Goldenrod

[altivo]

The goldenrod flower (Solidago canadensis and/or S. virgaurea) always stands for the end of summer in my mind. Source of natural dyes, medicinal herb at one time, and falsely accused of causing hay fever (it doesn't,) this brilliant yellow flower is found all over the county here. Along roads, at the edges of woodlands, in fallow fields, and yes, even in some flower gardens. When it blooms, the frost is on the horizon, though not quite with us yet. It's blooming prolifically this year, too.

More to the point, last night, even though it's still August, our temperature got down to almost 41°F, within a stone's toss of freezing. And this afternoon, while driving home, I saw sumac and maple leaves starting to change colors. The weather has been so unexpectedly strange this year that it's hard to believe the summer is nearly over. The equinox is still three weeks away, for pete's sake. But there it is.

The vegetable garden is a near bust, one of the worst we've ever had. Other than an early flush of peas and lettuce, it has produced nothing. The heavy rains of June washed away seeds, or drowned the sprouts. Plants started indoors couldn't be set out early enough, and when they finally did get out there, then we had three weeks of cold, gloomy days followed by almost a solid month of no rain. My tomato plants are just starting to blossom now, and are a third the size they normally would be at this time. The eggplants have refused to grow, and though still alive, are the same size as when they were set out at the end of June. Pole beans have refused to climb their supports, and are loafing around at the bottom. Broccoli, okra, and kohlrabi simply disappeared. Either they didn't germinate or something got them shortly afterward. The Japanese beetles weren't quite as bad this year as last, or else it seemed that way because they found nothing to eat. Except of course, the apples. We had a fairly heavy crop this year, but the beetles ate the thin skinned varieties down to the core, just as they did last year. It looks as if we will have a few Spitzenberg, perhaps enough for one pie, and one or two Prairie Spy that survived the drought and the beetle blitz. Next year I'm going to give in and spray those trees.

We're still looking for hay, as well. Our supplier of the last ten years has decided to call it quits. He sold his equipment and isn't doing any hay this year. That's his right, but not telling us even after we had called and left repeated messages really wasn't fair. It has been a bad year for hay because of the rain, and I need at least 700 bales yet. No one seems to have any around here. This could be a big problem.

Still, the goldenrod is pretty even if it does foretell falling leaves and temperatures. I will enjoy it while it is blooming.

Comments

[equusmaximus.livejournal.com]

The weather seems to have been wacky all across the continent this year. Up here, we experienced much the same (snow in June?!) as far as a late, nearly non-existant Spring, and a Summer that seems to have come and gone in a flash! We didn't get a garden put in this year, and given the growing conditions perhaps that's just as well. Still, I've seen some of the neighbours' gardens, and they seem to be doing fairly well.

Our tomatoes aren't doing much better than yours though; We'll get a few, but we should have had a load of big juicey red ones by now. On one of the plants, there's one withered somewhat-red attempt at bearing fruit on a nearly-dead vine, yet the same plant has a thick and lush deep-green vine that's loaded with... flowers... just little flowers, with no fruit, and not much chance of getting any before the frost comes. :P

Ah well, we'll get some here in the next few days from one of the other plants, and then we'll gorge ourselves on Toasted Tomato Sandwiches until we can't stand the sight of them! Just wondering, if you know... Do tomatoes like having horse-manure mixed in with their soil? I know that Roses love it, and Peonies hate it...

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Tomatoes should like horse manure if it has been allowed to season for a while. We make manure piles and then let them sit for a year, relocating the new stuff to somewhere else. The next year, when grass and weeds start to cover the old pile, then we dig it out and mix it in the garden soil. Seems to work well, with no serious problems.

We tried using fresher manure once but all sorts of disasters followed. The corn grew smut. The root vegetables were pushed right out of the ground by the mushrooms coming up, etc.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Look above. I think the first one did make it. ;D

[equusmaximus.livejournal.com]

I noticed, so I deleted the grumpily repeated post. ;) Ahhh, got to love that modern technology!

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Oooh. Is that one of your horses? Cute photo.

[rustitobuck.livejournal.com]

My internal calendar is all off. It got stuck in April for a long time; now it thinks it's mid-September.

I also mislaid my pool pass, but hey, the last three days were cool enough that they didn't open the pool. Tomorrow, maybe. Wednesday is High School Open house. Thursday, I'm off, but the pool doesn't open until 4 because school's in session. And the pool season is over on Monday.

ah, but it's autumn...

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's what it seemed like. April suddenly became September. My windows are fogged up at the moment, it's so cold outside.

[flamekist.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm glad my garden isn't the only one that was a bust. This summer was by far the coolest and wettest in Georgia that I can remember. If it weren't for my dad living with us we probably wouldn't have even turned on the air conditioner.

I'm sorry to hear about your hay supplier. That was pretty low of them to not say a word to you all this time. He must have been thinking about selling his equipment for a while. There's no way it was a last-minute decision.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I can't figure it out. He's always been prompt, efficient, and helpful. Reasonably priced too, so that we never thought of hunting around for anyone else. Now we're stuck scrambling. He left a hay wagon sitting here all winter, but he's done that before. I started to wonder when he didn't pick it up until the end of June, but I was here when he came for it. Told him then that we'd take a load or two as soon as he had them, and he didn't warn me even at that point.

[songdogmi.livejournal.com]

I always liked goldenrod...when my family had the farm, since most of it was unplowed we would have fields of it in late August and September. It's part of why fall is my favorite season.

Bummer about the garden. Guess it was just one of those strange years.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yeah, fingers and hooves crossed that it isn't going to become the rule now that we get floods of rain followed by drought.

[bladehorse.livejournal.com]

I Wouldn't be surprised if the farmers alminac says its going to be an exceptionally cold winter. I mean it never got HOT this summer. And the crops are not nearly as good as usual, even in cali.
I need to figure out a way to get a chord or 2 of almond wood for the winter. And start limbing up the oaks around here too. (Im sorta acurate on my season predictions, when I have a gut feeling, and I Do feel that this is going to bee a freezer).
Time to check the frostless hydrants again!

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Except it did get hot, farther north of you, in Portland and Seattle where they never get heat and don't have air conditioning.

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

The sudden heat blast we had just triggered everything into flower before spring. It's really weird too as the mornings are still cold but when I walk out to the bus everything is flowering..some poor co-workers have been suffering badly as a result.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

I really don't see how people keep denying that we're on the edge of major climate changes. There is just too much weird stuff happening all over the place, year after year.