The Ornamental Vegetable Garden: August 2018

I've heard that phrase "dog days of summer" as long as I can remember. But I always assumed it had something to do with being dog tired and hot. Finally, I looked it up. According to Wonderopolis, it's called that because the Romans "associated the hottest days of summer with the star Sirius." Sirius, as you might know, is the brightest star in the Canis Major (large dog) constallation. Space.com further defines it as the period July 3 through August 11 "when the Dog Star, Sirius, rises in conjunction (or nearly so) with the sun."

So, there you have it. Today is the last dog day, technically. But by the common interpretation that I'd always believed in, this whole summer has been dog days. And we're still not getting any rain to speak of. The nice grass is brown and crunchy, and the crab grass and weeds have taken over.

The garden is dry, but supplements of well watering has kept things growing, if not necessarily thriving.

Tomatoes have grown erratically, and produced poorly. I'm sure it's due to the extreme heat. There are obviously other factors as well, however, as is obvious looking at these two 'Missouri Pink Love Apple' plants. The one on the right is much taller and greener with larger leaves. Neither has produced much fruit.

'Mr. Stripey', 'Missouri Pink Love Apple', 'Carbon' and 'Copia' tomatoes

'Marketmore' cucumbers

The cucumbers have produced well, as have the cherry tomatoes.

'Sun Gold'

The okra has produced well enough even though I've not paid it much attention. It's much shorter this year than in years past, and I planted much less.

I've decided not to plant okra next year - or any year in which soybeans are the crop planted up near the garden, which will be odd numbered years. The incidence of Japanese beetles seems to be so much greater on soybeans, and their third favorite plant next to roses and soybeans is okra. It's too difficult to keep the hordes off the plants without spraying toxic pesticides, so I've decided it's not worth the trouble.

The cucumber plants are drying/dying out at the bottoms, but the growing ends running across the top of the trellis still look good and are still producing good fruits.

Alas, the lima beans are not setting fruit any better than the tomatoes. I guess they don't like the extreme heat either. Just like the spring peas, this year I planted lots more limas, and just like the peas, I've harvested a fraction of what I was expecting.

While they have lots of foliage, just like the runner beans I planted on the cucumber trellis, the flower spikes are setting very sparse fruits.

I may not be getting many more melons. While there are a few small green ones still on the healthy vines, somebody else finds them tasty as well and gets to them before I do.

Speaking of creatures, I've been seeing lots of shallow depressions about 6 or 7 inches in diameter showing up in the spaces that have already been harvested and which have turned very dry.

From a quick internet search for possible culprits, I've settled on birds taking dust baths. I have noticed that a small flock of birds takes off from that area of the garden whenever I approach, but I've not actually seen them creating these divots. Still, I'm feeling quite certain that's what's happening.

The Zi Su plants are kind of pretty, but I don't find them edible, and their leaves are too large and don't hold up when cut, so they don't have any use at all beyond keeping the ground covered.

Over in the cut flower garden, the Cardinal basil is blooming and looks very nice as long as I keep plenty of water on it. Unlike the Zi Su (which certainly won't get planted in my garden again), it does very well in flower arrangements. Also, it tastes good.

One of the Lupines I planted this year has decided to send up a flower stalk. I hope these that I put in this year will survive to be company next season for the one that came up from last year and put on such a beautiful show early in the spring.

The cut flowers have saved the brutal year from being a disappointment in the garden. I've gotten many pretty bouquets.

Queen Lime Zinnias, 'Pat Austin' Rose, 'Acropolis' Rose, Globe Amaranth

Mexican Sunflower, 'Cardinal' Basil, Queen Lime Zinnias, Globe Amaranth,

'Black Pearl' Pepper, purple Yarrow, China Aster

'Cardinal' Basil, Queen Lime Zinnias, Globe Amaranth, 'Black Pearl' Pepper, Marigold,

Purple Yarrow, Chili Pepper, 'Shazam!' Rose, 'Acropolis' Rose, Delphinium, Perovskia

(same as above)

Queen Lime Zinnia, Baptisia foliage, Rhubarb flower, Purple Yarrow,

'Black Pearl' Pepper, Globe Amaranth, 'Julia Child' Rose, 'Cardinal' Basil

The rose garden has grown up, and if not for those damned Japanese beetles, would be chock full of beautiful blooms.

The beetles don't seem to bother the red varieties, but the pretty lemon 'Winter Sun' and gorgeous lavender 'Neptune' can't catch a break. It has meant I cut the buds as they appear to bring in, and those bushes never get a chance to show blooms. Hopefully, they'll keep blooming past the time that the beetles are active and will be loaded with pretty flowers in the fall.

Center: Perovskia; upper right: 'Grande Amore' rose

Foreground: 'Shazam!'; background: 'Pat Austin'

I won't ever buy any more David Austin roses. I got two plants year before last, and the best feature of 'Charles Darwin' is its delicate foliage. 'Pat Austin' has the most goregous orange blooms, but they're borne on flimsy stems that droop, so that their heads usually face the ground. Both plants have thin, flimsy, arching stems.