My garden hasn't been abundantly productive this year.
Okay, that isn't completely accurate. My Anna loved picking fresh blueberries throughout the early part of summer.
The lone bell pepper plant that survived the last winter continues to show us that it has purpose. The two bell pepper plants next to that old timer are just starting to imitate their elder.
Four of our six tomato vines yielded a few tomatoes each.
The little "hot" pepper bush may have taken it's sweet time growing, but the peppers that I'm getting from it now have been worth the wait.
As usual, I have way more basil than I could ever use.
I wish that I could say that about my zucchini. This picture doesn't do the plant justice. The leaves are huge and are a gorgeous shade of green. It would be the shining jewel of my entire garden if not for one little problem...it won't produce!
Everything started off fine. When the flowers bloomed, the pollinators got busy and did their thing. Soon there were beautiful, tiny zucchini growing. Then, just before they were big enough for me to pick, the ends got soft, yellow and just plain gross.
The horror has a name. It is called bloom rot.
Bloom rot is caused by a lack of calcium, so I powdered egg shells (courtesy of our hens) and added it to the soil. That worked long enough for us to harvest exactly one zucchini from the plant.
I sliced, battered and fried that precious green squash. The first bite prompted me to declare it the best zucchini in the world.
Oh my goodness...just the memory of that amazing perfection makes my mouth water.
Sadly, it was gone too soon and the plant wasn't in a rush to give another.
Another dose of powdered eggshells didn't help. Oh, the leaves kept flourishing, but I'm not growing the plant for its leaves! Worse, it's size is becoming an issue. I can no longer access the area behind the plant which means that the weeds are taking over that spot. So now I have to decide: do I try nurturing it again, or do I pull it up, put it in the compost pile and get that part of my garden ready for a fall crop?
The horror has a name. It is called bloom rot.
Bloom rot is caused by a lack of calcium, so I powdered egg shells (courtesy of our hens) and added it to the soil. That worked long enough for us to harvest exactly one zucchini from the plant.
I sliced, battered and fried that precious green squash. The first bite prompted me to declare it the best zucchini in the world.
Oh my goodness...just the memory of that amazing perfection makes my mouth water.
Sadly, it was gone too soon and the plant wasn't in a rush to give another.
Another dose of powdered eggshells didn't help. Oh, the leaves kept flourishing, but I'm not growing the plant for its leaves! Worse, it's size is becoming an issue. I can no longer access the area behind the plant which means that the weeds are taking over that spot. So now I have to decide: do I try nurturing it again, or do I pull it up, put it in the compost pile and get that part of my garden ready for a fall crop?
The answer may be in a passage from the Bible.
Jesus spoke this parable: "A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he came out looking for fruit on it but did not find any. He said to the gardener, 'Look here, for three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree and found none. Cut it down. Why should it clutter up the ground? In answer the man said, 'Sir, leave it another year while I tend the ground and fertilize it; then perhaps it will bear fruit. If not, it shall be cut down.' " Luke 13:6-9
Okay, I'll give it one more chance. If another round of extra care will help it produce results, then it can stay until the season ends. If not, then it's time to move on.
How do I apply this to the rest of my life? What other areas have I been tending without receiving results? Where am I wasting my energy?
I think it's time that I clear my "garden."
I think it's time that I clear my "garden."
