Well, it’s been a difficult planting season! After all my planning, it seemed like everything went kaput the last few weeks. The week I’d intended to plant (starting May 15, our “average last frost date”) turned cold and rainy. I knew that there was questionable weather coming, but due to our plans for a trip I needed to get things into the ground. Also, the things that were “hardening off” in the cold frame were getting too big for the cold frame, and at one time a couple of things were damaged when the cold frame fell on them during watering. I was tired of them being in the cold frame, so I went ahead and planted.
Planting the tomatoes and peppers went pretty well. Within a couple of days after planting it was quite windy and rainy, and they sure got beat up. A couple of the tomatoes snapped in half right where they had been tied up.
Squash and cucumbers went in the ground also, but got beat around in the wind a bit as well, not looking very happy. I lost the cucumbers and some squash. At least it is early enough to replant and they should be fine. I also have seen a lot of cucumber beetles, so have begun to spray for those with spinosad.
Now we’ve returned from vacation, and with so many plans to work in the garden immediately, I came home very sick, and won’t be able to get out to the garden. It will just have to wait.
I think most plants will survive, but they sure aren’t in the best condition. The peppers were damaged by hail, and many leaves were left dangling or in bad shape. The tomatoes are small and thin, but still alive. The cucumber seeds I planted after the first ones died did not come up. The squash that was still alive and in fairly good condition before I left have been chewed up, presumably by the cucumber beetles that are still everywhere. There are weeds everywhere as well. Hopefully soon I’ll feel well enough to get back to work!
This week many gardeners in the Fort Collins area were plagued with a large amount of marble-sized hail and lost a lot of their crops. Fortunately, the hail here wasn’t as bad and my plants aren’t much worse than they were already. I guess all the locals are now pretty much in the same boat!