Tonight I was really out there watering my gardens good as the next three days are going to be in the mid to upper 90° temps. Wanted to make sure the beds were good and ready for the heat. While checking over the squash plants I noticed holes. They appeared after some big storms we had so didn’t think a lot about it though I would lift leaves and check for bugs. Wasn’t really sure what I was truly looking for, but would take pics of anything I found and google good or bad. Well, tonight a discovered about four leaves with clusters of eggs on them and saw a bug so grabbed my camera and kept playing with it until I got a good pic of it. He kept moving around the trellis and went to hang with his two best of buddies! I finally know what a squash bug looks like! I removed the leaves with the eggs and tossed them in the trash which will be going out to the curb tomorrow morning and taken to the local dump…. My husband’s ex wife, whom I have become very good friends with had just today sent a box of things over that had been in her dad’s garage. A bottle of eco friendly plant soap and two containers of Seven! Perfect timing. The plants have all been dusted! But not before spraying the bugs with the plant soap. lol.

Something has eaten huge parts of my brussel leaves. I'm going to try moving them so that I can put protective netting all around them, after spraying them. I'm also moving my sweetcorn, cucumbers and beans to give them support and protection. This is the first time of trying to grow my own vegetables, (apart from tomatoes and salads) so it's all trial and error.

What're all these? 1. Little white bugs. They look more white than the picture shows. 2. Red eggs in perfect formation mostly under the leaves but some are on top. 3. Tons of these guys mating. 4. My plant went through the fence when I was on vacation so I could not redirect it. I will put a platform under that pumpkin growing so it won't break the plant. 5. Soooo many male flowers. Only 1 female flower. Finally. Lots of bees doing their job. 6. I also went out there with a q-tip.

So... how's the weather? 🤣 Here in North Texas, we are 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱 in an El Niño year (and possibly a super El Niño?) Normally, by June, we're in a pretty serious drought. Instead, I'm writing this while yet another big storm rolls through, and we've already gotten 1.08 inches in the last three hours alone. For June so far? 𝟰.𝟲𝟵 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹, with an average 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝟴𝟱%. That is not normal for us. 𝗪𝗮𝗶𝘁, 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗘𝗹 𝗡𝗶ñ𝗼? El Niño is a natural weather pattern that happens when the Pacific Ocean warms up more than usual, shifting rainfall and temperatures across the globe. For those of us in the Western Hemisphere, that tends to mean wetter, rainier conditions than we're used to. I've heard a lot of you mention struggling with the rain this year. And for me, it's one of those things that feels like a blessing and a curse at the same time. I've barely had to water my garden, which is great. But I'm also dealing with more plant disease than I've seen in a long time, and that's 𝘯𝘰𝘵 great. 𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺𝘀 Here are the two I'm personally facing right now: 1. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 Wet conditions (soggy soil, water sitting on leaves, high humidity) create the perfect environment for fungal and bacterial diseases to spread. I'm battling this right now on my bush beans, watermelon, strawberries, cucumbers, and tomatoes. (Photos attached). → We'll talk more about how I'm managing this in today's Q&A. 2. 𝗡𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀 When a lot of rain comes at once, it can literally wash nutrients out of your soil before your plants ever get a chance to use them. (The fancy term for this is "leaching.") On top of that, waterlogged soil makes it harder for plant roots to absorb the nutrients that are still there. The result? Yellowing leaves, slow growth, and plants that just look... off. I actually covered this in depth during the fertilizer workshop, so if you want the full picture, definitely go back and watch that.

Kia Ora.. no kirikiriroa ahau...