This summer sure is different from last year

[aftermidnight]

Last year we broke all kinds of heat records, July brought us temps higher than had been recorded in over 100 years, we were in severe drought conditions and very strict watering restrictions.

Talk about tomatoes, we were eating fresh from the garden around the beginning of July. Although there was a lot of whining from me, can't take the heat and on top of that I'm supposed to stay out of the sun between 10 and 4 I had the best garden ever.

Having a fairly small garden to most I did manage to grow a dozen varieties of tomatoes, since I don't can we gave a lot away to the neighbors, most were heirloom varieties but I do grow Celebrity every year, my fav tomato to date is Cherokee Purple.

Beans on the other hand I grew 40 different varieties, mostly pole types, some were only samples in containers but all of them produced enough for a taste if not several meals, the rest being kept for seed, I've not had a problem with crossing but I always bag a few flowers to be on the safe side.
I have been growing Aeron Purple Star the purple runner developed by a fellow in Wales for a few years now, it is the sweetest, tenderest runner I've ever eaten and to top it off it's stringless. I did get a few green pods in previous years but this year not a green pod in the bunch the pods are at lest 12" long and are a deep purple.

*THIS YEAR*, different ball game.... as usual started my tomatoes early in the greenhouse in February and kept potting on until warm enough to plant out this year June 1st, last year beginning of April. We had a cool wet spring, a few very hot days in June, unusual for here, most of July cool and raining.
Drum roll.... we had our first vine ripened tomato yesterday, DH brought it in, rinsed it under the tap, placed it on the cutting board and cut it in half and said dig in. Would you believe the first ripe tomato turned out to be Indigo Rose, one taste and it was gone. Not a favorite with a lot of you but it tasted pretty gosh darnoodley good to me. Not another ripe tomato in sight, lots of green ones but none turning red yet .

Beans, only about a dozen varieties this year, I had 3 samples of Nuna popping beans given to me to try, not knowing how they would grow here I only grew two plants of two varieties and 3 of the third variety. Two turned out to be half runners so gave them something to climb on, the third was a true bush type. Seed has already been harvested from the two half runners but the bush container is still flowering and producing beans. So these beans will grow in my climate and the varieties I have are not day length sensitive. I have yet to try popping any thinking I'd better save the seed and grow a bigger crop next year, although... I might weaken later on. I love sharing seed but unfortunately I can't with these at this time, hopefully some time in the future....

I have about half of my bean seed already harvested but a few are just starting to produce now, like 'Sicitalian Black Swamp' hoping for a warm fall.

Living with a lot of weeds right now, flower gardens are a mess in back but we've managed to keep the front looking decent, summer this year has bean a bummer for both of us. I was laid up for most of June and DH is laid up now, this getting old ain't for sissies but we keep on truckin' what else can ya do? As long as I can hold a plant in my hands I will have a garden.

Annette

[MarianneW]

You sent your heat down to me. You can have it back now! It made my citrus plenty sweet but it killed all of my tomatoes.

No happy medium for us, is there?

[PhilaGardener]

It has been strange. We had a very warm, early Spring, then a cold start to Summer, with enough heat in the middle to interfere with pollination. Fall arrived yesterday. A terrible tomato year, all my beans are late (and none of the runners or limas have started to set well - yet). I had a number of "bush" beans that went half-runner on me, perhaps due to the weather conditions. Waiting to see what Winter is like . . .

[Ricky Shaw]

The new normal here, we're at 25 days plus 90F, and 1 day plus 100F. Average is 28 days and one day over 100F. Our top ten hottest summers have been this century. I'm a big baby about heat and ready to move further north.

[NarnianGarden]

It has been a strange season. Rain & humid weather has caused most varieties to taste bland (almost all) ... Still, even bland tomatoes are better than no homegrown toms at all - the colors are still pretty, LOL!
It sure has been kind of a disappointment, but so far, all plants still alive, not dead yet in spite of diseases, spider mites etc ..

