Friday, June 12, 2009

And the rain, rain, rain came down, down, down....

What three weeks of rain will do to a garden....



and to the weeds...



The onions are in there somewhere. Yes, I'm whingeing about the weather. We've had so much rain that the ground is completely saturated and unworkable. I can't plant, cultivate, till or weed. I have a cover crop that I wanted to till in before it went to seed, but that's looking like it may not happen. I have loads of stuff that needs to go in the ground and more stuff that I really need to direct seed. I have a late planting of potatoes that desperately needs planting. Not to mention the incredibly favorable conditions for disease. Ugh. With dry one can at least irrigate; with rain, there's nothing to be done but float away.

10 comments:

Sarah said...

Oh, I've been there. Not with a huge market garden, which made it quite a bit less frustrating I'm sure, but it is much more aggravating than dry conditions, I agree.

Lisa said...

I really need the rain to stop.

Madeline Rains said...

I was at them farm today, baking in the hot, hot sun, and thinking that it would be great if everyone had to farm for a day to see what it is like. They would never whinge about a price again. Well, for the next day anyway. Weather is so frustratingly counter to our plans, so often.

Danielle said...

Madeline, I went on a rant the other night while our friends were visiting about how people were unwilling to pay the real cost of food and how many hours go into producing organic food.

We actually had sun all day yesterday. I was even able to check on my bees and plant the bush cranberries I got for my front garden. The ground was absolutely saturated when I planted them, but they desperately needed to be in the ground. It'll take days of sunshine to dry us out enough to work soil.

Danielle said...

Oh, and this was on high, sloping ground that I planted the cranberries. I can't even imagine what the swale in my market garden must be like at the moment. My water table is probably so high right now. Ugh. I can't even think about it.

I'm at the point where I pass my garden on the way out to feed the animals, and I just close my eyes and look away in disgust, trying to get the image out of my brain because I know I can't get in their and do what needs doing.

I'm just gonna have to hope the onions are holding their own with the weeds right now and that I'll be able to get in there before all those weeds go to seed.

Christy said...

I think your garden looks great! It is so organized. Have you seen my pictures? Now those are weeds! LOL. I totally lost my garlic to weeds. My garden is now rock hard again and getting the weeds out is really challenging.

Marcy said...

Given the despair I feel with the conditions in my own modest potager I can only imagine it on your scale. You have my heartfelt sympathy. I've just invested in more big pots for the gorgeous tomato plants that are blossoming – and possibly setting fruit – before I can get them in the ground. I don't mind the weeds but when I pull 'em by hand there are the slugs!!! Maybe we'll just have late harvests again this year. I hope.

Dark Spice said...

We've had a lot of rain, too. I don't think there's been one day in months that hasn't been overcast or raining at least part of the time.

Last weekend I was out weeding in the rain. (It was a lot of fun, actually.)

linda m said...

I'm with you on the rain, rain, rain. Here in Wisconsin that's all it seems to do is rain. And the temperatures are about 10 - 17 degrees below normal for this time of year. Our weeds are growing faster than the plants. Help!!!

TheOrganicSister said...

I'd take that much rain any day. With 4 inches a year, rain is starting to be thought of as an urban myth around here. ;)

~Tara