Walls at Oaks Shopping Center

As of June 8, unlike the Uno site, there were no walls going up for buildings at Oaks Shopping Center.

There were other kinds of walls built at this site. There is a retaining wall parallel to Egypt Road. That can be seen in the foreground of the above photograph, just in front of the orange safety fence. 

Looking along Egypt Rd in the direction of Phoenixville, PA.

Above is looking at that same retaining wall from the other side of the safety fence.

There were two alcoves sculpted in the rear embankment on the site. Both of those alcoves can be seen in the backgrounds of each of the above photographs. I really don't know the functions of those alcove. Nor why one is much larger than the other.

There is another retaining wall along the site of the old railroad tracks that ran between the construction site and residential homes along Gumbes Road.

2.1"/53mm of rain fell on June 10 that can be seen here in the basin. I am sure that long wall will keep the residents yards from washing into the shopping center. 

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Early June Downpours Pack Punch

The growing season is just getting underway and last night there was a downpour. Followed by another at 13:30. Downpours can deliver a powerful punch. Weather can knock-out a garden before its prime. Between the downpours, I ran outside to assess the damage.

Above is a well established Black Eyed Stella Daylily with petals thinned by a rain beating.

This Clematis x durandii was wet but came through without needing the cut man.

The remaining blooming flowers were down for a technical. So I wondered over to the raised bed rings to see if the vegetables got their ears pinned back.

Lettuce was still holding their heads high. Prepared for what ever nature may unload on them in later rounds. 

The above lettuce is Red Rosie purchased from Johnny's Select Seeds for the 2012 growing season. I have been taking some outside leaves for salads over the last week. It tastes delicious. Nothing better than lettuce from the bed directly to the salad bowl. Except for tomatoes directly from the vine to my lips.

This is Buttercrunch. It, too, was purchased at Johnny's for the 2012 growing season.

The potatoes planted in the lazy bed are showing signs of growth.

After I covered the potatoes with sod, grass side down, I covered the bed with shredded tree leaves collected and shredded last autumn. There are five or six plants that have pushed their way to the sunlight.

On the whole, the garden is in good shape this early June. All one can do is be prepared. And, hope for the best.

I hope it will be a champion season.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

A Heavy Wet Hot Blanket is Difficult to Breath Under

Weather Underground

Summer arrived on 20 June. Counting 20 June the temperature has risen above 90ªF/32ºC on six of the eleven days to the end of the month.

It is hot.

Then there is the humidity.

I worked outdoors changing billboards for most of 34 years. Back in the 70's and early 80's, when we were still drinking at lunch, I remember the crew leaving an air conditioned bar after 4 or 5 cold mugs of beer. As soon as we walked through the doorway into the sun, it felt as though a heavy wet hot blanket was dropped on us. It was hot, sticky, hard to breath and it felt like a we were each carrying a ton of bricks on our shoulders.

Some of those times the crew just turned around and went back into the bar until it was time to drive the trucks back to the shop to clock out.

I don't miss working outside, at all!

www.wunderground.com

July is just around the corner.

There are 31 days in July.

Historically, of those 31 days the record high for the day has risen above 100ºF/38ºC on 17 of those 31 days.

I can't wait.

The heat is drying everything outdoors.

The grass is turning brown.

The garden needs to be watered frequently.

I guess it is a good thing the garden can't drive to the bar for lunch. It might never come back. 

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Snow Peas Are Finished, One Cherry Tomato Harvested

Snow pea seeds were planted on 4 April. On Sunday, 17 June, all the snow pea plants were cut at the soil line. Snow peas are finished for the spring.

Once cut down, a total of 57 plants were counted. From those 57 plants were harvested 298 grams/10.5oz of fresh, crisp, tender snow peas starting on 28 May and ending today.

Already planted are watermelon and cucumbers seeds in the four squares in the rear of the square foot plot recently occupied by 2/3 of the snow peas. A tomato plant is also already in one of the interior squares occupied by snow peas.

A Husky Cherry tomato was harvested today. It weighed in at 18g. Waiting to taste that with a salad.


©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

Early June in the Square Foot Garden

The first seven days of June have past. Before you know it there will be juicy ripe tomatoes. For now, let's take a look at the square foot garden plus the potato towers.

As of 7 June, over 8oz/226g of young, tender, fresh, sweet snow peas have been harvested. Lettuce will be the next. 

This is the potato tower #1, planted first. Atop the tower is a cherry tomato plant. There are several cherry tomatoes close to harvesting size. Warm nights are needed to ripen the fruit.

The encircled are actually potato plants that grew up instead of out the sides of the tower.

Here are the potatoes that cooperated by growing out the sides of the tower.

This is one of the bell pepper plants. There is one orange and one red plant. 

This is one of the many varieties of full size tomato plants.

This is the lettuce from a mixed packet of loose leaf style lettuce seeds.

In the center of the plot is a solar powered light that was used to light a few squares when trying to capture time lapse images of slugs at night.

The snow peas will soon be finished bearing fruit. Today melon and cucumber seeds were planted in the rear of the square foot plot now inhabited by the snow peas. This is where the trellis was placed. The melon and cucumbers vines will be trained up the trellis. 

 


Once the melons begin to form, they will be placed into ladies nylon hose and tied to the trellis. This will provide the melons needed support and still allow room for expansion.

Bush bean seeds were also planted amongst the lettuce squares in the front row of the plot. The lettuce will bolt to seed as the temperatures rise. The beans will take over the squares where the lettuce now grows.


Fertilizer will be added to the squares because of the intense use of the garden. Both fish emulsion and blood meal and green sand will be used. Blood meal and green sand will be scratched into the surface of the soil once the snow peas and lettuce are exhausted. Fish emulsion in a water solution will be applied every two or three weeks. That should be plenty but the plants will be monitored for both under and over fertilization.


Can you almost taste the tomatoes, too?




©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved

June - Late Spring Flowering

I stopped to photograph some blooms in my garden the first week of June 2012

Flowering Thai Basil a Bonnie Plant purchased at Lowe's

Common Mallow - Malva sylvestris

Hardy Geranium:Wargrave Pink with bee

Brown Eyed Stella Day Lilies

Clematis

Hollyhock

Yellow Loosestrife:Lysimachia punctata'Alexander'

Common Daylily - Henerocallis fulva

Rhododendron

Climbing Rose - Rosa' Zephirine Drouhin' thornless Bourbon

English Lavender 

Hosta

Eastern Purple Coneflower - Echinacea purpurea

I also finished transplanting flowers I purchased at Lowe's.

Red, White and Blue Petunias at the foot of my driveway. Note the soaker hose.

Red, White and Blue Petunias at the foot of my driveway

Planted under the umbrella of a Korean Dogwood - Cornus kousa-planted to memorialize by son, are begonia, impatiens an New Zealand impatiens. Notice the soaker hose in position.

©Damyon T. Verbo - all rights reserved