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Showing posts from 2015

Evening hail

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We got hail.  Not sure where it came from, but it came.   Its actually still sitting in mounds in the dark. Kind of strange weather we're having.

Cold again

Okay, it got cold again. As in yesterday it was in the 70's. Today mid afternoon, after 4 and it's only 39 degrees. Oh, and we just had rain and hail. At least it was short lived. This morning around 8am we had one of those cold fronts come through, and we got rain. Then again around 11 we got more rain. Between the two we got just over an inch of rain. The wind has been blowing since last night. The strongest wind gust was 29 mph. But we're not done with the cold yet. We have cold weather for the next week.  He ten day forecast shows nights around, just above and just below freezing. At least we're better off than the Dallas area.  They got tornados. About 8 people are dead from those tornados. I guess we'll just take the rain and cold. Though the east coast has had unseasonably warm weather.  Not much you can do about the weather. And our current weather patterns attest to that. Funny note.  Christmas Day Las Vegas got a smattering of snow. Wonder what the odd

Its warm out there

Go figure. We've had a couple of cool nights, down to 33 last night, but now we are back to warm weather. Warm as in the 10 day forecast says highs in the 70's, with a possible 80 thrown in for good measure. That means the nights will be in the low 50's. Maybe rain on Christmas day, but we'll see. Getting sorry we picked all the tomatoes. Though some of the plants I left look great. The bok choy never looked better.

Cold front

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Ever wonder what they mean when they talk about a cold front moving in. Well hopefully this will help explain it. This happened last night. Yes we had temperatures in the 70's most of the day, actually pretty much all day, then the temperature just dropped. Yes as the temperature dropped we got rain. About two inches of rain. What is interesting it we had a few cold days a couple of weeks ago, but mostly the weather has been nice. So far its been overall a fairly nice autumn. And that's not always good.  We did have a previous cold front come thru a couple of weeks ago, but the cold didn't last. The concern is the almanac said it would be a cold winter. So far it looks like we might have nice weather for Christmas. After the rain last night the skies have cleared up. The garden took a beating from our previous cold front. The watermelon and other squash plants are pretty much died and gone. They got pulled out of the ground. Some of the tomato plants have been pull

First freeze

We left Mid October for a trip, gone 3 weeks. We left, and the rain began. The house got rain, enough to fill our almost empty water tanks. It almost kept the temperatures in the mid 60-70's. The plants loved it. We came back to happy and healthy plants. I don't think we lost anything. Then last night, we got our first freeze. Last night we hit a low of 31.8 degrees. We are due for the same tonight. It looks like the weather is changing. We'll warm up for a few days, then nights will cool down. They aren't expecting more freezing nights, at least not in the 10 day forecast. Most nights will be in the 50-40's. We were lucky enough to have our friend come help cover plants before the freeze. He also picked the produce we had ready or ready-ish to pick. He picked a lot of green tomatoes. I'm thinking of trying to make pickled green tomatoes. I found a recipe online that looks easy enough - greens tomatoes, jalapenos, garlic, and then a brine. I might try it wit

Summer is not quite over

It is still hot over here. But this week we are due for some cooling weather - down to the 80's. And possible rain. But the real way you know the weather is changing - the tomato plants are coming back to life. I pull out the dead corn, cleared out the cucumbers, and cut back the marigolds. I need to cut back of the the melons, but it was just too hot. But this weekend I did some weeding and feeding in the garden. Which is good because it looks like its growing season again. It seems too hot, but I'm found a lot of new growth on lots of the plants. Since I cleaned out dead stuff I went ahead and planted more seeds. I put in bok choy, beets, beans, acorn squash, fennel, carrots, and some broccoli. According to Mother Earth News app this is the time to start planting these guys. I also got some seed for cabbage, swiss chard, and onions. I'll put those in the ground tomorrow. I may put in some other things that should grow this time of year too. Some spinach would be nice. I
Yes, I know. Its been a while. We made it home from our trip. The trip was great - wonderful cool weather, good food, good company, and fabulous new places. What we came home to wasn't quite so fabulous. Apparently it was hot while we were gone. Triple digit hot. So since we were not around to give plants the extra water they needed, we lost stuff. The cucumbers are toast (yup that's what they looked like) as were some of the squash plants. Apparently one of the connectors came undone, so out of about 8 squash plants only 2-3 sort of survived. One is doing okay, but I'm not sure the other two will survive. And the corn is entirely dead. Oh well.  Did not lose a single tomato plant, but they were a bit worse for the wear. And some of the strawberry plants didn't make it - not enough water. Now that we're back I am watering some of the plants to see how well they'll survive. Also we've cooled down to the low 90's (that's Texas for you, low 90's

