that's gardening for you. Some years one thing does well, if not you hope other things do. And are thankful for modern storage methods (and shops). It does make you realise what things were like in the past for those who relied on crops

[Trev62]

Well, the heat is causing some of the tomatoes to cook in their own skins whilst still on the vine so we are harvesting some of them early and ripening them of in the cellars before preserving them.

We also have received 30 grafted grape plants today so we will be planning an area for a small vineyard in the next few days.

I have cut a lot of the broken cherry tree branches down and the goats and geese love stripping them which is great. The remains will be cut for fire wood or fed through the shredder for chip bark.

Also we have collected a lot of cherries and sour cherries which are now being processed into jam, syrup, compotes and wine.

[lancashire lass]

your post reminded me of someone who had emigrated to southern Spain - it would get so hot, the tomatoes cooked on the plant. One thing I definitely remembered was the need for shade (like sacking) and keeping the plants well watered. I found a website (from the USA) with similar suggestions but alas, once again the quote / link gremlin didn't like it and sent me away. So I'll just post what was written in the article (without the quotes!):

Mulch with straw
For tomatoes in the ground or in raised beds, put a 3-5 inch-thick layer of straw mulch around tomato plants. This helps keep the top layer of soil cooler and prevents excessive evaporation of water. See our more detailed post about how to mulch with straw.

Use shade cloth
Shade helps tomatoes during hot weather—of course it does. Go stand in the sun on a 100 degree day then move over into the shade, you don’t get sunburned and feels cooler in the shade, doesn’t it? Your tomato will think just like you and won’t get sunscald/sunburn. Read more about shade cloth in our detailed post.

Water: Keep the roots moist
Keep that soil moist. Use a moisture meter. You may need to water daily or twice a day. Use that premium potting soil that holds a lot of moisture. Hot weather also brings more evaporation. A mature tomato plant will use 2-3 gallons of water daily even in cooler weather. Pests and diseases wake up and thrive in a warm soil. Keep your plants watered and healthy so they can fight off the pests and diseases until those tomatoes ripen.

Heat tolerant tomatoes
Choose a heat tolerant variety. Heat tolerant plants will be labeled as such. They have names like Solar Fire, Heatmaster, Summer Set, Phoenix, etc. My favorite is probably Phoenix. These have been developed to produce tomatoes in 90 degree weather.