Hope Grows: June 2011

I've been away from my garden for almost two weeks. Upon returning from our travels I found that the weeds had grown at break neck speed and the rabbits have been eating from the backyard buffet. It really is a shame that the rabbits don't find the weeds in my garden as scrumptious as the plants. Since the gardens have been unattended it goes without saying that I have a lot of gardening chores to tackle. I have been doing a little each morning before it gets too hot. Afternoon temperatures have been crawling toward the 100's. Add to that the high humidity and it becomes unpleasant to garden.

Last month I was looking forward to seeing Guara, Buddleia,Yarrow, and Salvia blooming. They are just beginning to show their colors.

During the next month I am hoping to harvest some sweet, juicy....

Plums

(two varieties...Burbank and Methley)

wild blackberries that grow in the empty lot next door 

(some are starting to ripen already!)

Blueberries

(we have 4 varieties...Tifblue, Brightwell, Climax and Premier)

Persimmon

Pears

(two varieties...Kieffer and Bartlett)

and raspberries!

But what I am most excited to watch grow are the swallowtail caterpillars.

They are in the first instar stage and very tiny. They are munching away at the parsley leaves. Hurray!

To see what other gardeners are hoping for in their gardens this month pop on over to Sweet Bean Gardening.