No question, summer is here

Yes, the comfortable temperatures we had are gone. Austin area has hit the mid to high 90's already. Yesterday's high hit 93, with a heat index of 100. Our low - 74. Its warm out there. Plants are not growing well. Though some tomatoes are getting red, many are just sitting there green on the plant. Last year we left them on the plants, and when the weather began to cool they all started ripening. We do have some yellow tomatoes that are ripe, but again, most of the plants are just trying to hold their own. On the other hand we are having a wasp problem. We have found many more wasp nests than we normally do. And some have been big nests. They are high up under the eaves and difficult to spray. But hopefully the spraying will work and they won't come back. It does help that Bill knocked some of the nests down. I'm just hoping the wasps don't come back and build new nests. I've also noticed a lot more young fawns still. And quite a few twins this year. Some o

Today's veggie haul

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I actually gave these away to a friend. Though we did keep a few of the carrots for dinner.  They were good. The carrots had been growing in a big barrel. So after harvesting I planted more seeds.

We were robbed last night

The squirrels made it into the corn. Anything close to ripe has been eaten. There are corn cobs strewn across the ground. Consequently, the boys are now building a metal structure around the corn. Something that will hopefully keep the squirrels out. I sure hope so.  We lost last years' crop of corn to squirrels, I would like to get some this year. And the corn is growing, and it is starting to ripen. So I'm sure the squirrels are hiding out holding their stuffed bellies. I hope they get belly aches. In response to these little nasty critters, the boys are building a metal cage around the corn. The cage is about 8 feet tall and covers the entire bed. They said they'll put in a door so we can get in and pick the corn.  I sure hope so. But we still still have something of a problem - can those nasties get under the cage? Can they dig their way under the bottom? That remains to be seen. One other problem. The watermelons and cantaloupes are getting real cozy with the tom

Yes its raining again

It is 80 degrees outside and pouring. Its one of those short downpours. You know the kind - quarter inch of rain in about 10 minutes.   That kind.  Its only Wednesday and we've had 2.47 inches this week so far. Gotta love Texas weather.

Gazpacho anyone?

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  Yes I do think those tomatoes are supposed to be yellow.  And yes I do have jalapenos and bell peppers ripe right now too. Though warning - those jalapenos are hot. I roasted them with dinner on Sunday. All you had to do was rub them next to something else to get the flavor. I took a bite of one, small bite no seeds, and my eyes started watering. It was hot. The long green things. Two are cucumbers, and two are zucchini.

SUNSHINE!!

Yes, we had sunshine yesterday and today. And with luck we should have it for this week. Though of course that means its a bit warmer, 84 by mid afternoon, but the humidity is not too bad. It could mean summer is around the corner too. Not my favorite, but it will come one way or the other. Last month, May we had over 6 inches of rain here at the house. And we had about 3-1/2 inches just last week alone. And other areas around here got more rain that we did.  We had many times where we got just the edge of the storm. We could watch lightning all around us, and just feel light rain here. But it's nice to have a break. Now for what has happened with the plants. Some of the irises are trying to bloom. So are some of the bluebonnets. Most of them did their thing before the rain, but some were truly late bloomers. Though we got some wind, not enough to cause damage here at the house. We were lucky there.  But everything is growing now. The "lawn" is tall and needs a hair c

