We've given the vines enough time to show their flowers if they were going to, and they didn't. So yesterday we pulled them all out. They had just gotten so big and were reaching everywhere no matter how many times I guided them back into their own space. The back left garden was so completely overrun we just pulled the fence up and brought the vines out almost in one big, tangled piece. Pretty much filled up this year's side of the compost bin, but they will break down easily now that they're pulled.
It was a nice thought, getting some bonus cucumbers out of the garden this year, but it just wasn't meant to be. And that's okay, it was still a fun thought and no harm was done.
I'm very pleased with the new gardens. Even if putting them in was the start of my recent back trouble, it had to be done. And I'm doubly glad they're metal because more than ever I don't want to do it again!
5 comments:
Sorry to hear no free cukes but if plants aren't productive or beautiful they usually have to go!
Thanks for noting my music linky thing not working (it now is!).
It was worth a go as they might have produced some cucumbers but you can grow some more next year.
Those metal beds are worth their weight in gold.
Thanks, guys. Yes, it was worth a try and no harm done. We'll see if we actually try to grow them next year, my wife makes those decisions. I know she's looking forward to planting garlic in the top left one this fall. It's been a couple years and our supply has dwindled.
Yes, I hope the gardens long outlast me! Looking back, I'm very glad I decided to use a sealer where the pieces join together.
Sealant is man's best friend. It must be, the number of tubes Mr BW gets through. I do wish they would find a way of making it more environmentally friendly though - all that plastic container for a few metres of extruded 'silicone'.
I suspect the cucumbers' problem was probably that the new soil was too rich. Plants often put on lots of growth at the expense of flower/fruit if they have too much nitrogen. Do you put your shredded paper on your compost (presuming you shred paper)? A nice layer of that on top of the discarded cucumbers would help decomposition greatly. Or torn up corrugated cardboard. That's all from the gardening programme for today :)
Hope your back is a bit better today?
It's actually the same soil, we just add some compost soil each year. The cucumbers they came from are sold as seedless, so it may just be the variant. I actually do put some shredded paper in the compost, but not much and certainly not all of it, maybe only one or two shredder-fuls a year. Otherwise, that's just too many credit card offers for it to handle! I do not use cardboard, that would definitely be too much with all our Amazin' shopping.
The back is what it is, thanks. Pretty much the same, and I don't expect much to change for the better anymore. From the shot, anyway. Hopefully in time with diet and exercise.
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