And I say brief, because, well... there's just not a lot to report on. As you can see, the heat, lack of rain, and bugs have done a fine job of bringing our summer garden to an end. There is a tomato plant in the blue tub on the right of the photo. It has yet to produce any tomatoes. There's also a large tomato plant at the back of the garden that has yet to produce a single tomato, either. Just too hot for the flowers to set.
The tomatoes in front of the chicken house are doing their best... the front bed has given us 2 tomatoes. The back bed has given us LOADS of them, and has been by far the best producing bed this year. And don't let those bright green zinnia plants fool you -- they look like they're doing good from a distance, but when you look closer you can see that the grasshoppers have eaten off all of the bloom tops. No flowers. Just naked stems.
There are three okra plants, not quite knee high. (You can see them in the first photo, just to the left of the blue container.) I've clipped a quarter pound of okra off of them, total. Hopefully they keep on producing, because if we can't even grow okra in Texas, there's something seriously wrong... There's one pod there now that needs harvesting. The okra gets watered daily too, but is fairly wilted down in the afternoon from the heat.
The aphids won the battle on the cucumber beds... ...and the patty pan & eight ball zuc bed. I left a couple of the fruit in the bed to fully mature, so I can pull some seeds from them. I thought it might be interesting to see what they produce next year.
The pepper plants are loaded w/ little peppers, but they don't manage to get much larger than a golf ball before the heat shrivels them up. And this is with daily watering.
Here is what is left of my beautiful zucchini bed.
And when it's 106*, I feel pretty much like this.
The rattlesnake pole beans that I had such high expectations for never really made much of themselves. Of course, the grasshoppers chomped them down faster than they could grow... eventually I just stopped watering what was left of the bare stems. And how about those "sunny" sunflowers in the background along the fence... aren't they cheery?
The garden is loaded w/ garden spiders, so at least they've been successful this year. (See the little male garden spider on the backside of her web? Alan noticed him in the photo.) If the little fella is lucky, she won't kill him for being on her web..... ha!
Here is a grasshopper. I could take at least a thousand photos of grasshoppers, and not repeat a single critter. When I walk through the garden, they bounce off of my head, ricochet off of my shirt, zing past my ears. (JKinColorado, care to walk through the garden w/ me!? *hehehee*)
There are praying mantis everywhere, all various sizes and colors. This guy is nearly 3" long. I like his camo!
Time for another dip in the pool... Bottoms Up!!
Aww hun!That's sad.If I could send all this rain down to you....I do hope there is a light at the end of the tunnel
Posted by: Tanya S | July 26, 2011 at 11:52 AM
What a sad little post...all that work! Makes me want to cry! I have a friend in Del Rio, Tx and it is her personal cause to keep at least her last few zinnias alive in the heat no matter what! (Sadly, I think she's losing.)
Meanwhile, here in the Pacific NW, our gardens are stunted due to excess wet and unseasonably cool temps.
Posted by: Lynne | July 23, 2011 at 01:34 PM
Wow, your garden looks like the remnants of the Scorched Earth Policy. :( Not even okra? That is so sad.
I have lots of things growing here. Ragweed mostly.
I"m with your Dad. Except I'd add pack up the critters adn the nice chicken coop.
Stay strong, honey!
Posted by: Shala | July 23, 2011 at 09:53 AM
Your poor, poor garden!! :(
Posted by: Karrie Baker | July 23, 2011 at 06:47 AM
Your pictures make me so sad...all that work, and no produce to use. The weather has been hot even in PA, yesterday saw 110, yuck, little too hot even for a sun loving gal like me. Enjoy the pool and spend some time inside, crafting perhaps, Hint, hint,lol
Posted by: Sally | July 23, 2011 at 04:12 AM
I know I've said before and your mom and dad have said it many times before. . . . . wait for it. . . . . Time to come home! Pack your S**T and pack Alan's S**T and get home! LOL
At least you were able to put up lots of your produce last year and can now eat that and think about your future gardens.
Posted by: AL Wight | July 22, 2011 at 04:30 PM
I know your heat has topped ours, but we broke our heat index record up here in MN - 113 or 119. So, I must have imagined that your post heading was "grief" garden update, lol! We had so much rain to start that we have the opposite problem - now it's too hot to go out and chop it all down.
Posted by: cheryl R | July 22, 2011 at 02:25 PM
Anna, these photos are so sad. :( I know you love your garden and work so hard to plant, water, and harvest it. Boo.
Posted by: Shellie Daniel | July 22, 2011 at 08:13 AM
so sorry about your garden!! Here in CT the bugs except flies seems to be normal and the chickens are taking care of them. The flies are going to carry our horses away and everyone in the state is starting to mix chemicals to win the battle. today i am trying dried minced garlic in their stalls- they already get some in their food but not enough to win this battle.Good luck with saving what you can. we are going to plant some tomatoes this week and grow them in the greenhouse in buckets-hopefully.
