Lost potential – all those mulberries that didn’t have a chance to grow and tickle my tastebuds.
The temperature has been up for the last couple of weeks, and several of our plants have been under a lot of stress. My anticipated bumper crop of mulberries literally withered before my eyes, so I’ve moved the plant to a less sunny spot and have pruned it once more to try to induce another round of fruiting.
The poor simba bean plant under double attack – first by something that ate the leaves, and then by the heat. Boo-hiss.
The simba bean plants have also died off, despite heavy watering. I guess it was the climate that did them in, not a lack of water. They were already at a disadvantage because something had been eating the leaves. Sigh. Back to the drawing board…
My baby shark fin melon plant survived its transplant to a bigger pot, but it looks like the heat may be claiming another victim, because the lowermost part of the stem is starting to wither. I’ve lightly buried part of the good part of the stem in the hopes that it will grow new roots, but because I’m not too optimistic, I’ve sown a few seeds to start new plants.
Everything else has been watered heavily every day. Well, not indiscriminately so. You have to know what each plant needs, because too much watering can cause some plants to rot. Thank goodness some of the plants have been doing well despite the heat:
Our second generation winter melon plant is one of the few happy plants in the garden. After transplant, it was placed under the peacock trees to recuperate, and it seems that the shade helped it immensely. Just look at how eagerly it’s growing!
My current pride and joy – the beet plants – have been doing well. The leaves wilt on hot days if the plants aren’t watered by lunchtime, so I’ve been as careful as possible to take care of them. I just love the vibrant leaves!
I’m happy that there has finally been a break in the weather. The forecast is for afternoon showers for three to four days …but, periods of consecutive dry days are also predicted. Well, variety is the spice of life, and the plants will thrive on the changes in the weather. I just hope that there will be few plant casualties.
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