Sorry to all of my followers for not posting more frequently. I, as you have been hard at work in the gardens. Plus, I have been continuing to grow my small, local business. With that said, here are my observations from the garden.
As everyone is aware of, this has been a difficult growing season in SE Wisconsin. Compared to last year's drought and constant high temperatures. First we started off with a cooler and wetter than normal spring. This caused slow growth to start out for many of our seeded vegetables and starter plants. Many seeded vegetables were lost with the excess rain. Then we jumped into full on summer heat. Which affected pollination and caused blossom drop on many fruiting vegetables, including tomatoes and pepper plants. This was followed by much cooler temperatures, which allowed many plants to start growing again and set fruit. We still have about two months of the growing season left here in SE Wisconsin, so we still have hope for a bountiful harvest.
If your tomato and/or pepper plants are setting fruit, keep them evenly watered. Mulch with grass clipping or shredded leaves to conserve moisture. Remove any of the yellowing lower leaves to keep any soil borne funguses from getting to the fruit.
You can seed your cooler weather crops now. Lettuces, radishes, broccoli, spinach, beets, kale, scallions and parsley can handle a light frost. Check your seed packets for the date to maturity from direct seeding. Most of the vegetables listed above take anywhere from 30-60 days to mature. Remember to seed your lettuces and radishes every few days for a continuous harvest thru the fall season.
Happy Gardening !!
You can also visit my website @ http://www.kathys2ndchanceplants.com
or check out my Facebook page for more tips and helpful hints for the growing season.
