8am. 89 degrees already according to NWS
My weather center gadget is saying its 84.2 in out yard right now. We have a nice breeze that comes through the windows so it isn't horrible.
We didn't get any severe weather, rain or Tstorms yesterday.  I wonder how hot it will get today.

I need to get the Zsa Zsa pepper seedlings acclimated to outdoor life. We will likely be out and about for the long weekend and i will probably forget them. Usually this is the big planting weekend for this area. Everyone hits the garden center and its a one-time gardening glut all at once.
I think i'm glad i was able to start so early this year.

I do have one concern though, i read the blog of a lady who is about a zone South of me (Skippy's Vegetable Garden) and she just posted an entry yesterday about her broccoli buttoning.  She said it was possibly from them getting too warm too fast or being left in the seed flats too long.  So i wonder if i can expect a similar result.  I had my broccoli in 2.5# ground beef trays.  They are almost the same size, volume and dimension as the brown pulp trays i used to get my seedlings in when i went to the nursery.  I tried to keep them out of the greenhouses so they wouldn't get too hot. I don't know if they did get too hot when i kept them out, they only went under cover when frost was expected.
Its something to watch for.
Broccoli usually continues to head from the sides for a while, maybe that is what hers will do and hopefully mine would too.

The breezes feel nice.


I planted  some Germander seeds the other day and they are up now.

I took the seedling flats out from under the covers. I couldn't see them well enough to make sure they weren't drying out. Since they are in small cells, it will happen fast if i don't pay attention.
I told my parents to take the extras, they will probably do that sometime next week.

School is almost over now. One more day to go. Our school gets out about 2 weeks ahead of the public school.  We don't do the 'early out' day that the public schools do, so even if we have a bad winter and school gets canceled due to snow storms we end up with an abundance of  total classroom hours. So that translates into a longer Summer vacation for our kids. My daughter says that the extra 2 weeks is a fair trade for the uniform code. 

I'm trying to figure out how long to keep the row covers on in the garden.  In normal years, they would be needed right now.  But its so warm out that the heat advantage isn't really necessary.  The bug advantage is what i'm leaning on now.  I'm not sure how this will balance out.   I think it is likely that it will cool down.  We normally only get 14-30 days of temperatures above 86 degrees in my area.  Many of those happen at the end of June through the middle of August.  So, um, yeah... this year is weird.
There are different types of row cover fabric. Mine is the grade that is supposed to help moderate temperatures in the garden. It lets through 85% of sunlight, holds in moisture and does not block rain. Maybe it is moderating the temps inside... i have never put a thermometer on garden soil before, so maybe it stays cooler in there than it does on the outside soil surface.  I remember the garden's surface soil being so hot in the summer that it felt like it was burning my bare feet. I know plants can handle surface temperatures like that to some extent....  My parents never watered their garden unless it was just after planting or it was super dry for a long time.
My Reemay cover is comparable to Agribon-19 according to my local Paris Farmer's Union (without the bells and whistles of seams and possibly without the UV stabilizers), and here is the description of what the Ag-19 does:

High quality spun-bonded polypropylene cover is light enough (0.55 oz./sq.yd.) to be laid directly over plants without hoops or frames but strong enough to withstand light to moderate wind and other stress. No need to remove it during the season because it is porous to water and air and has 85% light transmittance. It provides up to 4°F of frost protection, warms the soil and is a good pest barrier. It also conserves water by reducing evaporation. It is similar to other rowcovers but generally longer lasting. UV stabilizers increase expected field life to 2 to 3 seasons.

Agribon™ rowcovers have all the qualities of other brands, while being more affordable and with seams double-bonded for ultra-strength.  These floating rowcovers increase yields, prolong seasons, reduce soil erosion, protect against frost, speed up germination, minimize wind damage, conserve soil moisture, deter insects and birds and protect against extreme temperatures.   source

That is what i remember reading when i first decided to So,  i'm just not going to worry about the inside temps anymore.  I'll still look and write it down, but i won't worry about venting the ends anymore.

