Welcome to where I am, where my kitchen's always messy, a pot's (or a poet) always about to boil over, a dog is always begging to be fed. Drafts of poems on the counter. Windows filled with leaves. Wind. Clouds moving over the mountains. If you like poetry, books, and music--especially dog howls when a siren unwinds down the hill-- you'll like it here.


MY NEW AUTHOR'S SITE, KATHRYNSTRIPLINGBYER.COM, THAT I MYSELF SET UP THROUGH WEEBLY.COM, IS NOW UP. I HAD FUN CREATING THIS SITE AND WOULD RECOMMEND WEEBLY.COM TO ANYONE INTERESTED IN SETTING UP A WEBSITE. I INVITE YOU TO VISIT MY NEW SITE TO KEEP UP WITH EVENTS RELATED TO MY NEW BOOK.


MY NC POET LAUREATE BLOG, MY LAUREATE'S LASSO, WILL REMAIN UP AS AN ARCHIVE OF NC POETS, GRADES K-INFINITY! I INVITE YOU TO VISIT WHEN YOU FEEL THE NEED TO READ SOME GOOD POEMS.

VISIT MY NEW BLOG, MOUNTAIN WOMAN, WHERE YOU WILL FIND UPDATES ON WHAT'S HAPPENING IN MY KITCHEN, IN THE ENVIRONMENT, IN MY IMAGINATION, IN MY GARDEN, AND AMONG MY MOUNTAIN WOMEN FRIENDS.




Sunday, June 28, 2009

I Got the Garden Blues

Maybe it's just that time of summer, the spinach long gone, along with the broccoli, the asparagus, and the lettuce turning bitter (though the guinea pig still loves it). Maybe it's the cabbage worms (see the cabbage below) or whatever bug has done a job on our Red Russian Kale. The okra plants look puny. Worst of all are the tomatoes, one of my heirlooms looking like it was ready to bust out of its cage, little tomatoes a -settin' on, and then yesterday afternoon, there it was looking limp as I felt in the 90 degree heat. No amount of water seems to enliven it. I feel devastated and am taking it personally. Why'd you want to do that to me, after I been so good to you? The other tomatoes don't look like they're thriving either. Anybody have any advice? Any good blues songs to sing to the tomatoes to make them perk up?




The blueberries have been coming on strong, but we have to get out early to beat the birds. No cherries this year.




On the other hand, my friend doris davenport will be glad to know that the morning glories are doing just fine. They will be blooming soon.


And the golden chard, which I have in the garden and in pots, still makes me smile.


And the coneflower patch is crowded, blooms pushing their way to the top.


But I want my heirloom tomatoes back. This is the first year I've tried heirlooms and I so wanted them to work. Every time I look at them, I want to cry me a river.

6 comments:

Carol Murdock said...

Kaye, the pictures don't reflect things in a bad light but I'll take your word for it! We water with well water which helps when their is no rain and you have to water. You might try putting four tablespoons of Parsons Ammonia in a gallon of water and water the maters with it. Lots of water in this heat is the only thing that works.We lost our watermelons. :(

Ali said...

I live in the city and have a crappy inch the size of a postage stamp - I am having BIG garden envy!

Vicki Lane said...

Kay, all I know to do for tomatoes is to keep them suckered and to remove any lower foliage that might want to touch the ground. And water, of course. And mulch, to hold in the moisture and help keep the blight away.

Gardens always have successes and failures -- your chard is beautiful -- I just realized I forgot to plant any - DRAT!

Kathryn Stripling Byer said...

Hi Vicki and Carol, thanks for the advice. I fear we already have blight on one of my heirlooms. Probably we should just write off our tomatoes this year and plant in a different location next time.
Alison, I have sworn I will live in a city before I die, so you see, I have city envy!

off-line said...

Wow! I would grow that chard just for the beauty of it. Never thought of putting it in a pot. Now that's classy chard, I'm going to try that.

Hope your tomatoes perk up. Ours aren't looking to good either.

Kathryn Stripling Byer said...

Hi Pat, what I'd now love to try is the chard with the red stalks, but I couldn't find any. I'm going to plant some Red Russian Kale in pots in August because its supposed to turn rather colorful in cool weather. Alas, our tomatoes are done for and we might as well pull them up and destroy them. Sad.