Monday, August 3, 2009

Ok so the heat isn’t all bad

I’m not quite done complaining about our weather (we are still setting records!). But I’ve decided to put a happy face on and share all the good things that are happening here in the danger garden because of the heat wave. For example the canna, banana and elephant ears are really taking off...I'll share a picture of my little slice of the tropics when the sun cooperates and I can get a decent one!

The warmth and sun hastened the first blossom from my new (this spring) Rose of Sharon Hibiscus syriacus 'Red Heart'. The flower is exactly what I was hoping for and there many more buds on the plant so we will be enjoying these flowers for weeks.
The Chasmanthium latifolium, Northern Sea Oats are blooming. I love this grass! It looks great for months, far into autumn, and even dries nicely. This year I finally divided the plant that I’ve had for 7 years (moved here from Spokane with me) and now have three! I don’t know what took me so long. My new Black Lace Elderberry, Sambucus nigra, was seriously damaged by the heat and sun. First it wilted and then the sun fried the leaves. So sad! I cut them off but left the stalk and look! There are new sprouts already showing up!
Plus lots of healthy new growth too. The cucumber plants are growing like crazy and we’ve got several little cucumbers developing. They are so darn cute!
And the tomatoes!!! Wow, we’ve been picking and eating them daily…heaven! The peppers are HOT! The basil is really getting into action as well, all the better to go with the tomatoes. And then there is this, I found these pictures in a magazine called Gardens West. Someone wrote in to the editor to ask for advice on their tomato, and they included these pictures. This is disturbing! Imagine this growing on your kitchen counter. I think I would have a hard time eating tomatoes for a while. The editor was of little help, offering that the writer should treat it as a research project and plant pieces of the tomato to see what happens. Yuck.

12 comments:

  1. My banana is really happy in the heat too. Granted, it is just a baby, but it is producing about (1) new leaf every other day! And, my elephant ear is LOVING the heat - she has really taken off! So in that sense (and that is the ONLY sense), YAY FOR THE HEAT WAVE!

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  2. Blech, nasty tomato image at the end. But your other plants look cool. We have basil and sea oats in common, and I love them both.

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  3. gosh... the tomato is really ugly :-( But I would want to think that it is not real.

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  4. Oh good, I knew that Sambucus would recover. They are tough plants, they almost always bounce back.
    I think there are plants out in my yard that like the heat too, I should make myself go out there and look. Starting tomorrow, high temperatures in the 70s, and possible showers the rest of the week. I think some good rain would perk everything up.

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  5. No tomatoes yet here, but we have been feasting on lemon cucumbers for over a week. Guess that compensates for the oriental lilies rushing through their bloom cycle. Their scent in the evenings has been sublime.

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  6. That tomato looks otherworldly. And creepy. It's like the seeds germinated and seedlings have popped out. Maybe the OSU Master Gardener Clinic might know.

    I can almost measure daily the growth on my bananas and cannas. My water bill will be astronomical but at least my plants are thanking me. Love your Rose of Sharon blossom. Mine is starting to open too!

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  7. I love cucumbers too! Your little green guy looks very cute! The last picture looks... interesting. My boys would love to have such creature in our refrigerator!

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  8. Okay, those tomatoes at the end are strange, martian like. I've never seen anything like that! All your other pictures are great, and it is good to focus on the positive, regardless of the weather!

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  9. Okay, that scene from Alien in the last three frames is a bit wild. But, really, I guess that's what fruit is supposed to do: provide nourishment for the germinating seeds. At least, that's how I'm trying to keep at bay the heebiejeebies here.

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  10. D + N, I need to come over to your place and see this new garden addition!

    Pam, glad to hear you are enjoying some basil...and that you've got Sea Oats...it's such a fabulous plant.

    Stephanie, I'm pretty sure it's real!

    Megan, I really don't believe them about the rain, but I am enjoying the cooler temps!

    Ricki, Lemon Cucumbers? Sounds good! I love the scent of the Oriental Lilies they take me back...way back (but that's another story - for another time).

    Grace, me too! I am going to have to make sure I get to the water bill before the husband does!

    Tatyana, yes I guess that does look like something boys would love to grow...and then smash. If I found that in our fridge I would have to empty the whole thing out and scrub it down for fear something else was living in there.

    Carol, exactly! They are martian like!

    Helen, I'm just praying I never find one in my tomato bowl.

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  11. Love your hibiscus, looks like Hawaii in Portland this year in your garden! Those cukes are so pointy, they fit right into the Danger garden. Are they the little pickling type? Hm, never seen Northern Sea Oats before but now I need to see one in person, looks really cool. Glad your sambucus looks like it will recover. I had the same thing happen with a ninebark, totally my fault for letting it sit in its pot during the heat. Oh, why did I look at those freaky tomato pics here right before bedtime? I'm going to have nightmares!!!??!!!

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  12. That is the Medusa of tomatoes. Eek! Interesting, though... I have never seen anything like it. Thanks for the dose of weirdness. It's just what I needed today :)

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