06.28.07 BUSTED!

I couldn't figure out why there were no seed shells scattered about after the varmints attacked my newly planted cucurbitae pots. Well yesterday I saw the suspect out reconnoitering for more, and all was made clear. It was a fastidious chipmunk, five-lined or four-lined (depending on who is doing the counting), Tamias rufus, who snarfeled away all my seeds, shells and all, into his capacious cheeks for storage in his seed and grain silo!

06.25.07 NOT SQUASHED YET!

It is not easy growing members of the gourd family, cucurbitaceae, around here. Planted this late in the summer an insect known as a borer hollows out the stems of the plant making it difficult to impossible for the vine to produce much. This is unfortunate since we all love the melons, pumpkins, squash, zucchini, and cucumbers in this tribe. I read recently about staying ahead of the borers by planting the seeds in a protected area in pots and then after transplanting to the garden keeping the plants under row cover cloth. Thought I would try it. I started my plants on the front porch. After a week or so had gone by, I saw no growth in my pots, just bits of dirt pushed around. I checked and every seed had been stolen by either a bird or a four-footed varmint! Here I am replanting them all to start in an even more protected location!