This Week in the Garden- June 11

Baby peaches

Okra is up.

Squash plants are flowering.

Potatoes are looking great.  I've been spraying with Neem Oil and so far, no beetles in sight.

Three rows of green beans are up and I planted two more this week.

Cherry tomatoes

I went to the store to buy Neem Oil and was asking advice on how to fight blight with my tomatoes.  Another customer overheard my whining and told me that all I needed to do was spray my tomatoes with compost tea and I wouldn't have a problem.  He promised.      So, this week I mixed up my compost tea and have been faithfully spraying my tomatoes.  I sure hope it works.  It almost seems too good to be true.  To make the tea- take a two handed bunch of compost and add water in a bucket.  Stir.  Let it sit for three to five days, stirring each day.  Strain and spray leaves of plants.

I cut my garlic scapes this week, but not before taking lots of pictures.  I think they are one of the prettiest plants in the garden.  I guess it's time to make this pizza.  Yum!

Basil plants are off and running.

Strawberries

Butter lettuce

And about those sweet potatoes...  Last week I told you how I planted my sweet potatoes and a few days later, every plant was gone.  I had no idea what ate them, although I suspected turkeys.  I bought new plants and replanted.  They looked beautiful. And this time I placed deterrents around the perimeter of the garden and between the rows.  The nice man at Fletcher Hardware sold me all the things he thought I might need and told me to come back if they didn't work and he would sell me bullets.  Smiling, I left the store with high hopes.  I'm sure that while I was on my hands and knees putting these new plants in the ground, some critter was watching from nearby saying to himself, "Look how nice that lady is.  She's planting more sweet potatoes for us to eat."  

Because sure enough the next day, most of them were gone.  The deterrents did not deter.  I am defeated.  I guess it's just not meant to be for me to grow sweet potatoes this year.  I'm frustrated, but trying to focus on all the other plants that are doing so well.  Such is the gardening life.  Some things work, some things don't.