Dayton "Dirt" - June 14, 2013

Another blessing! A decent amount of rain without too much damaging wind was just the ticket for bringing up the ground moisture that we so desperately needed. Our summer crops of trees and shrubs are doing well with the cooler temperatures and the good quality of our irrigation water thanks to rain. One crop that just became available is a fresh batch of Maples in the varieties Tamukeyama, Crimson Queen, Virdis and a few others! So lush is the new growth that we were planning to space them better but when we checked the root systems of these earlier transplanted plants, the roots were almost filling the container 1 month ahead of schedule! Our My Bouquet series of roses are growing nicely and it looks as though they will be ahead of schedule as well so that they will be ready for sale by July 4th instead of August 1st as originally scheduled. Transplanting of perennials, shrubs and ground covers is still going on as the process is sandwiched between all other duties of selling, mowing, weeding . . . At the end of June, the market will be open in the Owl Barn beginning with Marietta sweet corn and tomatoes before the transition to Seiberling sweet corn and produce from the farm. Let us all hope that the summer rains continue so that about one inch falls every week which is ideal for lawns and gardens. Got to go! Tom P.S. Don’t forget to treat squash and cucumbers for mildew with Bi-Carb fungicide.