I had found and read a few PDF papers on tomato and squash growing under various row covers while i was researching it. The studies used slitted plastic, Ag-19 and a type of grow mesh that is fairly common in other countries (and is expensive to get over here).  The plastic was slitted for obvious reasons, the mesh didn't need slitting and i don't remember there being mention of venting the Ag-19 at all.



So second-guessing is over for now, lol.


I did some research on grapes and this article was very helpful  Grapes for the North

The University of Minnesota's page was also very helpful. Many of the grapes in that article were developed by UofM and the UofM site lists licensed sellers of their varieties (and others') of wine, juice and table grapes. There are a lot of commercial growers, but there are also some vineyards that are willing to sell retail in small amounts...  not sure if they are willing to sell as small as me, since i can only have maybe 2 or 3 of any one kind, and only 5 kinds at the most. But around the middle of this winter i will be emailing my questions.


These seem to be my choices:

Vailant (purple)

Frontenac (purple)

Edelweiss (white)

Kay Gray (white)

Niagra (white)

Catawba (red)

Swenson Red (red)

I'll see what i have room for if my berry seeds go anywhere.






For blueberries, i think i'll try "Patriot" next Spring.





I'm looking into how much room thornless blackberries would take.

Expecting a hot day

Under the hoops this morning at about 6:30 the temperature was 67, outside temp was 62.

Expected to be unusually hot, some forecasters are calling for low 90's.  Others are staying at 87-89.
Its already 74 at 8:00am

I have the dog outside under her shade tree. I'd like her to get her outside time in now, cause she'll want to nap the rest of the day on the cool kitchen tiles.
We have air conditioners, but i don't like to use them much.  The cold from them is too direct, and once i turn it on, outside becomes even more intolerable.

On the weather maps, our state is mostly in red for severe weather (depending on what channel you watch),  I am right on the edge of a red and yellow zone. If we are going to get storms, i hope they bring some rain. I expect that the row covers will protect my plants from a heavy rain.  I may not be happy to see if they hold up under hail,  but if they get a test today, i have plenty left to rebuild as long as the plants don't get whipped. I don't really expect that to happen though.

I still want to try and do something in the garden today. I might end up just lifting the edges of the covers so things don't cook under there...  mid 80's got the undercover temps to almost 100...  90's will put it well over that i expect.  Little to no breezes are expected.
I'm glad i watered yesterday, if i hadn't i bet things would be try as toast by tonight.

Watering...

I dragged out the oscillating sprinkler today. It got to around 86F up here. Under the hoops it read 99.5

I hope that is going to be ok. I don't think it will cook the veggie plants where they stand.  But i watered to cool things down a bit and since the air has been very dry- humidity about 28%- so i am letting it run for a while.
I looked underneath and it seems like things are growing quite happily from what i can see. I didn't have time to really pull up all the covers and check each row- that is the only problem so far with the covers. Its an extra step just to see what is growing.  But they only need to be there for the first handful of weeks until the plants get big enough to fight off pests and hopefully miss a breeding cycle or two. Then they'll on again in the fall when i hope they will extend the season past the first few frosts.

I'm considering some sort of drip irrigation system.  Something that can be installed and left under the hoops and stay there all summer. Maybe i will look into it throughout the winter. I sure don't need to be testing anymore ideas in the garden this year.

But i do have a better idea for my tomato trellising.  Right now i have some standard cages, but i am short at least 4, maybe 6, so i need something else. I do have a pair of clothes racks that i bought cheap- but they didn't work... The footings were not strong enough and the whole unit falls over when i put stuff on it-  But with the footing removed, it is a  metal structure made of 1/2" tubes that i should be able to push into the ground and tie some trellis twine to. I may have 2 of them i can use. . that might be just about enough for the last tomatoes. So i have to remember to try and see where i put  it when i took it apart, and where i put the second one that never made it out of the packaging.

