Brief respite from drought

Finally -- we just had about a half hour of rain!  Our county, Brevard, is the dryest in the state.  Any afternoon storms that might arise have dropped their water in the surrounding counties, leaving Brevard parched.  My grass, newer trees and bushes can attest to that.  Only able to water just twice a week cannot counter the above-normal temperatures of high-90s.  So the brief rainstorm is very welcome. 

If there is any positive outcome to the drought, it's the reduced number of weeds.  I've only had to spend about a half hour every other week to clear the few weeds popping up.  Nice! 

That's all for now.

Out with the old

A quick glance at the back yard this morning revealed the honeysuckle continuing to stretch its vines over the arbor, the climbing roses in contrast as they sink into their summer hibernation, and the vegetable garden gone to seed.  I'm frequently amazed at which of the plants tolerate the hot and dry conditions that are unusual for this area, and which do not.  Normally, we in Central Florida would be treated to daily thunderstorms and the accompanying humidity. 

This week's chore was cleaning out the vegetable garden.  The tomatoes are gone for the season and weeds had spread amid the cages and trellises.  And so, in less than an hour, the eyesores were gone and weeds expunged to leave only parsley and mint, plus the marigolds along the fence.   A thought: Why aren't the weeds suffering in the drought like the other plants?

I'm still trying to decide if I want to plant a fall crop. 

By 8:45, the sun was high and the heat growing, so I quit for the day.   A quick dip in the pool was refreshing and I was ready for breakfast.

That's all for today.

A Dry Summer

The heat is so unbearable now that I can't bear the thought of working in the yard anymore.  Most of the plants look like they can't bear the heat either.  And where is the rain that seems to be saturating the rest of the county and Orlando?  We here in South Brevard are dried out.  

Two bright spots have emerged, however.  The dwarf powder puffs are covered in blooms and the bulbs I planted last month have emerged into tall, strong leaves.  I don't know if I'll get flowers on them this year, but that garden looks so much better than the weed-filled plot it used to be.  

I'm happy to say, too, that my honeysuckle plant has climbed the arbor side and now I'm trying to coax it across the top.  It has blooms, too, with a light scent so far.  The clematis next to it stopped blooming, though, and it is supposed to flower through fall.   Maybe cooler weather will coax it into another outburst.

The next chore I'll have to tackle soon is clearing out the vegetable garden.  The tomatoes gave up weeks ago when the intense heat arrived.  I'm not sure what my next step will be -- baking the garden?  planning a fall crop?  Any suggestions will be welcome.