Rain Amount for June: We received 5.47 inches of rain in June!
Second Crop of Blackflies: Well, my garden isn’t growing, but the blackflies sure are! They’re back! Aughhhh…….itch…itch…itch…
Photography: Photography sure is going to be limited this summer with all the rain. I have to sneak out between rain events to photograph flowers. The forest and trails are soaking wet, and I don’t like to subject the camera to too much water. Ugh… Even kayaking will have to happen in short bursts without much photography, and I was hoping to photograph the pond through all its changes this summer…Hopefully next year will be different.
Weather Update: More of the same…rain, rain, rain. I just looked a the10-day forecast, and it looks like this weather pattern might finally break on July 7th with a sunny day. That means that we will have seen the sun 9 out of 36 days! This is a record breaker for us both in the amount of rain and the lack of sunshine. And, our daytime temperature is still in the low 60s, with an occasional day in the low 70s. This is unreal for the last day of June! Oh…I just looked at May’s weather, and we’ve only seen the sun 17 days out of the last 61 days…Now, that is depressing.
Gardening Update: Last Friday, in a break from the rain, I replanted my cucumbers and beans, and a few of the squash. Since then, we’ve received over 2 inches of rain! Oy…I might have to replant again! Nothing is growing…the tomato plants are holding firm at about 16 inches tall. Hopefully, they will start growing again when we get the sunshine on July 7th. This weather is also wreaking havoc on our trees. My gorgeous crab-apple tree in the backyard is so sad looking after a record-breaking beautiful flowering session it had in the Spring. Its leaves are all wilted and brown-spotted. I cannot imagine the toll this wet weather is having on animal life as well. As far as insects are concerned, I only see the occasional butterfly, the occasional bumblebee, and a few honeybees and wasps out and about.
Under the Sea-Wind: I am in the middle of an absolutely lovely book by Rachel Carson titled, “Under the Sea-Wind.” This was Ms. Carson’s first book, and was first published in 1941. It has three sections titled, “Edge of the Sea”, “The Gull’s Way”, and “River and Sea”. It tells of fish and birds who inhabit the edge of the sea, the open ocean, and the deep abyss. This book is wonderfully written and I am completely drawn into it’s every page. Here is a quote from the book:
To stand at the edge of the sea, to feel the breath of a mist moving over a great salt marsh, to watch the flight of shore birds that have swept up and down on surf lines for untold millions of years, is to have knowledge of things that are as nearly eternal as any earthly life can be. These things were before ever man stood on the shore of the ocean and looked out upon it with wonder; they continue year in, year out, through the centuries and ages, while kingdoms rise and fall.
Want to read more? Then check the book out of your local library or buy it online. It is so refreshing and pleasant.
Step One of Invasive Plant Eradication: This afternoon, I pulled up 2 tansy plants that I was using to control insects on my apple trees (I never did notice that they were doing any good). As I pulled up the plants, the strong odor from the crushed leaves enveloped me. Tansy is a natural insecticide. Well…it is a natural Lauriecide as well. I had a major allergic reaction to it and ended up with my tongue, throat, and nostrils burning for hours afterward, followed by major clogging of sinuses. I had to take an antihistamine to calm things down. It was a rough evening.
Important Note: Pull the invasive plants up before they flower and go to seed!
Invasive Plant Atlas of New England: I am currently using this web site as my guide for eradicating the invasive plants in my yard. I have found that I must pull up the following plants: Burning Bush, Celandine, Dame’s Rocket, False Indigo (boo hoo…I just bought it last year!), forget-me-not, and yellow loosestrife (aka garden loosestrife). I have found that moneywort has been creeping up from a drainage area behind my north facing flower/shrub garden, and I must tackle that as well. I am also going to chop down any new black locust trees that try to grow up. Click on this link to go to the Invasive Plant Atlas of New England Web Site: http://nbii-nin.ciesin.columbia.edu/ipane/index.htm
