Pumpkins Planted - Another Inch of Rain. Corn Disappeared Faster Than Hillary's Email

Yesterday was especially enjoyable. Morning is a better time to start gardening here. The backyard is in the shade and the air is cool.

I managed to lose most of my pumpkin seeds, but I had a half-package left, more than enough to start. The Three Sisters Garden, lacking any corn, became the Pumpkin Patch by default. The corn did not show up in two weeks, either because of cold soil, squirrels, crows, or all four together. Pumpkins are always fun to grow and give away. I should have some gourds, too.

I planted some pumpkins in the compost, which now has regular watering from the soaker hoses, coming from both directions.

I pour rainwater on each new plant or seed, giving it a boost of water, settling the soil, and giving the soil a supply of useful nitrogen. The effect of nitrogen fertilizer in water would be to burn or kill the plant, seed, and microbes.

I told Mrs. I about all the roses leafing out and blooming now. "I visited the laggard roses each day and pruned the canes a bit and poured rainwater on them."

"You make pastoral visits? No wonder all the roses are growing."

"Yes, it only takes a little extra care."

Sweet potato  vine starts were selling at the Walmart - almost for free - so I planted a bunch of them, in the brightest sun for most of them. They love sun and warmth - like tomatoes, corn, and sunflowers. Sweet potatoes are a Morning Glory relative, so they vine along the ground or perhaps up a fence - waiting to see that. I am new to this plant - except for eating the results.

I visited all the new vines with rainwater. One trumpet vine has started to grow. The Passion Flower vine (maypop) is struggling against insects.

I looked at the chewed leaves and said to myself, "Get out the heavy artillery." I cracked flower pots for nearby toad houses and also put a couple of whole pots, upside-down, near the plants. A pot with the hole on top will attract insects, which means a spider will move inside for the shelter and food.

The Creating Word planned all this, so we can enjoy the benefits of the Creator's wisdom, without paying for man's marketing.

A toad will eat 10,000 bugs in one summer. For that reason I also have flat pans around for their hydration. Birds will sip from them and toads sit in them - not at the same time, of course. The clay pans are under the soaker hose, easily filled and cleaned.

Butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds love Honeysuckle Vines.

The prize is Honeysuckle Vine, already climbing the dead tree and flowering. I am looking forward to its "rampant growth."

Cow Vetch is also climbing and flowering on the back fence. My neighbor seems to want a screen too, so he has planted a tree in just the right spot. In time his dogs may stop barking, "There he is! Come to kill us all!" Chihuahuas.

Our helper mowed the backyard before the latest rainstorm. We could use another mowing, but days of rain are ahead. He was happy to learn that the back section will be designated The Wild Area. I marked it off with logs. Grass and weeds will grow longer there, and use bushes/vines/sunflowers for a screen friendly to birds, bees, buttreflies, and hummingbirds.

Daily Challenge - Pumpkins as Climbers?

I planted some pumpkin seeds in the compost,
to give them rich soil.
The soaker hose drips above them.

One reader has daily questions and comments about gardening. Yesterday, while the rain was still falling, I planted pumpkins along the fence, to serve as climbers and a green screen.

One of my horticultural promises to Mrs. I is, "I will block the view in the back section." We have a grass no-man's land between us and the houses on Joye Street -  and the back of their outbuildings to look at. The more we pruned the trees, the more we saw. The dogs like to look through the fences and bark at each other.

The first plan was to have very tall Butterfly Bushes create a 10 foot fence, but they are just starting to grow. Another feature of this Maginot Line is sunflowers. My early planting froze in the return of winter snow, and only some of those are growing now. I planted more.

Pumpkins love the sun, rain, and rich soil.
We should have a good crop for the local children and our grandchildren.

I noticed an odd assortment of plants growing near or on the fence and resisted the urge to cut them down. Several are very healthy Queen Anne's Lace (wild carrot), a great plant for insects and bees. At least one is red root pigweed, which grows green and fragile-looking while sowing its seeds generously. Pigweed is an amaranth and nutritious. The amaranth family is known for seed production. So - why do I not get out the flame thrower, the RoundUp, and the weeding fork? I can let a few grow in the back and contribute to the compost. Big field weeds are easy to control with cutting. Their hogging of sunlight is their downfall. They do not like being cut to grass height.

The daily reader wonders, "How can pumpkins grow on a fence? Are they not too heavy?"

I had a great experience with pumpkins, gourds, and the Jackson Aqueduct last summer, with all kinds of plants growing along the fence on Mrs. Wright's side. One of the vines lined itself up on the top of the fence and raised its umbrella leaves to capture as much sun as possible. That was probably the bottle gourd vine. Pumpkins got a late start and mixed in there, contributing plenty of greens for the compost.

I am figuring that the vines will fill up the fence, like green inserts, as they look for ways to grow up into the light. They can also spread out on the ground as cover, without bothering the vertical plants.

The main pumpkin patch is the corn area. I see regular little holes in the corn area now, so the squirrel may be digging the corn out that I planted. If that happens, only pumpkins will be planted there soon. Another possibility is the squirrel digging in new food. The little critters personify ingratitude, but I will withhold judgment for the time being.

Columbus gardening fooled me with nutgrass coming up where I planted corn. Once I realized I did not have a corn crop, the nutgrass was well established. I had to pull each plant out like I was doing dead weight lifts - grab stem, plant feet, straighten back, heave.

Hanging birdfeeder

Inexpensive Platform Feeder
I found a great platform feeder on Amazon. I wanted something that let the rain through, visible from our bedroom window.

When we walk into the room, the platform feeder is eye level. Instead of shunning the new item, the birds and squirrels used it after only one day or so. Mockingbirds eat from it in pairs. A small squirrel came over in the rain and ate there. Starlings and finches stop by too.

The platform hangs from a  wooden beam, and the bottom has small holes to let rain through. The feeder is under the eaves and stays relatively dry.

The finches and chickadees continue to use the big feeder, without much competition. The big feeder contains finch food only, and suet for the other birds hangs from it. Starlings are often hanging on the bag of suet, pecking away at the kidney fat.

Falling in Love Rose - only $8 on sale last year.
Our newlywed friend enjoys the fragrance and the color.

Hybrid Tea Roses Blooming
Steady rain will make sure last year's hybrid tea roses bloom. The new roses will probably bloom soon, too.