Weather & Conditions
Partly cloudy. Low 72, High 87. The weather report is calling for rain around 3 pm. Today is a light day as I have my “Documents.” This is what I always told my grandson I was doing. I really am a community volunteer consultant for the FamilySearch Center.
I decided there was enough time before any rain that the copper fungicide would have about 8.5 hours to cure and act as a shield even if it does rain. The humidity is so high that the tomato transplants are not drying out, and I bring them in all night to get a little cooler, less humid air in the house. They are fully hardened and now just waiting on me to plant them.
Hopefully the five mounds I covered yesterday will be dry enough to plant. I will choose the five biggest plants. I have 15 Big Beef regulars, and then I will fill in with what I really want to trial — Rio Grande — and then fill in with the false Big Beef and Opalka.
Seed Buying Issues
This has not been a good year buying seeds on Etsy. The Jersey Devils do not look anything like they were described — they were supposed to be long, big as your palm, and shaped like a jalapeño. Instead, I got rectangular blocks on stunted-looking plants. I don’t even want to give these away.
So, if you buy seeds on Etsy, really ask where the seeds are coming from. If they are saving seeds from their backyard, some seeds you can’t save — like Big Beef Plus, which is a hybrid. If you save hybrid seeds, you might get two or three different plants that make up the hybrid, and that’s what the seeds will produce.
With the Jersey Devils, they clearly did not isolate the variety, and it crossed with another tomato, giving me rectangular block-shaped fruit.
Spraying & Disease Prevention
I sprayed everything except the basil. In this humidity, fungal problems start quickly, and I am spraying preventatively so it doesn’t get a foothold. I’ve also observed that as plants get older, they naturally start getting more diseased — that’s when I know crops like yellow squash are about done and it’s time to replant.
Learning Patch Observations
When I got to the Learning Patch to spray, I noticed the pepper plant I tried to save is in complete collapse.
I think the soil is just holding too much water, and that plant was already stunted. The roots were being starved of oxygen. I hope the others in the row will be okay.
While here, I cultivated and loosened the soil around the mounds.
Sunflower Experiment
I had a small baggie of sunflower seeds and thought I would try scattering the seeds in the corner where the pumpkins are and where the sunflowers were supposed to be. I also threw some in the dill area.
It’s an experiment — for my husband’s birthday I bought him a bird feeder, and he put sunflower seeds in it. Wouldn’t you know, we spotted sunflowers coming up directly under the bird feeder. So maybe the scatter method works better than planting them 1/2 inch deep.
RRR Garden Work
I went back to my plots and had just enough time to finish getting three tomato holes weeded in the RRR garden. I still had a few minutes, so I took out the cardboard in my truck and laid it on the trellis side I am not planting. I will follow-up and cover it with grass.
At a few minutes after 8, I headed to Documents.
Documents & Genealogy
Before going there, I stopped at Dollar Tree and found more flower seeds — I bought a bunch. I also bought measuring spoons and cups, as I seem to misplace them for gardening.
I got to Documents, cleaned up, and changed. As no patrons came today, I continued working on my Nottinghamshire — Bean family. Sort of like my garden family.
I have been able to eliminate Mary Bean, born in Orston in 1710, as I found her father’s will and this Mary was not listed as being married to Robert Levers. So now I am looking at Whatton parish records. I hope to find a clue either from another will or some other record that can help me figure out Mary’s parents.
Closing thoughts
You are probably thinking how can these two be related well on you are digging in the soil and the other you dig for facts to prove your families line. Not a heavy day, but a full one in its own way.