Groundhog defense system breached

Last Friday, I discovered the first breach of our groundhog defense system. It looks like the groundhog dug through the wire at ground level where it has become corroded and weakened. The peas were in sad shape but none were pulled out by the root and they seem to be recovering.

We had our largest harvest of strawberries on Monday (30). These were mostly gone by the time I returned home from work. My mother always wondered why her strawberries didn't produce (not realizing at age 5 my friend and I were enjoying them fresh from the garden), I guess this is my payback.

The best news I have is that several of the ornamental cherry cuttings seem to be establishing roots. After cutting several branches and selecting the best tips for propagating indoors, I stuck what was left in a garden planter outside in March. It turns out that these are the only cuttings that have survived. Both of my indoor propagation attempts failed.

The kale is ready for harvest, I picked a handful of snow peas last night and lettuce is abundant. Basil is just beginning to grow.There are now 87 beech tree seedlings growing. We recently lost nine of them, most likely to a rodent (chewed off just above ground-level). Slugs have severely damaged five of them. Last night, I planted about 16 more seeds that sprouted in the refrigerator and there are about that many left to plant (if they germinate).

Now blooming are peonies, dame's rocket and wild rose. My daughter also looked up some weeds in our plant identification book including the ubiquitous gill-over-the-ground (aka "creeping charlie"), white clover, and dandelion-like hairy hawkweed.

Hot!

What a hot weekend! I planned to get started early each day, take a siesta and then get back to work in the evening, but there was so much to do, I ended up working through with only small breaks to rehydrate. I went to a local nursery to see about getting shade cloth to protect the lettuce from the heat. They didn't have any, but I spied the burlap and realized that would be a great inexpensive alternative to shade cloth. Last night, we finally received some much needed rain, but I have been watering the gardens every day.

We ate the first two strawberries that were ~almost~ completely ripe, and had the best harvest yet of lettuce. The arugula was all going to seed on Saturday so that was all pulled, the snap peas are flowering. We planted about twenty sprouted basil seeds from the baggy and transplanted some volunteer cherry tomatoes that were sprouting up from last year's fruit. Also, fifty new strawberry plants were placed in a newly built frame and two new dwarf plum trees were planted.

We haven't seen Woody the woodchuck in quite a while, but another more skittish woodchuck has been around. A toad jumped from the strawberry frame as I was watering Sunday morning. A Baltimore Oriole has been gracing the neighborhood with his varied song and the bird bath in the front has been a gathering spot for cardinals, cowbirds, finches, sparrows, starlings, juncos and robins. The catbird has probably visited also, but I haven't seen him. On the flowering front, iris and dames rocket are in full bloom, garlic mustard is fading. Little one counted more than 100 iris blooms in our front yard. Peonies are on deck. Next year, I am hoping that the Oriental poppies just planted will be blooming with the iris.

Watering advice

There is nothing but sunshine in the forecast and it has been a while since we had a good rain. Be sure to keep your plants and shrubs watered regularly.

Self-sufficient for salad

On Monday evening, we harvested two of the radicchio that overwintered, filling an 18 quart container. We also harvested two of the lettuce plants that overwintered along with some beet thinnings and arugula which filled a 13 cup container. We are now self-sufficient for daily salad greens for the foreseeable future (savings through October ~$130).

This morning, I found that three of our raspberry plants had been nibbled to a nub, so I quickly improvised some protection with chicken wire. I suspect that this was the work of the two bunnies I saw last night, it was the foliage near to the ground that was damaged.

Yesterday, I started some cherry tomatoes, parsley and basil inside using the baggy method and planted nine chard outside. This is a very late start, but better late than never.