Saturday Update

Woohoo -- I can upload more than one image! I think I may be getting the hang of this blog thing!

Well, here's the garden today. If you go back to last Saturday's image, you'll see how the beans have grown by leaps and bounds. I love beans for that reason. I'm going to plant another container with just wax beans tomorrow. I'll add more marigolds around the outside to deter the bean beetles, which may or may not be a problem here (they were a huge problem in Indiana and the marigolds helped quite a bit), but they're pretty, and they can't hurt, right? Too bad they don't smell better ...

The Crazy Daisy has settled in and is growing well. It's probably almost twice the size it was when I planted it. I'll probably be able to pick a few leaves of baby lettuce next Saturday, and I'm looking forward to that.

I received notice from Burpee that my tomatoes and herbs have shipped and are scheduled to be delivered on Tuesday. I'll try to leave work on time so that I can get them planted right away.

Tomorrow, along with planting beans, I'm also going to dig up the strip of dirt between the hedges and my patio to plant the tall red and lime-green zinnias. I'm also going to head to the local nursery to buy a trowel (for digging up the strip) and a cool, non-self-watering planter for the herbs, since they do better if they're stressed from time to time by lack of water. Who knew? The nursery opens at 8:00, so I'll be able to work outside in relative peace before the sun gets too warm.

When I moved here, I didn't have room for my baker's rack. I put it on the patio with the intention of putting plants on the shelves, and I think I'll try the herbs there to see how they do. Guess I'll need a watering can, too, since I'll have to water the pots frequently when it gets really hot here. Right now I'm watering the containers with the hose from my Python aquarium cleaner. I take off the part that goes in the tank, so there's no worry about contaminating the fish with anything, although with the muck they're swimming in right now, I don't see how anything could make it worse. I'm having horrible algae problems, and the Algon can't even keep up with it. Guess I have to take out everything and give it a good scrubbing to get rid of some of the spores. I can't move it anywhere else -- my apartment gets good light everywhere!

That's it for now -- I'm in the middle of making a bunch of thank-you cards, and I'm going to try to get more of them finished tonight. Four down, eighteen to go ...