I witnessed the pollinators doing their good work on my cucumber plants: Honey bees!
I looked up how far honey bees will fly to forage, and the general consensus seems to be upwards of four miles, with some going farther. That is a rather large circle around our area, so I don’t know if they are wild or a neighbor is keeping bees. We live in an area where either is possible.
Since I put my jewel orchid in a small jar of live moss in a frosted front window, in an upside down clear cylinder vase, it has been very happy. It grew great big leaves and now looks like it is going to bloom!
I have heard that the flowers of jewel orchids aren’t very showy, the plants are prized more for their striking leaf pattern than for the floral display.
I may have to figure out how to get better pictures. Hm.
This year my husband moved the metal trough “raised” garden bed out into the meadow where there is more sunlight. I set a trellis in the middle and planted cucumbers. I have meant to run a timed watering line out there, but it hasn’t happened yet. I haven’t had to hand water often, though, because we’ve been receiving frequent rain. It has worked. I’ve been harvesting cucumbers!
I’m training the vines up the trellis to keep the cucumbers off the ground, which works really, really well.
I have not installed deer deterrent yet in the form of a fence or barrier. That is on the to do list.
My cucumber plants are starting to grow vines! I have a trellis set up in the raised bed and would like them to climb that rather than drape off the sides of the bed. I found it helps to gently hook the questing tendrils around the metal. I wrap the tendril around the post, then hook it back through the loop, like a knot, but not tightened.
I connected with a local alpaca farmer and picked up two fleeces that were not spin quality. One was second cuts (not prime fiber) and full of vegetable matter, the other she had washed vigorously and it felted.
I wanted them to run an experiment with mulching around my pumpkins, so I placed the “waste” fiber around the plants, not up against the stems, and watered them down.
Now the waiting and watching. My hope is that the fiber will felt into pads and block weed growth and provide protection from the dirt for any pumpkins that form.
Critters and Craft 