Gardening

This is for notes on gardening in Indiana.

April

2021, April 1. The little white weed flowers in the lawn are out. They are easy to pluck out by seizing the flower stalks. The first dandelions appeared yesterday.

October

• 2020, October 5. We have not had a frost yet. The tomatoes are still going strong, and the okra, and the peppers. This year, all of those did well, except that the deer love okra leaves, and ate the peppers some too.

Summer squash didn't set fruit, though they bloomed and we did have one zucchini plant that yielded two squashes. Winter squash did well, except for getting hit by a blight in September. Pumpkins didn't set fruit, though they looked very healthy otherwise until blight hit. Cucumbers planted in September started growing very well. Cilantro and basil and oregano and strawberries did well. The beans did poorly, but they need better treatment. The ghost pepper did well, but the Carolina Reaper almost died. The Coolapeno and chile relleno peppers did okay, and the Hungarian, and the cayenne did extremely well, especially in pots,w here they are colorful. Nasturtiums did well.

November

• 2020. On November 8, we have had at least one hard freeze, but my hand smells like a hopheadery India Pale Ale. I picked a pint of hops, 2 months late and dried now, but still aromatic. With most leaves off, theyr're easier to pick too. And I picked some still-good pokeweed. And one cayenne pepper, protected by a hedge, is still blooming.

Tools

Bad back this week. I realized a cane is great for lawn care. You can use it to flip sticks great distances. Also, you can bend over leaning on it and pick weeds with no back strain. Didn't work for my 16yo, though-- too long a cane for her.

The sword part comes in useful, too.