Odd stuff

Vegetable gardening is an endeavour filled with successes and failures to varying degrees, small triumphs and disappointments, fruition and futility.  Not everything that happens, however, is measured on the win-loss scale.  A big portion of what I see going on with these plants is just entertainment for me, no added value judgments required.


The cucumber planted upside down in June has been trying to right itself ever since.  We tell it to relax, that it can get adequate water and sun by growing downward.  It pays no attention and tries to turn the corner to crawl up the side of the planter, sending out grasping tendrils to no avail.  Clearly, this is just a plant doing what a plant does and I have resisted feeling that we are cruel to put it in such an unnatural position.

I'm glad the delphinium blossoms have all opened now.  In this state, they remind me of those movie aliens.  Creepy.

We have several new delphinium plants this year.  This is not surprising, given that the blossoms grow on very tall stalks and the stalks always keel over.  What's odd is that it had not happened before.

Why do garlic scapes grow in circles?  Whatever the reason, it's quite charming.  This photo was taken following removal of the scapes (seed heads) themselves.  They are removed to promote bulb growth, but I couldn't see the harm in leaving the circular stems behind on the stalks.  Two or three plants were left alone to produce bulbils to be planted for another generation, to be harvested maybe three years down the road.

See the panel under the blog title for a nice shot of a scape that has tied itself into a knot.

Potatoes are persistent.  More than once I have lopped off the growing tips of half a dozen potato plants pushing up through the rattlesnake beans, parsnips, and this borage.  They just keep coming.  They aren't doing any real harm, but I can't have them taking over the bed, which they would do if they grew to the size of this year's intended potato plants.  The surprisingly huge borages are casting enough of a shadow over the parsnips already.

I wonder if these same potatoes will keep at it again next year.  Maybe I should leave a bit of each plant intact so I can follow it down to the source in the fall.




Other interesting goings on include squash and (especially) grape vines growing out of control, honeysuckle twining around rhubarb flower stalks, peas that refuse chicken wire in favour of clinging to each other, and strawberry runners setting off into the tall clover looking for a place to put down roots.  With almost three inches of rain down this week and sunny warmth in the forecast, I think it's going to get very busy in the garden.