I hoped to run another strand of wire on the fence today, but i don't think i will be able to get to it.  I need to remember to take the time for it next chance i get.
I also need to find some sort of venturi attachment for the hose so i can run some liquid fertilizer through it for when i water. I have seen some that attach inline to the hose and you just put the tube in your fertilizer concentrate container and it sips it as the hose is watering.  I just have to find out what they are called and what types exist, then either order my choice or look for it at a local shop.

Nothing much

At about 9:30 this morning it was 62 degrees outside, under the hoops it is 74. It was very foggy  out this morning. The humidity was 92 percent.  It is supposed to warm, humid and overcast for much of the day today, which is good weather for having set out peppers and eggplants. Less chance of them drying out and the row covers keep in the warmth and humidity longer for a bonus.

Not sure what if any planting will happen today.  Everyone else seems to not be feeling well again, which means i and the little one are the only ones awake.  Even the cat and the dog are napping... the hamster too.  The bird is awake though.... and the fish, last time i checked.
I have been up since 5:30am

Had to repair the electric fence this morning. Hubby broke a corner post with the lawnmower last night and didn't bother to tell me.  I know he knew he did it cause the broken post had been shoved back in the ground but the wire was too low and was in the grass. The fence had also been shut off and not turned back on... so it was unarmed all night. I noticed the 'on' light wasn't blinking, so i looked and noticed.  I had to push the post into a new spot and then pull the cotter pin out to raise the wire level higher and then twist it a bit to tighten it back up.  I didn't have time to check under the covers to see if everything is still there. 

I need to wash out some trays so i can start chitting some berry seeds.

More planting today.

Hubby was tired of looking at the mini greenhouses in the middle of the far end of the driveway.  So, i decided that the rest of the stuff could live temporarily in the empty part of the Tomato Row.  Corn might go there later, but for now there is just a few feet of radishes,  but plenty of room leftover between the radishes and the tomatoes.
So the greenhouses are ready to be put away for a while and all the  plants are technically in the garden... heh.

But i actually did plant the summer squash seedlings and sowed the bulb fennel seeds. I also planted the burdock and globe artichoke seedlings.

Still waiting on the Banana melon seeds to sprout. They are the only melon that wasn't ready for its hill. One actually has sprouted, but i'm doing 3 per hill, so i am waiting for it to have friends.

I put a wired remote thermometer inside the hoops where the tomatoes are, and at ground level the temperature reached 85 degrees around noontime. It feels nice and humid in there too when i reached in to place the thermometer wire inside. Actual outside temps were about 72 and 40% humidity.  So it is definitely creating an early summer climate under the Reemay and i bet the soil is much warmer than it would be without it.  I bet it would be cooler on a breezy day.

Since the pepper and eggplant seedlings were going to be outside anyway i went ahead and planted them too. I imagine they will stay warmer in the garden soil, under the hoops than they would in their little pots in the greenhouses.  I got the "Fooled You" Jalapeno,, New Ace sweet pepper, Slim Jim eggplant and the Scarlet Chinese eggplant all in. The only one left out is the Zsa Zsa sweet pepper seedlings.  I managed to get 3 so far out of the last 6 seeds i sowed on a heat pad.  It looks like a couple more might come up-  but i will wait to plant them because they took so long to sprout, if i pant them too early i bet they won't grow even a smigen more at this rate.

All i have left to plant are a few more tomato seedlings that just came up a few days ago-  Siberia and Empire....
The odd cabbage and Swiss chard seedlings that i extracted from the onion flats, a few brussels sprouts, hopefully some cauliflower- i have all but given up on them...  the original wintersown sprouts are still tiny.
Then, the rutabaga, the salsify seedlings, beets, the Appaloosa beans and the string beans will go in, then the corn when it warms up more and the radishes are almost ready to come out.

Forecast overnight low tonight is 47F
Sunday its 49
Monday:54
Tuesday: 58
Wednesday:49
 No rain in sight as of now.

The grapevine still seems happy and there have been no woodchuck  raids on my garden yet.
I can see that i will have a lot of weeding to do throughout the summer. There are things popping up all over the place.

I still don't think the carrots and parsnips are even close to sprouting yet. I can't see anything happening there.  I have never had good luck with carrots.