Posted by: kim | July 22, 2011 at 05:49 AM
So sorry for your loss. What a shame! We hit 100 degrees here in the Cleveland, Ohio area today and that is the hottest in 15 years. No pool for us but we have some very nice a/c! Just saw our first Japanese beetle of the season and they are attacking my beautiful flowers. Did I mention that I hate bugs? Your pics, especially that spider, just make my skin crawl. Take care and thank you for taking time to give us an update. Wish you had better news. Robin B.
Posted by: Robin Barwacz | July 21, 2011 at 05:11 PM
I will not dwell on the obvious disaster scenes and the knowlege that over half of the country is in nearly as bad a condition. The one bright spot would seem to be the pool. maybe the whole shebang can be replanted in september? for an attempt at a fall crop. Cloudy and breezy mid 70's for a few days and then around 80 for a while. Headed for Georgetown Lake in Montana on Tuesday for a little fishing and some Old Western Opera and a batch of the best selection of candy between Seattle and Minneapolis........ I only go for the whisky and the women....( a glass of beer and a steak with mother before a play at the theatre)....Love, Dad I'll be takein' my long johns too, it gets chilly at 7000 ft. in the Montana Rockies.
Posted by: DK Wight | July 21, 2011 at 02:03 PM
So sorry about your lovely garden but I love your upbeat attitude. Had to chuckle over the comment on the dried up squash-days I have felt like that as well. 100 degrees here this afternoon and the lawn is beginning to get brown and crispy. Hope it cools down and you get rain soon!!
Posted by: Bev J. | July 21, 2011 at 12:40 PM
Oh Anna, your garden makes me feel sad. I'm so sorry that the drought and heat has been so hard on you this year! How awful.
Hugs!
Posted by: Sharli | July 21, 2011 at 11:58 AM
I'm so sorry about what was a beautiful garden. All your hard work and high expectations dashed by bugs & heat. Makes you really fortunate that, unlike a hundred years ago, we can still go to the supermarket. I know that doesn't help much as that produce sure isn't the same as homegrown. Try to stay cool in the pool. Big Hugs. P.S. What use are gross grasshoppers? I hate them.
Posted by: Troy Louise | July 21, 2011 at 11:46 AM
:(
This is the best sad face I could muster. I am so sorry about your and Alan's hard work in that garden. Any chance of an early fall garden?
Posted by: Sherri D. | July 21, 2011 at 11:21 AM
Oh My!! :(
Posted by: Tamara W | July 21, 2011 at 10:26 AM
Sorry to report that PA isn't any better, Anna! I feel for you as there has been so much love put into your garden. By tomorrow I will loose my squash and cucumbers, but they have produced better this year than last. They just can't handle the 100+ temps. Keeping you in thoughts.
Posted by: Mary Anne K. | July 21, 2011 at 10:05 AM
Anna,
I just couldn't believe your sad, sad, photos!! What a sorry state of affairs. I am sure you will have better luck with your autumn garden. I guess a positive way to look at it would be that you can now use what would have been garden time for craft time. :-)
My father's garden suffered this year too. It was just too wet to get started and now it is too late. He is doing a couple of container tomato plants and a few squash. But that is it.
You can keep those grasshoppers and spiders safely tucked in Texas. I would think your chickens are gorging themselves on the grasshoppers! True?
Sending hugs and prayers for rain your way! Manetta
Posted by: Manetta Deggelman | July 21, 2011 at 09:42 AM
This is so sad, Anna...you work SO hard on your garden, getting it all planted just right...but this is happening all over. I heard people are even selling off their cattle because there's nothing to feed them, and no water! Up here in Idaho, it's still cool - and some gardens aren't making it for reasons opposite of yours. What a year! Hang in there. Maybe the prayers of the mantis' will help!! XOXO Jeanne
Posted by: Jeanne in Idaho | July 21, 2011 at 09:33 AM
So sorry your lovely green garden got baked to a crackly crunch. I guess heat over took everything, even with lots of water. Here in Central Florida, we "wear our air" it is so humid. I hate that icky sticky dipped in glue feeling. At least we got rain and are greening up nicely. Put out most of the fires. Rain will come some day to Texas.
Posted by: kathynruss | July 21, 2011 at 09:29 AM
How disappointing Anna that Mother Nature was in such an incredibly bad mood this season. I know how much you enjoy your garden, but you have a good attitude about it and I know you'll be harvesting again real soon!
Posted by: Jean Cross | July 21, 2011 at 08:54 AM
Ca-reeeeep-py! I would totally freak out, I hate grasshoppers and praying mantis. They just creep me out!.
I'm sorry about your poor garden. Hopefully your fall garden will do better. :)
Posted by: jenw | July 21, 2011 at 08:36 AM
Awwww, so sad. Sorry about that heat. At least here in the DC area we get the humidity, too (did I say that out loud?) and you can even SEE THE AIR, so the plants at least have a shot at survival.
I'd never seen an okra plant before, not that I'd eat the stuff, but just sayin'. They make great stamps, by the way. :)
And you can keep your grasshoppers and spideys. I know they are part of nature, but I don't need to like them. I have no plans to walk through your garden! :)
How do the chickens fare with this heat? Do you have fans for their house?
