~SUSTAINABLE LIVING FOR CHALLENGING TIMES

[sumisu]

GARDEN UPDATE 06 06 2015

Yesterday while near my garden, I was standing under a mostly blue sky, but a shower occurred from distant clouds by way of wind currents. Perhaps this happening was the reason I was provoked to transplant some recently purchased perennials into my neighbor's garden that I constructed a while back. I then proceeded to transplant all remaining pepper seedlings into bigger pots; the latter will mostly be given away to some friends.

I'm getting to bed earlier now; daylight is too valuable to be sacrificed by remaining up late. Besides my automatic bird alarm clock wakens me around 4:38AM from a bird sanctuary two houses away, so it's earlier bedtime for this guy.

Finally I have seen some more honey bees around the yard. They are attracted by early blooming perennials, blooming chives, spiderwort plants Jacob's Ladder. Yes, the warmer daytime temperatures with sun seem to activate the bees. Yet I believe the bee population is in decline due to reckless use of pesticides.


CHIVE BLOSSOMS ATTRACT BEES IN JUNE


CHIVE BLOSSOMS ATTRACT BEES IN JUNE


SPIDERWORT PLANT


JACOB'S LADDER

When I got out of bed this morning, I opened the blind and saw wet ground. A shower was occurring and it was ample enough to replenish some water I had used yesterday for my plantings. I love the sound of harvesting water; the latter is effortless once the water barrels are set up. These water barrels are a source of tepid water for the plants and vegetables. I theorize that if I were a plant, I would rather be watered with tepid and not cold water.

The forecast: "Today - A shower is possible early. Generally cloudy. High 71 °F (21.7 °C). Winds NNE at 10 to 20 mph (16.1 to 32.2 kph). Tonight - Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 47 °F (8.3 °C). Winds N at 5 to 10 mph (8.0 to 16.1 kph)."

Sunrise behind clouds was 5:08AM and it will set at 8:18PM [oh, I love June with its longer daylight hours].

Today's cooler temperature will allow me to comfortably ready my remaining plant containers for seedlings and some Chinese gourd seed named Calabash Long. My garden designs are based on a feeling, not on some computer planting programs that some people used ahead of time. I will keep notes on what I did and Facebook pictures of prior seasons are a great reference for planning the forthcoming garden.

The young Chinese gardening family are reinforcing my garden approach, as I use more inter-planting; it is basically an intensive method to maximize garden production by planting garden plants together. I copy them and now they copy me, as we use different veggies based on our culture. [They've been in their garden already this morning since around 6:30AM; that means I will have greens for my lunch].


This raised bed has the longest amount of sunlight of my entire gardens. I had it planted with blueberry plants, but decided to replace it with a raised bed to maximize food production. I gifted the blueberry plants to a young Chinese gardening couple; hence the reason for the YUE XI vegetable.

I gave the Chinese lady two packets of seeds: Japanese Netted Melon Hybrid [makuwauri meron] called ICHIBA KOUJI and Bitter Gourd Hybrid named DEVA. She insisted that I take a gourd that she already started in a container, carried it to my property and then weeded all of my gardens. The YUE XI seeds, a form of Chinese broccoli, grew very well. She harvested a meal for me, but had another group too far seeded for my composting and she left some to attract bees. Whatever she does seems always to be correct, so I just observe and copy.

I'd better end here, before I write a book.

Thanks for reading