State Of The Garden
The Cage was exploding. The tomatoes were going wild, the potatoes had blooms already, the cucumbers were reaching up filled with promise of Summer bounty.
Then, calamity.
The first blow came via a couple of branches from the giant Cottonwood tree in my yard. It seemed the old fellow was developing root rot and was beginning to lean menacingly over my and my neighbor's house. The majestic beast had to die. I hired a good old boy with a good nature and a penchant for talking. His crew set to work on the 50 foot tree.
Unfortunately, they couldn't avoid dropping a large branch into the cage. The branch hit so hard it moved the cage half a foot south of its original position. This broke the Early Girl and the Better Boy tomato plants which were doing really well. The branch also crushed my lettuce and my cilantro.
After this assault, the plants recovered quite well. The cherry tomatoes especially were asserting themselves. I had also planted close to 20 pepper plants that were given to me by a friend. Jalapeños, Sweet Bell, Hungarian Wax Yellows, Cayenne, and more were ready to dazzle me with their splendor. The cucumbers had large leaves and their tendrils groped about for something to cling to. It was a thing of beauty.
The second blow was worse than the first. Yesterday, a killer storm rolled over the area flooding streets and dropping large amounts of plant-killing hail on my neighborhood. The damage is extensive. Only a couple of the cucumbers survived. The cherry tomatoes were plucked like chickens down to their stems. The Better Boy and Early Girl lost large limbs with fruit on them. All my peppers have large holes on their leaves.
I've often said that gardening in Kansas is an exercise in biblical stoicism. Don't garden around here if you don't have a thick skin.
So now I get a few days reprieve before another bout of storms gathers with ill intent. Nature giveth, nature taketh away.
Thank you for stopping by!
Then, calamity.
The first blow came via a couple of branches from the giant Cottonwood tree in my yard. It seemed the old fellow was developing root rot and was beginning to lean menacingly over my and my neighbor's house. The majestic beast had to die. I hired a good old boy with a good nature and a penchant for talking. His crew set to work on the 50 foot tree.
TREE CORPSE
Unfortunately, they couldn't avoid dropping a large branch into the cage. The branch hit so hard it moved the cage half a foot south of its original position. This broke the Early Girl and the Better Boy tomato plants which were doing really well. The branch also crushed my lettuce and my cilantro.
After this assault, the plants recovered quite well. The cherry tomatoes especially were asserting themselves. I had also planted close to 20 pepper plants that were given to me by a friend. Jalapeños, Sweet Bell, Hungarian Wax Yellows, Cayenne, and more were ready to dazzle me with their splendor. The cucumbers had large leaves and their tendrils groped about for something to cling to. It was a thing of beauty.
The second blow was worse than the first. Yesterday, a killer storm rolled over the area flooding streets and dropping large amounts of plant-killing hail on my neighborhood. The damage is extensive. Only a couple of the cucumbers survived. The cherry tomatoes were plucked like chickens down to their stems. The Better Boy and Early Girl lost large limbs with fruit on them. All my peppers have large holes on their leaves.
A ONCE AND PROUD CHERRY TOMATO
I've often said that gardening in Kansas is an exercise in biblical stoicism. Don't garden around here if you don't have a thick skin.
So now I get a few days reprieve before another bout of storms gathers with ill intent. Nature giveth, nature taketh away.
Thank you for stopping by!
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