MY garden!

I have Tree Swallows nesting in the nest box closest to the garden.  I had to move that box a bit further from the garden a few years ago, when the nesting pair got fussy about me being in the garden while there were chicks in the nest, but haven’t had any issues since.  Well, not seriously, they get fussy about me working the row closest to the nest when there are chicks in the nest, but that’s manageable……

Till this year.

As I was planting those pepper plants last week (Wednesday) the Swallows started fussing when I walked the row closest to them.  I figured the babies were hatching, tis the season.

Friday I had a few minutes and headed out to do a little weeding…..and got driven out of my garden by dive bombing Swallows before I’d gotten the furthest row done!

Dammit, its MY garden!  I was here first!

I like Tree Swallows, they eat mosquitos, and deer flies, and the like.  But they don’t get to claim my garden either.  Once this set of babies leaves the nest I’m going to have to move the box again……..


Garden Update

Despite Husband’s and my best efforts the weeds are trying to take over the garden.  I shouldn’t be surprised I guess, considering I was trying to do everything with a bad arm (which is mostly back to normal at this point, thankfully).

Remember this baby tomato seedling?

I planted it a month ago today.

Here it is today:

ALready in need of a 2nd cage.  So much for not overwhelming myself with tomatoes this year.

Also, Bill Bean Tomatoes:

and Black Gypsy Tomatoes:

The corn bed, which has turned into potatoes and corn:

a volunteer Melon Pear plant!

There was a BUNCH of them in the two tires that I had the Melon Pears in last year.  I might not have been able to tell the fruit was ripe, but clearly that didn’t matter!

This year’s Melon Pear plants:

Jalapenos:

Black Pearl Peppers:

This year’s incredibly wet spring resulted in over 90% of my sunflower seeds not even sprouting, and more than half of what did sprout just dying.  I’m going to have exactly TWO sunflower plants this year.  Dammit.  I debated just covering the now empty tires with black plastic for the season, but decided this was my chance to try a BUNCH of different hot peppers.  Baby plants arrived today.  Hopefully the season will last long enough to get a decent crop!

I also had to restart a bunch of melon plants, for what is likely the same cause.  Though SOMETHING (insect not mammel) was munching the hell out of them too.  Not happy, though at least there everything is short season enough it should work out.

BTW, I didn’t even get those tomato seeds started till AFTER I broke my arm.  So beginning of April.  And they were still that big when I planted them mid-May.  I started 3 of the Black Plums for a friend and he couldn’t get over how big the seedlings were in comparison to the store bought ones he usually buys.  I have no clue what I do thats so different, but clearly it works……

I also got the deer fly traps setup and out today, a bit later than planned, but hopefully early enough to keep them from being a pain this summer!