[aftermidnight]

I've lived on Vancouver Island for most of my life, we used to have 4 distinct seasons, most years you could count on spring starting around the middle of March, the last frost around the same time. By May 24th it was in the low 70's warm enough to go swimming at the beach, summers were usually in the mid 70's with it cooling off at night, not very often did the temps hit the 80's and if they did it was just for a matter of days.
Early fall was a lovely time of year, nights were cool, days were warm, but there was a freshness in the air. Now we can have a killing frost as early as September or not until December, you just have to be prepared to cover things up if needed.
Winter could start early or not, some we had snow deep enough in November that they shut the schools down for the day, if I looked out the window and saw a few inches of snow on the ground it was a rush to the radio to see if the schools were closed, if they were it was bundle up, grab my sleigh and head for hospital hill ( the city would close off these two blocks with barriers for sleigh riding ). I can also remember a few but not many when we had hardly any snow at all, and December had many shirtsleeve days, if you got a sleigh for Christmas you were out of luck.
Now, the last frost date is later anywhere from mid April until the end of May, this is where the raised bed come in handy, the soil warms up quickly and I can get an early start. I got it wrong this year, I planted pole beans where I should have planted my tomatoes.

We used to be able to rely on our 4 seasons, not anymore, never know what we're going to get now, the last 2 winters we've had no snow at all and except for the few days it was cold enough to freeze the ground, winters have been quite mild. This spring was cool and wet, June had some scorching days, not the usual for here, It usually rains quite a bit in June and then most of July was cool and raining, almost like these two months had swapped places. We are getting some heat this month but so relieved it's only in the high 70's not 90's like last year. I know only warm temps to some of you but when you are not used to it it knocks the stuffing out of you.

I plant as always and hope for the best, some you win some you lose but I never plant lettuce until after we had the hail in April.

Fires, floods and drought are becoming the norm for many, Those that don't believe in climate change might want to give it a long hard thought.

Annette

[nhardy]

I start by saying last year was not a normal St. louis summer either. Last year, El Nino was in control. It rained a little more than normal and we still had heat in Just and Aug. I only watered the lawn little. 8 units of water used. My normal grass cutting is once in July then maybe twice in Aug. Most St. Louis summers are extreme heat and humidity with little rain from July to beginning of Sept. We have had summer where I have used 15 units of water to keep my plants alive. Across the river, people have homes that the foundations cracked because of the extreme drought of the clay soil.

This year El Nino left us in May. They keep saying La Nina by fall. So it was a normal June. As July came in we were not as hot. We still get rain. Only a very short heat wave. Aug. has had almost not heat, more like June weather. I have cut more grass in July and Aug ever in my life. I did not water the lawn ever is a first. I watered more containers otherwise we would had a lower water bill for sure as we used 8 units of water. (This was the first year I planted tomatoes in containers.)

It is like the jet stream has dipped down to bring us cool Canadian weather most of the summer here in St. Louis. This make others areas on the edges of the jet stream more extreme weather. But I'll say it anyway, "It has been the best summer weather ever."

We shall see if La Nina forms for the fall. I could not find a weather map showing what that would bring us in terms of temps. & rain.

[Lindalana]

Us too, Chicago summer was not the usual. Last summer with started with daily rain in June with septoria so early, nothing had a chance...
this year we had hot and dry summer. One would think we would be happy. Cept, heat was oppressive to work in the garden and plants looked miserable. So I proceeded to over water I guess... taste was off on many varieties and few rains we had were in wrong time for my tomatoes ripening as I ended up with lots of cracking. Live and learn.

[Hellmanns]

I've farmed vegetables, mainly tomatoes, for a full or part time income for over 30 years. I have seen only one year in all of those I would call a perfect growing year. Most every year held a surprise, from late frost, extreme wet, drought, early frost, heat, cool and damp, and everything in between! Yet, in all those years I never failed to produce a good crop, and turn a profit. I had to make it, I had 4 young mouths to feed. Failure wasn't an option!

About 12 years ago, a neighbor started growing veggies, too. He insures everything he plants, I never did. Every year he has several crop disasters, and losses due to weather extremes.

