(Purple Hull Peas)
High today is in the low 90's for the third day in a row. With the humidity and no rain I hate to see what the heat index is. This is unusual for us at our altitude. I think it is supposed to cool off a bit by the weekend though. Down in Knoxville I see the temp is supposed to be 98. Ouch!
Even worse the sweat bees are awful. I hate sweat bees. They are tiny little biting bees that are attracted to sweaty bodies. My gosh they hurt. This is the first year here they have been this bad.
(Purple Hulls Hanging)
The garden crops that traditionally like hot weather seem to be thriving. Things like okra, purple hulls, summer squash, tomatoes and cucumbers continues to flourish. I pulled up 2 zucchini yesterday and chopped up for the compost and picked the last of the beets. I still have younger zucchini and squash just starting to make. That is the benefit of planting every two or three weeks. These younger plants should get us to the end of the summer. By then I will be tired of squash.
I have some pretty impressive tomato clusters hanging right now. Especially these determinate canning tomatoes. I did not plant as many this year because of the amount I canned last year. I still have quite a few jars in the pantry.
(Purple Hulls in the back row along fence, small okra hills and young pear trees)
The picture above is a perfect example of using your property wisely which is especially important for smaller properties. I planted young pear trees here this spring. Keiffer and Ayers varieties which are heirlooms and very hardy in this area as I see them growing on many older farms in the area and both are somewhat fire blight resistant. I should be able to continue to plant vegetables in this area around the trees for several years before I have to worry about the trees shading them out. By that time I should be old enough it will be time to retire my hoe anyway. Eventually I will extend the blackberry row down that fence and there will be a row of blackberries behind the larger trees. Those small hills of okra ar the new variety to me "Heavy Hitter" I am trying out this year and hoping to get a start of seeds if I like it.
As many of you know that have followed my blog for years that purple hull peas are my go to cover crop. After these peas are picked the vines will be cut and chopped up small with a machete and make piles of compost probably right there along the fence to heat up and fill boxes and bed with compost for the next years crop. Nothing goes to waste here. Besides that we happen to really like purple hulls.
Check out those figs! I adore figs and have to stop myself from eating the entire crop fresh off the tree. As a kid I have memories of my mother picking figs by the dishpan full and making fig preserves. Greatest biscuit adornment of all time. I am up to 6 trees now of different ages.
Everyone be careful in this heat!
Blessings From The Holler
The Canned Quilter
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I can also be found at
We got the tiniest bit of rain today...I'd love to see more rain, but not in our forecast. The humidity is stifling! (that spelling doesn't look right, but Google says it is. LOL)
ReplyDeleteYour figs look great! I had read of someone planting her asparagus and strawberries together. I thought that sounded like a great way to use all the space constructively.
Darlene
Darlene
I have decided I do not like growing strawberries with other things. For me strawberries just take over when I plant them with other crops. I used to grow them with rhubarb but it was almost impossible to thin the strawberries in among the giant rhubarb plants without breaking the rhubarb plants. I grew them under the blueberries at one time too. That was not good because blueberries are shallow rooted. When it came time to pull up the strawberries which should be done for me every 3 years it disturbed the blueberry roots too much. I have a strawberry tower design that I want my husband to build just for strawberries I think. Right now lumber prices are a bit high though. I am hoping the prices will go down soon.
DeleteI've never grown strawberries, so I am glad to know about the issues you had. It will save me some grief. Thanks.
DeleteI love seeing pictures of your garden! Planting the beans along the fence is a good idea. We have plenty of space in the backyard but I have not really spent the time to design the garden areas.
ReplyDeleteFor strawberries, I purchased a vertical planter (they are made in Knoxville!) I LOVE it. My strawberries are thriving. You can keep them in there for multiple seasons, which is one of the things I loved. Here is a link to the post where I showed the planter: https://www.savingsinseconds.com/greenstalk/
Interesting.
DeleteI'm down south of you in the south eastern corner of TN, and I've the Cumberland Plateau. It sounds hot there and you're right it is usually cooler at your altitude. Your crops look so good and bountiful. I like the idea about the pear trees and oh my I love figs too.
ReplyDeleteYou must be down near Chattanooga? I was born in Gilmer county Georgia which is not far south of there up in the mountains.
DeleteYes, we are about 35 miles east of Chattanooga. You were born very close to here. It’s a small world. I love reading posts from others in Tennessee. I hope you have a great weekend.
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