Marionberry season is officially here, so the annual fight to get enough berries upstairs to make baked goods has started.
It’s a fight that pits me against me, and I’m losing.
It’s also a fight of me against me with regards to the blueberries as well, I’m losing that battle as well.
This southern highbush is a real mess, as it decided to grow sideways after a windstorm and… yeah, just look at it. I’m not really sure what to do after it’s done fruiting either. Probably try to chop and prop one side of it and repot the rest at the correct angle? Blueberry plants are such divas.
My milkmaid nasturtiums are blooming beautifully, and I’ve decided I want more.
So since all the edible plants on the green shelves were done, I pulled everything and sowed some nasturtium seeds in a wide range of colors, and now, we wait.
Speaking of vegetables that need pulling- the snow peas were an enormous success, but their time is done.
I haven’t decided yet what to put in the earthbox to replace the peas, but it can’t be more peas as we keep having massive heatwaves. Maybe some of my smaller tomato plants?
The bigger tomato plant on the other hand is happy as a damn clam in the greenhouse. I’ve started having to trim up the leaves and every bit I take off reveals another baby tomato ready to grow big. I may have to get a second greenhouse for next year and do all tomatoes in it. Sounds worth it in my book.
I’ve had a devil of a time with my cucumbers. This is strange as generally this time of year I’m drowning in them. But the recent heat waves have finally shaped up my various cukes around the garden- and the plants themselves look much happier and ready to start growing and fruiting.
I have not had any problems with my pumpkin patch. Except weeds and I’m pretty sure if those get too many ideas the vines will strangle the Bermuda grass for me if I ask nicely. Send help.
Seriously between the lima beans and these buddies it’s like every time I plant something in THIS PATCH it goes gonzo bonkers. Maybe next year I’ll slap some poly tunnels on it and make this the dedicated tomato patch or something.
In a bid to make my culinary herbs more accessible I’ve moved three of them to the fabric bed and it’s going great. I’m probably going to also put the horehound in there next. Most of the perennial culinary herbs like the extra drainage fabric provides, so who am I to deny them good housing.
And my beautiful beautiful vibrant seed dahlia has bloomed- and revealed it most certainly has Dahlia mosaic virus and therefore I probably shouldn’t save the tuber.
This is a massive disappointment, but considering that this is my first year growing these guys I suppose first year mistakes are normal. I’m not going to pull the plant, just because I can’t save it for next year doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it’s beauty now.
Kind of almost a life lesson there.
The Neanderthal Gardens 
Is ‘Milk Maid’ nasturtium true to type, or do its progeny revert to simple bright yellow and orange? When it first became available, it was considered to be a ‘white’ nasturtium, and is likely still one of the lighter colors, although there is a whiter variety with red spots. I grew a variety of that pale white color, but do not remember the name. Weirdly, I got it because a neighbor wanted me to grow the dark blackish red, and insisted that it would look good with the ‘white’ sort. What is weirder is that it did!
Supposedly yes- I say supposedly because it’s my first year growing it and I wont know for sure till next year of course. I have the darkish red type just sprouting in the green shelves, can’t wait til I have a wall of mixed nasturtium!
Oh, they are weirdly excellent! I did not like them when I got them for the neighbor, but would grow them again. They reverted of course, but it took a few generations for them to do so! The common orange and yellow are still my all time favorites, but wow, those odd colors are difficult to dislike. In my planter box downtown, I get to try flowers that neighbors like, which I would otherwise not try in my own garden. That is how I ended up with that totally awesome ‘Australia’ canna, which I never would have selected myself. I plan to put common ‘Jewels Mix’ nasturtium back into the planter box this autumn, but will ask the neighbors if they would prefer another variety. I sort of hope they do, even if it is something that I am not so keen on. Actually, the varieties that I am not so keen on are more often the best. I can always grow common orange and yellow at home.
I saved the seed from my Alaska nasturtiums and I’m drying them out so I can germinate them- I’m wondering if after one Generation they’ll revert or not from the variegation? Guess I’ll find out!
I suspect that most varieties eventually revert. Some just take more generations to do so. The vining types do not revert to dense dwarf types though. They are always vining, with fewer flowers.