Hi fellow GardenTenders,
This video is from May 2, 2012 with some still photos taken on May 2, 3, & 4, 2012. With this update, I’m finally all caught up editing the footage that I shot before I found GardenTenters.com (via Lumberjocks) and started this blog.
From here on out, I’ll try to keep the updates shorter and get them posted closer to the date they were filmed.
I’m surprised at how much footage I have collected already. Lately, it has felt like it took me longer to edit and upload the first eight videos than it did to do all the planting. I’ll probably slow down my activity to posting an update maybe once every two weeks unless something major happens in the garden.
One thing that I know is coming soon is our first 100 degree day of the year here in Las Vegas. It’s going to hit 97 here tomorrow. I’m a bit worried about keeping things going once we are consistently into triple digits, which is usually June – September/October. This is when I crashed and burned the last time I tried growing tomatoes, strawberries, and peppers out here.
Several years ago, I had five of my whiskey barrel planters located on the East side of my backyard in the small alleyway between the outside wall and the side of the house. Once it got into triple digits, the alleyway became like an oven and they were basically “mummified” when I had to go out of town on a business trip for a couple of days (the kids were too young to help with the supplementary watering at that time).
I think I’ve been smarter with the placement of the planters this time. I tried to use the walls, trees, and my courtyard to give each planter a little bit of protection from the sun and wind if possible. I also got started earlier this time, so my plants could establish good root systems before the heat became a factor.
There is still no guarantee that I’ll be able to keep the garden going until the corn and melons are ready, but I’m planning to put up a good fight.
Enjoy the video,
Jeff
http://youtu.be/RLiGfYi0nfA?hd=1
-- No GMO's for me. I'll grow my own.
3 comments so far
MsDebbieP
home | projects | blog
13910 posts in 2141 days
hardiness zone 5b
posted 378 days ago
gardening is exciting—always trying to out-think Mother Nature and put strategies in place to work with challenges.
All your videos are going to be a treasure for next year!
-- - Debbie, SW Ontario Canada (USDA Hardiness Zone: 5a)
bestofour
home | projects | blog
35 posts in 726 days
hardiness zone 7b
posted 319 days ago
I had a hard time watching the video because it kept stopping but everything looks great from what I did watch. Have you harvested veges by now?
-- The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet
Retsof
home | projects | blog
24 posts in 400 days
hardiness zone 5a
posted 319 days ago
Thanks for your interest in my video.
Yes. I’ve done really well with tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, and Swiss Chard. My sunflowers are really big too. The squash , beans, and corn all failed. The corn looks like it never pollinated. I have one sugar baby watermelon that I’m watching grow (not sure why I only have one melon). The heat and drying winds that we have here make things extremely difficult. We have had one rainy day since I planted my gardens and our humidity averages about 12% from what I’ve seen. My plants dry out so fast that it’s hard to keep up with it.
Next year, I plan to plant twice as many tomatoes, strawberries, and peppers, but that’s about it. I love the fresh tomatoes!
-- No GMO's for me. I'll grow my own.