Thanks, and stay cool!
Posted by: leslie (crookedstamper) | July 21, 2011 at 07:01 AM
I'm so sorry. Your garden was so lush and beautiful and you put so much work into it. I've often thought of the pictures of yours when I've been out in mine. Fortunately, my plants are still green and growing but the flowers don't set. I don't know if it's the heat or lack of pollunation. I haven't seen a single bee this year. That's very scary.
Posted by: Candy | July 21, 2011 at 06:55 AM
Oh Anna,
I'm so sorry about your garden. I see that the other NC girls have already told you that we're having a bad year too. Actually the soil at my house in eastern NC is sandy and nematode infested so it's never really a good year for growing things. I guess that's why I enjoy reading about your (usually) beautiful garden so much. My suggestion is that you catch some of those grasshoppers and go fishing! Of course, it looks like it would have to be a BIG fish to tackle those hoppers!
Posted by: Susan | July 21, 2011 at 06:40 AM
We have lost our gardens as well this year, we have battled heat and drought as well here in Eastern NC! What has grown had been promplty eaten up by the deer, turkey and my chickens and Guineas. Next year I hope to fence off the garden better and do a smaller more managable plot. The squash bugs are relentless here, it's so discouraging to put in all that work, but I do enjoy the fruits of our labor when we get it!
Posted by: Tanya C. | July 21, 2011 at 05:43 AM
My garden looks like yours only it has looked like that since day 1. No matter how much we water, our garden did not produce much at all this year. We have gotten 3 tomatoes out of 8 tomato plants. 2 squash out of 2 squash plants. Oh well. There's always next year .... I'm so ready for fall.
Sherri in HOT NC
Posted by: Sherri | July 21, 2011 at 05:19 AM
How disheartening! I'm so very sorry to see your ravaged garden knowing full well how much love, sweat and tears went into it earlier this year. We ALL had such high hopes for it. I share in your disappointment. If I could only send you rain.
Posted by: Gabriela | July 21, 2011 at 05:02 AM
Oh, Anna. How disappointing. I feel your pain. I know how much labor you've put into your garden. I have a very small plot of zucchini & yellow squash. Hopefully one day soon I'll get to harvest something there - tiny little finger-size squash. I also planted just a few tomatoes in tubs. So far I've seen ONE tomato. It was green & about 1-1/2" across. Yesterday, it was GONE! Just gone! Aarrrgh!
Posted by: lacyquilter | July 21, 2011 at 04:58 AM
What a shame. After all your hard work and your poor garden didn't even survive past puberty. I hope your fall garden fairs better. About the only province that hasn't seen summer heat is B.C. and it is so cool in the mornings, the coats come out again. By 4 pm we take them off to enjoy a tad of warmth and pretend its summer. We would gladly share some of our rain, for a little more heat. But you can keep the bugs.
Posted by: NormaJ | July 21, 2011 at 04:50 AM
Oh my , your poor garden. If anyone could have got one to make a go of it in a hot dry summer, it would have been you. Now my wilting stuff looks lush! So SAD. :( Even your sunflowers.
We need rain, not just a sprinkle. Or at least a cool down. We have drained the 3 water barrels at the garden and will have to haul water if the rains do not come.
Anyone know agood rain dance Anna and I could use?
Enjoy the pool, stay as cool as possible and Big Sticky hugs.... :)
Posted by: Carol Dee | July 21, 2011 at 04:43 AM
Hi Anna! Here is London Ontario Canada the heat and humidity are setting record highs.
Today... 38 degrees celcius and then with the humidity factored in it up to 48-49 degrees celcius.
Hotter than he - double hockey sticks!!!
Janine
Stay Cool!!
Posted by: Janine | July 21, 2011 at 04:33 AM
Oh Anna! It breaks my heart to see these photos. It's as though your entire garden has been overbaked in a pizza oven. I guess that isn't too far from the truth.
Sending you virtual hugs. I hope that you will be able to make a go of your autumn garden.
How are all of your critters managing in the extreme heat?
Hugs!
Jennifer
Posted by: Jennifer Woodward | July 21, 2011 at 03:57 AM
That's awful Anna! Between the weather and all those bugs, your poor garden didn't have a chance. We have lost our garden in the past to hail and sometimes lack of water. Are you able to plant again when it cools down? I bet veggies will start getting pricey at the market too.
Posted by: Dee in N.H. | July 21, 2011 at 02:03 AM
Oh dear - how disheartening and discouraging, and tragic looking. Reading about your grasshoppers reminds me of one of the Little House books - might even be the Prairie one. I envy you your heat (some of it, at least!) but if that's the net result I'll keep our cool temperate climate. Even though it's grey and drizzly today - wet enough that I had to put shoes on to go out and fill up the bird feeders and rinse out the water dish.
Posted by: Sabrina | July 20, 2011 at 11:56 PM