What did you do in the garden today?

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I am starting on a new adventure with sour dough. I like the idea of being self-sufficient. I watched a few sour dough videos on how to make the starter but decided to get a head start with this San Fransico style culture. I am having so much fun.......
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I’ve being doing sourdough for years now however my original culture that I made from scratch finally died of neglect. I purchased some San Francisco starter, I think it was likely 2 years ago and I really like it. I’m being more attentive to this culture. Good luck with your baking.

 

[igorsMistress]

Yeah that's brutal. We only get a week of 112+, usually. Knock on wood, hoping this year is more mild.

I can't stand sitting on the tractor with a mask on when it's that hot and I have tons of grading to do this summer.


Your garden is so beautiful! Fruit trees are great! I look forward to seeing more!

Your weather reminds me that I spent two weeks on Blythe in the summer working between rows of hot solar panels. I about melted. Desert garden though! That's a pretty amazing challenge!

This is the one I'm thinking of getting. Possibly two medium units.

It's a weed I tell you! A weed!


Anyway, on my lunch I got that new bed amended and couldn't help but plant some calendulas on it's edge by the walkway. Seeds for corn and bush beans go in tomorrow.
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Also my clover is starting to kinda fill in. Kinda.
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The pest pressure on my pumpkins is insane. One plant is already dead. One cucumber plant as well. Three other pumpkins have severe damage. I applied more neem this evening. Hopefully they start to outgrow the pest pressure as they establish. The race is on and I'm starting more seeds just in case. I think the mulch is part of my problem.

So what are your overnight lows with this daytime highs?

 

[jerryse]

I have a young apple blooming for the first time. See what I really get. Pretty sure I got scammed. Supposed to be Honeycrisp. It came as a 1 foot whip and no graft union. Nearly 10 year wait. I can graft it if needed. Fell for it. Most likely a rootstock. Happened on a sour cherry once. Turned out to be Mahaleb = bird cherry rootstock. Grafted sour cherry on it.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I have to say we have been truly blessed in the weather department here in the station we watch. Not perfect, but pretty accurate.

I like being able to look at the weather radar on the stations website so we can see what’s happening in real time. Very useful tool.

I use the radar often, too. I can see there are big green blobs of rain coming, but then at times they split, so just north & south will get pummeled while we get a slight mist. It is different than where I used to live. Weather is a more varied & can really vary just 15 miles from the next area. Heck, I've even seen it rain it's butt off so bad driving we were down to 5mph or had to pull over, then 5 miles down the road is dry as a bone. I can't yell at the weather dude all of the time, he does say "spotty showers, may or may not hit your neighborhood" so being near the ocean with tons of rivers & the bay & canals, and then the wind shifts, all do affect where the storms actually hit.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I am starting on a new adventure with sour dough. I like the idea of being self-sufficient. I watched a few sour dough videos on how to make the starter but decided to get a head start with this San Fransico style culture. I am having so much fun.......
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I need to take a page out of your book & do this, too!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

After work yesterday, I was collecting the afternoon eggs. It looked like rain & we were supposed to get some, so I held off in the garden area. I do need to rake out more nutsedge & Bermuda grass crap before I plant there. So then something stings the back of my leg, inside my pant leg. Then the stinging increases intensity. I had to take my pants down right in the back yard to see what the heck was in there. I did duck behind a coop lol. I saw the culprit, inside my jeans, this year's 1st fireant sting. It is a little early for them, they're very sluggish, but still can sting ya. I flicked the little A-hole onto a paver & stomped it...all it did was curl up, then uncurl & walk away unscathed. So I quickly grabbed a small stone & crushed it. It actually was broken up...and the separate pieces were still trying to crawl off! Ugh, that's a sight...a mini horror movie in my own yard.

I searched around & then saw what looked like anthill activity, from the indigenous ants & also saw those nasty fireants as well. They take over & kill the ants that Should be here. I got my jug of Antixx, sprinkled some out & waited for the ants to begin hauling it off, like they usually do. Well, they ignored it. I took a whiff of the stuff & it smelled rancid, you know that smell veggie oil gets, or an old forgotten bag of leftover tortilla Chips...yeah, that rancid oil smell. That crap was over $20 a jug. I opened up a fresh jug, never opened before...same smell. I opened the remaining few jugs...never opened before, but they were very easy to open...same rancid odor. I am so Ticked Off!!! The seals failed, crappy packaging. I have emailed the manufacturer in Germany but I doubt I will get a reply.

I am just Ticked Off right now...I hate wasting money & I hate these nasty fireants. I wonder if I can salvage this stuff somehow...maybe spray sugar water on it? The fireants like sweet cookies. I will give it a try. Better than just tossing it all. Why don't they just sell the spinosad, and let us mix up our own bait fresh with it, as we use it? Meanwhile, I have a nice welt on the back of my thigh.

 

[jerryse]

First pic apple. Second pic cherry.

 

[Minanora]

So what are your overnight lows with this daytime highs?

When it's that hot here it doesn't get below 80 at night. Usually in early August. There's very little wind as well.

 

[igorsMistress]

When it's that hot here it doesn't get below 80 at night. Usually in early August. There's very little wind as well.

Wow, nice! It hovers around 90-95 at night here. No cool off.

 

[WthrLady]

I smell snake in the chicken run. It has to be underground in a mouse warren. I'll pick up the water pan tonight.
Any other ideas? I'd rather I catch it and take it for a car ride, but I can't FIND it.