Ask Not For Whom The Bells Toll...

Just be glad it's not for you or me... July, 2011, saw records being broken for heat all over the country and Oklahoma won with the hottest average for the month EVER recorded in the United States. It is a record that I just as soon would not have been smack dab in the middle of and watching my garden being roasted. My good day cucumbers that started out so well are DED dead...

Before... I was having fun hunting the little baby cukes getting their start towards growing to make my day, my salads day. At about the 2oth straight 100 degree F. day Norman was put on water rationing and we were cut to even day watering and the soaker hoses and sprinklers could only be run on our day before 9 a.m. and after 6 p.m. so I did a lot of evening watering.





This picture I took today... just 51 days later. The good day cucumbers, besides trying to survive the heat, were defeated by a cut in the hose that I didn't find for four days. I had been fussed at to stay in out of the heat with all the medical crap that I had going on. I would go turn on the water to the soaker hose that I had run under some hedges, the sunflowers and the good day and bad day cucumbers. When things started looking not so good I got out and investigated and found the leak in the hose. Very little water made it to the plants for six days.


The bad day cucumbers getting their start. I have had a lot of fun doing the planting by the signs that Tipper over at Blind Pig And The Acorn started three years ago. I've always worked hard trying to insure that both groups got the same treatment, both in watering and keeping weeds and grass from taking nutrients from the plants so between the heat and me not checking the plants closer and not finding the hose problem really made me feel bad because both groups didn't get the same fair shake.


This picture I took today. These plants have survived, but barely. The break in the hose was further away and so these plants got their fair share of water. I found two cucumbers when I was looking at the plants today when I was out taking photos. I will probably say something on down the line about the cucumbers but this will be my last 'official' farm report because of the demise of the good day plants.

I was going to show you the flowers and how they are doing but I think I will make that my next post. I want to do some comparison photos for them also so I will work on that because I really do want to share with you all and help you see how decimating the heat was not only on the veggies but on the flowers. These posts will be somewhat depressing but I'm also trying to explore the optimism that all who love to garden must find to keep on keeping on with what we love to do when weather extremes mess with us...

Does that sound grandiose???

Dag Nab It All...

These are cucumbers that I picked a couple of days ago. The one on the left that is reddish looking had been hiding real good. I'm curious to see if it tastes 'woody' like okra that is too big. I'll let you know.

What I was dag nabbin' it all about was my GI. I called yesterday to make an appointment to find out the results of the biopsy and she made the appointment on Aug. 11th... I asked why so long because at the hospital they said the doctor would get the results in two to three days. The girl said 'oh they have to do several different stains for the tests the doctor ordered'. Well, bull pucky. I figure he's gone on his vacation and they didn't want to say that the doctor would be out of the office when they know they have a worried old crotchety woman on the other end of the phone. So no results until that time. My sister Sue, who is a pediatric nurse practitioner, said he must not be thinking it's the big C word or they would have expedited all of the tests so maybe no news is good news. That is how I've got to look at it to stay somewhat sane and not become a total blithering idiot.

Monday I go see my orthopede to find out options for the torn ligament in my hip so at least I can get something settled in my head about that and barring any other idiocies that my body decides to pull on me it will then be hurry up and wait for biopsy results.

It's hotter than the dickens here in Oklahoma... I know it's a good excuse to stay in but I'm getting cabin fever. I think today is the 29th day of +100 F. heat here in Oklahoma. Unfortunately the heat cap over Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, etc. is moving slowly, and I mean slowly to the east. Am I the only person that thinks our weather has gotten really wacky in the last 20 years? Used to be you'd pretty much know when spring, summer, fall and winter was going to come around. Now it seems like it's a crap shoot like this year we seemed to go from winter to summer with the early heat.

I'll try to come up with something other than medical ails and how hot it is on my next post. I swear I do have other things to talk about that are way more interesting. Thank you for hanging in there with me...

Just Messing Around...

I spotted sunflowers coming on out the back door and had to get my camera. I wanted to share the stages that I saw with you all. You know I'm stupid about growing things and that each stage is fascinating to me. You also know I haven't been inspired to do much of anything lately so I took this urge as a good sign...


Aleta, I know they are hard to see so I managed to get a close up on one of those shy little cucumbers so maybe if you see what you are looking for it will make it easier to find...

The little ones spring from the base of the flower and as they get bigger the flower part gets smaller and falls off, kinda like a baby's umbilical cord except no blood or labor pains for the flower, at least as far as we know.