[rxkeith]

we have had a decent summer. tomatoes are doing ok, but are behind schedule due to erratic weather most of june. the whole month ran warm a couple days followed by cooler weather a few days back and forth. july was warmer, and august has been pleasant. we have had a fair amount of rain.

the only ripe tomatoes so far have been poll robeson, and my anna russian cherry cross. i have four f2 plants growing. the best tasting one so far is an oblong cherry type. i have one giving a torpedo shaped fruit pointed on one end, and two giving small plum shaped fruit. heavy rain a couple days caused fruit to split.

beans have been coming on. we have had some good meals, and have frozen a few bags. no seed collecting has been done. i am hoping warm weather holds out for awhile yet so i can save some seeds. you just never can tell here.

anyone considering moving to a cooler area, this be da place. just keep in mind that we have snow on the ground mid to late november through april, and it snowed in may this year. thats eight months of the year that we can have snow, maybe nine if september turns yucky, but that would be rare. so, there ya go.



keith

[Cole_Robbie]

There were no green beans at my local farmer's market yesterday, and it's a big market. Normally at this time everyone has beans. A lot of vendors had their gardens flood last week; we got over a foot of rain in three days. The excessive rain also makes the grass and weeds overtake crops.

Some of the areas I saw that flooded now look like they got sprayed with a vicious herbicide. Everything is brown and crispy; the floodwaters killed everything very efficiently.

[stonysoilseeds]

this is the first seson in over 5 years i have not been devistated with late blight i am able to sell my heirlooms at market but mostly immerse myself in the growing of tomatoes which i truly love my favorite crop

[My Foot Smells]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

There were no green beans at my local farmer's market yesterday, and it's a big market. Normally at this time everyone has beans. A lot of vendors had their gardens flood last week; we got over a foot of rain in three days. The excessive rain also makes the grass and weeds overtake crops.

Some of the areas I saw that flooded now look like they got sprayed with a vicious herbicide. Everything is brown and crispy; the floodwaters killed everything very efficiently.

Too much of a good thing. Had similar experience here, but not 12" ---> 3 days, that is heavy duty. we had 8"----> 1 week, and it did a number.

twelve inches in 3 days is a crop buster. farmers here were trying to get the cotton from the field, but the rain beat them to the punch and ruined (reportedly) 90%. soy beans shriveled in the pod, late corn wilted and mildewed.

.....and if that isn't bad enough, the skeeters came alive. I get bit by something within 5 seconds being outside. got stung in the facial by red wasp yesterday, etc...

I'm not even going to mention the humidity, it's brutal. You can't rest your limbs on anything too long, otherwise you become stuck. Removing clothing garment, is like removing wrapper from a tootsie roll - can be challenging.

[Susan66]

Had a very different year this year also. Last year very cold and wet spring, most seeds rotted in the ground except nasturtiums!! All the plants we put in did very well. Did finally get some seeds to grow that we planted in early July.
This year very warm weather in March brought on early blossoming especially for peaches, followed by frost that killed most of the blossoms before the trees could set fruit. Because of the bad experiences last year, I started a lot of things inside so I was putting in plants. Then we ended up having an exceptionally warm and dry June and July. Just North of here is still classified as severe drought. I live in the rain shadow of the Great Lakes- drought is not unknown but uncommon here. Very hot (for us) August- more than 20 days in a row over 80°.
Because our normal last frost is May 26 or so we hold off putting in warm weather crops till Memorial Day. This year we could have put them in two weeks earlier. Can't complain, the unusually hot dry weather gave us bumper crops for most things, and we, personally, got sufficient rain to keep most of our food crops alive. Herbs did not quite as well- most of the annuals died with the heat and drought, biennials and perennials did fine. For us summer drought has broken, 15 miles north of here, not so much. Have already filled our little freezer, and canned 75 quarts of tomatoes and a lot of pickled beets, dilly beans and cukes, too, and we will keep having crops mature probably into October.
When I was a kid first frost could come as early as the first week of school. Hasn't happened that early in many years. But oddball weather events are more common. Ice storms, the October surprise storm that knocked down so many trees in Buffalo. Stuff like that. And I miss the snow (did I just say that?)
In winters that are sometimes colder than ever, they are also dryer here than ever, too. I guess we adapt as best we can.
Susan

[b54red]

I'll be more surprised when one summer is like the last one. In forty years of gardening I can't remember not having big differences from year to year. That is the main reason I stagger my planting dates even on my fall crops. That is also the reason I don't rely on just a couple of varieties of tomatoes although I do have my favorites that always get an extra space or two because you just never know from year to year which variety will perform the best and taste the best. As for the changing weather; what would we do if we couldn't complain about it every year?

Bill