Good morning! It's your half past four 'You're now my trampoline' wake up call! You may call me Mewthos! I want cuddles, and I want them NOW! Never mind Lady Jane trying to snuggle in your arms or Ziva mipping at your feet - attend to me!
I had coffee and let the mippies out, even though it was not only dark, but misty as well. I could barely see past the fence when I first sat outside. I wrapped up in a warm top plus my poncho and wrapped a blankie around my legs - wearing my long johns under my pants, plus, of course, warm socks.
I enjoyed a beautiful sunrise, listening to the birds and watching mippies scoot here and there wherever they spotted movement. While mippies were off, exploring, I enjoyed a quiet breakfast and then ...
What do you think? Two plus two? Heavy, steady rain followed by a sunny day? Yup! By eight that last corner was cleared off all grass! And then I got to thinking ... I just can't keep getting more and more pots. Firstly, when you add it up, it's quite a sum and secondly, I can't get the right pots anyway! THAT is the most frustrating part! And my plants are just growing and growing - even the herbs will need thinning out, so I will need room in my long pots, too!
I have got to put plants into the garden to make room - there's just no other way! But which? And where? Should I plant the ones which grow deep or those which don't? I think those which need depth will have to go into the ground. I'll give them as much as I can, but if they need more, they'll have to find their own way of getting it.
The first plant due for harvest would be Zucchini. Well, after the Radish, of course, but they're fine where they are. And the Zucchini are quite big, already - and I'm a little worried, because their first leaves are looking somewhat yellow, not a healthy green. Okay, so now I've selected my first victim. But how? And where?
Alongside the fence would be logical. But along which fence? The one on the south of my garden (i.e. where the car gate is) has sprinklers all along, so that would make sense. But the one on the east has the better ground, and it's very soft still from last weekends grass pulling and yesterday's rain. Oh, and there are some pipes running underground, so I'd need to ask my landlord.
Cor! He doesn't suggest the best option - he goes and gets a pickax an hoes me a trench halfway down alongside the fence! Awesome! He went three times as far as I think I can clear today!
She told me, while he was busy, that their two larger dogs have disappeared! The one's who'd visit me in the mornings. They don't know how they got that far out to be off the plot completely - they've already driven around the entire plot looking for them! They are nice dogs, so I'm somewhat upset as well. I don't see how they could have got that far out - wherever they are now, is not where they want to be. They want to be home, I'm sure. So, what's preventing them coming home?
Mippies, of course, seeing no dogs in the garden next to mine, take full advantage and explore to their hearts content! Well, Ziva and Lady Jane, that is - Mewthos' head is too big to fit through the wide mesh fence! I do not know HOW he manages to get into that garden on those occasions when I have to pull him back under the fence!
Well, I got busy digging the trench. I start by using my little hand fork, loosening the ground and then digging in with my hands picking and pulling every root - no matter how small or thing - I can get hold of. I manage to get about a spade's depth, that's about 20 cm. Nowhere near deep enough.
I had planned to fill that with potting soil, then cut the bottom out of a 35 cm pot and put it on top of that - which would give them about 50 cm for their roots. But now I've been wondering, if I put two of my 'bed bordering' fences on the top, that would give another 20 cm worth of depth - and maybe, the Zucchini, I can plant in about 40 cm?
As I'm working, mippies take full advantage of me sitting on the ground - flopping around me, demanding attention. Mewthos, of course, is the most demanding! There's just no such thing as enough for him, when he's in lovie mood! Later, Ziva sits comfortably under the spekboom watching me work.
Oh, the joys of gardening with cats! I'm busy working on my trench, digging and rootling around for roots in the ground with my hands ... when Mewthos comes strolling by, looks at what I'm doing and decides: Perfect! Just what I was looking for! Yup, you guessed it! He goes and sits - bold as brass - right in front of me, and pees! Lovely soft ground - sigh! I'm sure you understand that I called that space 'finished'! It's bad enough that I have to scoop their poo and pee in the litter box - but in my garden? Really? Right in front of me?
I've been reading up on Zucchini growing and learned something interesting, which actually explains why I had only two Gem Squash: they produce male and female flowers - the one's with the fruit behind the flower, are female. And they need to be pollinated by male flowers on the one day they bloom for the fruit to actually grow! So, even though the packet says to space them far apart - it's actually better to cluster them.
Here's the link to the site: https://www.thespruce.com/zucchini-growing-tips-1402989
I couldn't find any real information regarding root depth or container depth, I found somewhere suggesting 60 cm diameter by 30 cm deep and another site saying their roots grow from 90 cm and deeper. And, although they CAN climb, they don't have to. Training them up is mostly done when you haven't enough space for them to meander.
Overall, I think they'll do well with 40 cm potting soil. And I'm thinking of making a mound to hold up the fencing from the outside - so they can meander down that mound in search of ... whatever they meander in search of. Although, since the fence is on the east, I wouldn't be surprised if they meander into my landlords garden, towards the sun!
But that corner gets sun almost the whole day - just not in the early morning, when the tall spekboom block the sun.
I'm letting the trench and the dug up earth dry until tomorrow. I want to fill it in tomorrow morning and see how it works out. Then move the plants - hopefully the last time! Poor things, are moving almost as much as I have!
I'll see how I feel tomorrow, maybe I can continue working on that bed - I shouldn't call it a trench, after all, I'm not preparing for war! Well, it's not that deep anyway, the cats might be able to use it to hide in, but that's about it.
My landlord pointed out that I'll need to thin out the herbs soon as well. Sigh! He's right, of course - but where do I thin them to?
And I thought I could give the gardening a break for a weekend! Ha Ha! That worked out well, didn't it?
I've taken another, calculating look at the bed I've dug. I think I'll be able to plant the Zucchini AND the Butternut in the space I've made. Apparently Butternut don't root very deep, so they should do fine. I've only got a bout six of each, so they should have enough space. Hmmm ... I wonder if Butternut and Zucchini cross-pollinate? Ha Ha, watch me grow a Zucchinuts!
Sjoe, I really did myself in when I went nuts and sowed all those seed, didn't I? I've created more work for myself than I can manage - or have I? I'm managing, so far - well, sort of. It would really be a pity, if it didn't pay off. Well, I think that's one worry I won't have to face!
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