Rain dancers, please take a break

Okay, we got rain. So far we've had over 7 inches here at the house this month. In the past 12 hours we've had about 2 inches of it. And that's not been a nice slow drizzle. We've had some short down pours in there. At one point we had power outages, just from the rain. They say Travis Lake rose 7 ft in 12 hours. That's a lot of rain. Even I-35 was closed for a while due to water over the freeway. Blanco River at midnight was at just over 32 feet, flood stage is 13.  Its due to crest at 41. So you rain dancers please take a break. I know you are due to begin your dance again tomorrow. Meanwhile, give us a break please!

Tornado warning in effect

This morning we've had a tornado watch, a tornado warning, a possible tornado sighted in Blanco, and 27 MPH gusts. And its raining. And the who thing has happened in less than an hour. But we've got rain. My planters are flooded. But I guess the plants will be happy - sort of. The corn is now leaning due to the wind and rain. They will probably straighten up with some sun and a chance to dry out. With luck we should get less rain the next few days, so maybe some sun. Maybe sun during part of the day and rain later? Who knows. But its weather.

Happy Mother's Day

Yes, happy Mother's Day. A doe just dropped twins outside in front of my office.  Can't get a picture of them as I've up above them and I have plants growing. But I can see them from my office. Which is better than the bunny in the back yard we've seen over the past few days. Though both will enjoy eating my garden.

April plants

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Yes the garden is growing well.  We had some rain last night and I'm sure the plants are happy.  So here is how the garden is growing. Bluebonnets in the yard Yes, the corn is growing. This hawk shows up sometimes and just sits on the hand rail. The peas and beans are doing well I think. The salad bowl.  Want salad, go pick it. Yes fresh strawberries are great tasting.   Tomatoes.  What can we say. The big guys are from the store, the small guys are from seed. So,  how does your garden grow?

The irises are blooming

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I think spring is here

I think spring may have actually begun. The trees have flowers or new leaves, my asparagus are coming up, my beans and pea seeds are sprouting, and my iris' are blooming. And the good news is today we're even getting some rain. I threw out some seed - grass and wildflower, in areas of the yard that were bare. Hopefully with this rain we'll see some of that take root. That would be nice. Though I've had a couple of health issues, last week (with help) we got new plants in (tomato, petunias), replanted the roses in new larger pots, moved the lemon trees out of the greenhouse and into the yard, and we've been moving seedlings out into the sun. And all my seeds are coming up - hallelujah!  I think its time to start putting in more seeds. YIPEE!! SPRING IS HERE!!

Has Spring sprung?

Not sure if spring is here, but it might be. There's no cold in the 10 day forecast. We do have thunderstorms likely, but that's it. And knowing this area it remains to be seem if that happens.  It might, but we'll see. But on a good note I have put in some tomatoes and peppers I picked up at Home Depot over the weekend.  This time I put cages around them as we put them in the ground.  I do need to put a few marigold seeds in.  I think the marigolds helped keep out bugs last year, so it would be good to put them in this year. And hopefully putting tomatoes plants in this early should help us get an earlier crop.  We'll see about that, but we'll also keep our fingers crossed too. But the weather has been nice, 60's to 70's, but only the low 70's as a high. And the nights have been in the 50's so I thought it would be good to get the planting starting.  Pat moved the lemon trees out of the greenhouse and into the yard. One of them already has begun

Hope spring is coming

The past two nights have been cold - mid 20's cold. Last night we got down to 25, but today we're up to 53 already. Hopefully that's the last of the cold. We went to Lowe's today, and it appears someone didn't cover their peppers and tomatoes well. They had them out in pots, and they drooped from the ground level over. The poor things looked like they froze last night. They may have. The only things we seemed to lose were the asparagus. But we do have some more asparagus popping up. The seeds I had put out in the green house are just now coming up. At least the tomato seeds have sprouted, the peppers didn't so I have put out more pepper seeds. I also have filled another set of seeds out in another flat in the green house - peppers, tomatoes and endive. I should start some of the other plants like the watermelons and such. I might do that this weekend. The 10-day forecast shows weather getting warm.  I hope that's accurate.

