September 26th 2010

GARDEN:
Well, if we got a late start on the season because it rained the first 3 weeks of June, we are getting some of that time back this fall in the form of Indian Summer. It has yet to freeze, although it has come close (one night earlier this month). Temps running 65-80 during day and in low to mid forties overnight.
Squash: We'll end up with a good delicata harvest, I finally got out and counted up 9 squash on our monter plant. This plant eclipsed the butternut, but we'll get something.
Potatoes: Planted All Blues in the garden area and on the NE corner of the house. Found that those potatoes planted on the NE corner came out FAR less scabby, even though they were the ones that were planted from already scabby potatoes (leftover from last year), and the ones in the garden came from brand new seed potatoes (disease free). I am seeing the biggest differences the sites are soil (near house they were planted in very sandy soil, garden is more like dirt), and sun exposure (those near house would get sun early then be done for the day, those in garden wouldn't get sun until late but then would get afternoon heat). Also discovered that the cardboard does keep down weeds, but encourages roly polys and slugs. Guck.
Sweet potatoes: Harvested maybe 1 pound of these - again, smally, stringy tubers. Very flavorless when cooked, hardly worth the time to scrub and harvest. Had an ingenious thought when harvesting though - saved the plants as I pulled them, and plunked them into an empty peanut jar of water at work to see if I can resprout roots. This, at least, would prevent me from dumping more $ into the 'seed' potatoes than I get in return, if it works. Also noticed a dramatic improvement in plant size in the plants that I was able to put in the ground from a huge piece of old 'root potato' (the leftover seed potato that I just threw in the ground too at the end). Perhaps should alter the process a bit and put the little piece of potato that is sprouting into the dirt, not just cut off a plant an re-root it.

LUKEN: Wow, he is getting so fast on our little hikes. And so curious! We have been going on "bughunts" lately - wandering around, trying to find bugs, whatever kind of bugs, to touch and talk about and watch. Really working on trying to focus on not ALL bugs being 'owie bugs' (after he was stung last month for the first time by a yellowjacket, all bugs became 'owie bugs'). Focusing, too, on the difference between pine and fir trees. Today it was very interesting to just let him wander at his own pace, he would stop every few feet along the roadway, check out something new (a plant, a rock, sticks, etc.) and then run to catch up. Rhys managed to get ahead of us, and when we found her she was gnawing on a very old dead deer carcass. The site of her pulling around the carcass really seemed to give Luken something to think about. I don't know if he was scared exactly, but he'd never seen it before. When I told him 'yukky', he didn't think twice, though it was very ripe smelling and that may have contributed.