What’s the same in March, April, and May?

The unusual amount of rain we’ve been getting. We already got 520mm of rain this year. This is 2/3 of our yearly rain amount. We can barely get 2 dry days for any decent garden work, and most of the time I’m just rushing to do what can be done.

The middle of May is usually the time when we start transplanting sensitive seedlings, but even this is a struggle this year. I have to find the right time to be able to walk around the garden. This is why I’ve moved 90% of the seedlings to the garden, and when I get a dry enough day transplant as much as I can.

Zucchinis and cucumbers

Although my seedlings are still relatively small I had no choice but to transplant the zucchinis and cucumbers this week. The temperatures have been quite low and the seedlings didn’t grow as much as I wanted them to, but due to the more rain we’re supposed to get in the next 2 weeks I had to transplant them. Luckily the roots were big enough to transplant.

I’ve made a narrow bed on the sunniest side of the garden for the zucchinis. I’m still considering growing them as a bush or tying them on the poles for better ventilation. If we continue having weather like this I will definitely have to lift them from the ground or they will be devastated by blight.

When it comes to cucumbers, this year I decided to make a mixed bed of corn, sunflowers, and cucumbers. The plan is to let them climb the sunflowers and corn and maybe this way avoid using netting. I’ve made one side of the bed mixed and the other side will get branches which I will use as trellis. The cucumbers are still quite small and most of them don’t have first real leaves. I never transplant such small plants but I had no choice this time. I’ve sown more seedlings than I need so even if some of them die I’ll still have enough.

What about tomatoes?

Usually, when I start transplanting I try to do everything at once. This year tomatoes are still waiting. Although they should have been transplanted two weeks ago, they are still waiting. The seedlings are already huge, but I still don’t feel I should transplant them. The rainy weather is not something tomatoes like and I don’t want to risk catching blight.

I will transplant them next week if we get some dry days. There are almost 200 seedlings and it will take some time to transplant them.

Orchard test garden

I did transplant a couple of tomato seedlings to the next test orchard garden. Last year I dug a new bed on the sunny side of the orchard and this year I decided to make a small test garden there. The test garden will contain all of the plants that are in the main garden. This way I will be able to see which vegetables grow the best here in this part of the yard.

I’ve divided the new tiny garden into two parts. On the lower part, I’ve sown lentils, cucumbers, zucchinis, and beets, and on the upper part, I’ve planted tomatoes, peppers, and chilly peppers. I will also plant some pole beans, once they get big enough for transplanting. During the summer hubby will install a protective netting here, and we’ll deep dig more parts of the orchard for a new garden.

Plans for next week

When it comes to planning the next week I’m not sure what we’ll be able to do. I should transplant tomatoes, pole beans, leeks, and lettuce. Also, the garden will need more weeding, and the yard will need mowing. I still haven’t gotten branches for the cucumbers and lentils, and some of the yard plants need new pots.

But all of this depends on the weather which hasn’t been on our side lately. Hopefully, this rain period will soon be over. We need some sun and warmth desperately. Even the house heating is back on, and this is not normal for this part of Croatia.