Getting stranger

Okay, we've had warm weather followed by cold weather.  We have trees (apples, plum, pear, fig) all ready to burst with flowers (apple already has). We've had 60-70 degree weather. Then we got another cold snap. Last night we drove home in 28-32 degree weather. Today we've had a high of 32. There are icicles on the bird feeder, and I have heard ice falling off the gutters around the house. And get this, tomorrow should be 60, with Tuesday being 75, yet Wednesday low should be 26.  And tomorrow is March 1. Today we've had cold with some precipitation. Can't say its really rain, but its not really snow, maybe sleet - at any rate its cold and wet. As far as I can tell nothing is sticking to the ground. But tonight is 50% chance of rain/freezing rain (I believe it). Starting tomorrow, Sunday we should begin showers, then scattered thunderstorms from Monday thru Wednesday, the rain/ice on Thursday. Hopefully a week from today we'll be back to just cold and above fr

Weird weather

Forgive me.  Yes we've got some lovely weather, but next week, Tuesday is a low of 29 with a wintery mix. Who knew. But today is a nice mid 50's, tomorrow (Friday) is mid 60's, then Saturday is mid 70's. Sunday and Monday are back into the 60's then Tuesday and Wednesday are cold nights.   I have to remember to cover the strawberries back up, and cover the seeds too. Okay, spring is not quite here yet.   But its working on it. All the fruit trees have buds on them and the lettuce is growing nicely. So spring is coming, or at least trying to.
Weather is changing here in Austin.  Its warming up, nights are in the 40-50's, with days in the 60's.  This morning we have fog, but its still 50 outside. And we've got sunshine most days. I expect this fog will burn off to a nice day. The weather forecast says next week we might have a couple of cooler nights - down near freezing.  We'll see if that holds up. I've put some seeds in the yard, and started some in pots. Its been peppers and tomatoes at this point. I've started using an iPhone app by Burpee that gives me a list of when to plant what. And according to it its time to start putting in seeds and plants. So I'm going to give it a try this year and see if I do any better.
We have purdy white flakes falling from the sky!!  Just what we needed, snow flurries. Weather.com says we should hit 48 today, that is anybody's guess. Last night was about 40. Texas winter weather. What else can you say.

Still Cold

It sounds like an ice machine out there. We have icicles hanging from the bird feeders, from railings, and from all sorts of items. Earlier we got up to 33 (low was 30), had some rain, and it sounded like an ice making machine here on the front porch. You could hear ice melting then cracking, then running down the drain pipes outside. It was almost funny. But with any luck we should hit 55 tomorrow.  I'll believe it when I see it.

It Is COLD!!

Yes, we hit cold - the low last night was 20.8 here at the house.  THAT'S JUST PLAIN COLD!! And it looks like we will be cold the next couple of days. Like just above freezing cold. And they say possible rain. I hope we don't get the rain even if we are cold.

2015 growing list

Weird weather the past few days.  How weird, you ask. Sunday night hit a low of 27. Today, Tuesday we had a high of 75, and tomorrow night, Wednesday night we are due for a low of 22.  Definite swings in temperatures. Pat came over last weekend and help with some yard work. He worked on the trees some more and turned over a couple of the veggie beds. Since all the tomatoes are finally dead and pulled out of the ground, I figured we should turn the soil over. That take a good back, strong arms, and a pitch fork. I don't have that strong of a back, nor that strong of arms, we do have the pitch fork. I worked the small corner where the basil was (should be for salad lettuce), and worked the beds around what is still growing (some lettuce, onions, asparagus). Today I did a little more work in those beds and put some lettuce seeds in the area around the other lettuce. I figured now is as good as any, especially since the lettuce is growing still. I also transplanted a few lettuce plan