Mandie’s garden is doing SO well — why, look at those tomato plants grow! They are awesome and healthy, except maybe for a few bugs here and there. But wildlife is to be expected. But when caught earyly, completely manageable. Exercising due diligence, she went in to investigate immediately upon spotting the leaf damage.
Ugh. Tiny caterpillars are the varmints of late. Awfully industrious little beasts, aren’t they? But that Mandie’s on top of them, refusing the critters the run of her garden. Removing damaged leaves, she quickly sprayed the plant with insecticidal soap.
Conch peas are flourishing, despite the battle with aphids. But it’s an easy problem to solve. Mandie needs ladybugs. Ladybugs LOVE aphids and if I had known she needed some, I could have pulled a few from my garden and handed them over! Always willing to share…
Speaking of sharing, I did bring her some sweet potato slips. Now that the weather is warm, they’re thriving on my patio and simply aching to be planted. Yes, sweet potatoes ache, I’m sure of it. They yearn to be in the soil where they can spread like underground melons, enriching the world with their golden bounty of sweet, healthy goodness.
Now that her lettuce and broccoli are gone, I thought she could use a littler “filler” plants. Sort of a pick-me-up to tide her over the hot summer season. And because they’re so easy to grow, we placed one just outside her planter box, anxious to see how they spread. Besides, it will make for a lovely ground cover — so long as the boys don’t venture in that direction! But of course they won’t. Their playground is clear on the other side of the yard, along with Lucky’s run. Kinda sounds like the name of a snow ski run, doesn’t it?
Don’t mind me. Just a dip into cooler territory (much needed this time of year). Either way, it should be a safe environment for the sweet potato plant to stretch out and develop some tubers. Of course, a bit of tilling in the area wouldn’t hurt matters. Soft dirt is always good encouragement for growth!
A good thing. These boys are having so much fun with their new garden, I know they’ll want to swim for sweets come fall. Whether it’s more thrilling than carrots, one can’t be sure, but I’ll go with the notion that digging for treasure is digging for treasure, no matter what kind of gold you discover.
And if this carrot looks to be on the “thin” side, it’s because we may not have “thinned” the plants well enough prior to the growth spurt — a must if you want plump, rich carrots.
A fine example of why you should follow instructions and do as the Master tells you. (Still love the whole “master” thing. Considering persuading my kids to start using the term!)
Good luck with that.
Though to their credit, they have been preparing my morning coffee for me! Ah, but it’s the little things in life…
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