I'm practicing with my focusing thanks to a friend in England that is encouraging me.



This is a sunflower bud... I was so excited, Caroline, to get those tiny hairs on the leaves covering the bud and peeling back to begin the reveal.














This bud is further along and you can start to see the swirls that are unfolding. Again, I was so happy to get the little hairs and the veins in the parts that are peeling back to free the sunflower inside. I don't think they are called leaves but I don't know what to call them so leaves it is until someone enlightens me.


And speaking of enlightenment...













This sunflower is seeking the light! Kind of like some of us trying to turn our face to the sun. I caught this flower coming out of it's shell in a manner of speaking.















This is a little more of a 'face on' photo. It is fascinating to me how the petals are peeling back a little at a time, kind of like peeking out at the world to check and make sure that it wants to come on out and share it's beauty with us mere mortals...

Caroline thank you for encouraging me over my focusing frustrations. Dar, thank you for posting your beautiful flower photos and making me want to share also.

God I love being alive to see these wonders... even with all the problems and fears I'm slogging through now I would not have wanted to miss this little series, tiny little moments of beauty that remind me to cherish life.

The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

No... Not the movie. My day.

Do you ever feel that you just can't catch a break (in a manner of speaking)?
I got up at 9 a.m. this morning after not getting to sleep until about 6 a.m. and got around to go to my doctor for my blood test results. Got in my truck and saw this split running across about a third of the windshield with decorative flares up and down. I got a rock chip in my windshield about a year ago and thought I'd get it glued one of these days. I keep my truck locked with the windows up and it got so hot that the windshield split from the expansion caused by the heat.

Great way to start my day. I went by the glass shop after the doctor appointment and it will be $165.00 to replace the windshield. Groan..... this will wait until next month. This is the ugly.

Now for the bad... The blood work was not wonderful. A couple of the liver enzymes had settled back down but the one the doctor is particularly concerned with is higher. So they are going to schedule a liver biopsy. I had hoped they would call this afternoon and tell me when they had the procedure scheduled but no word as of 5 p.m. I told them the first available appointment was fine with me, the sooner the better and less time to stress. It will be done by scope but they have to knock me out to do it and they only do it early in the day so Carol will have to get up and go with me so she can drive my medicated self back home. I will let you all know when they let me know because it has been so much less stress knowing you all are supporting me and lifting me up.

The good? How about some baby cucumber pictures?



Right there, just to the left and below the yellow flower. Lonicera, I'm going to have to practice the technique you told me about halfway holding down the shutter button but I think that will cure my focus problem. It was so hot outside when I took these just a bit ago that I had sweat dripping inside of 5 minutes.








Here's another baby... Both the good and bad day vines are loaded up with babies so it looks like we are going to have plenty of cucumbers to have in salad or put with onions in vinegar for a cool, crisp side dish if we don't want to make up salad.

If you get a chance drop over to Blind Pig And The Acorn and check out Tipper's blog. She's gotten me back to posting by getting me involved again this year in the good day, bad day planting experiment.

And thank you all again for helping me to realize that scary things shared become much less scary. I love and appreciate each of you for supporting me.

Farm Report Time...

Once again this year Tipper over at The Blind Pig And The Acorn is having a gardening by the signs experiment. This year we are growing cucumbers.

This photo is of the good day cukes. Three of the five seeds I planted on the "good" day, May 16th, came up. Obviously the one on the right is the 'champeen' of this group so far. All the pictures in this post were taken on the 9th of June so this is about 3 weeks after they were planted.



These are the "bad" day cukes. They were planted on the barren sign of Sagittarius on the 18th of May, a couple of days after the "good" planting day.

As you can see only two of the five seeds sprouted and they are quite a bit smaller.

Of course, since it is difficult to tell size without some sort of reference, it is now time for the 'shoe' picture...




The 'bad' day cucumbers with my size 8/9 flip flop...
















The 'good' day cucumbers with my other flip flop.

Please ignore the grass creeping into the photo. I'm working on it. This ground is one of my pocket plant areas in the yard and had never been tilled for garden area so it will have to be closely watched through the growing season but that will give me something to do with my hands...

Pulling the grass.


Thanks again, Tipper, for doing your growing by the signs experiment. Besides being very interesting it is also therapeutic for me. You need to go check out what's going on over at The Blind Pig And The Acorn. Besides growing tips for the garden you can hear some great music and try out some really good recipes and reading some fun and interesting stories.

Y'all come back now, ya hear!