Summer is definitely here or should I say "hear" as the cicadas have started their incessant early morning whine. I hate the Japanese summer as it is just so hot, and humid, and endless... We have no big travel plans this summer so I really need to psych myself up for the simple pleasures of a summer spent in puddles of sweat. It's a little early for the wonderful fireworks displays and nighttime festivals. My morning glory put out a week or two of beautiful light purple flowers and then promptly seemed to die. It never grew more than a foot or two tall and now seedpods are forming!
I have been enjoying my green backyard this year, though. Last autumn I finally found some "lace" curtains for the living room window that would fit their unusual height so bought them. They were super cheap at a Jusco, off the shelf, but were a major disappointment when I got them home. For one thing, they were just a wall of white and totally blocked out the outside view. They were replacing an ordermade cream colored curtain that had been hanging for nearly 25 years. But, those had become so damaged from UV rays that even the slightest pressure when opening them would cause a new tear and soon me with a needle and thread trying to delicately repair another spot. Anyway, I tea stained the new curtains to match as close to the other less damaged ones in the room. As they were so opaque we took to opening the lace curtains during the day and now it's become habit. Suddenly, we can enjoy the fruits of our labors in the 25-years and growing backyard. It was just rocks and rubble when we got the house. The wall of green delights me each day. The survival of the fittest plants, including some volunteer trees, are reaching maturity. I only wish the people who have the neighboring house felt the same about gardening as late last summer they had a crew of senior citizens "Silver Service" come in and shave every single plant in the backyard down to the nub!
I enjoy flower arranging and clip greenery through the year to bring a bit of the outdoors inside. Today, I chose the smallest leaves of a funky plant my husband rescued more than 20 years ago. At the time, he misidentified it as a maple. But, it is great for ikebana and would certainly work better than a fig leaf for protection as fig leaves are downright itchy!
As I said, we have to no big travel plans this year. My RA is stable and my health has been improving by leaps and bounds over the past couple of years. So I decided to give gardening a little more attention than I have in the past decade when poor health took over my life. Before my husband could plant another pathetic watermelon in his jumbo sized planters, I snuck in some tomato plants, eggplants, cucumbers, basil, marigolds, nasturtiums, parsley, and shiso. I was looking for companions plants and my husband was calling them a new Japanese term that was something like "bridal plants".
Within 6 weeks of planting, I got the first cucumber and mini-tomato on June 25.
Rainy Season was mostly a no show this past June. I think we will have serious water shortfalls by August if things don't improve. This morning, I took a few shots to record how things are growing. Over the past month, we've already enjoyed several regular sized tomatoes from the 2 plants I purchased. They were a branded type that are often seen in the supermarket so promised a good taste. I grew up on a farm, with a massive vegetable garden, so sniffing that weird tomato fragrance when you brush against the leaves is an added nostalgic bonus for me. I know I can't count on having the same bumper crop next year as tomatoes are heavy feeders of the nutrients in the soil and shouldn't be planted in the same spot a second year.
One of my favorite summer flowers, that always produces masses of blooms no matter the heat, is the portulaca. I usually plant several starter plants and enjoy them until late in the early winter kill-off. This year, I experimented with a packet of seeds. I've NEVER had luck with planting seeds in Japan. I had high hopes when masses of early sprouts came up with the seeds this year, though. Now, into July, there is one lone plant and looks as if it will bloom soon. Guess I should have stuck with starters as I would have been enjoying flowers weeks ago!
I had high hopes for refreshing summer drinks of lemon and mint when I planted a spearmint and peppermint plant a few months back. Indeed, I did enjoy a container or two. But, now mid-July, they look absolutely pathetic. I'm not too worried as I know they will probably take off and be as hard to kill off as that pesky lemon balm in garden. But wait, how did I kill off their predecessors?
Ah, I had so much hope for future rhubarb pies? Looks like one plant has died and the other is attempting a final stand. I killed off the previous plant by moving it too often. This was the first time I have seen rhubarb in my neck of the woods as I brought the former one down from Nagano about 20 years ago.
I don't have many stellar ideas on how to use rosemary. This plant looks pretty pathetic. It may just take off yet. Hopefully, by then, I'll have found a few nice recipes to use it in.
Love to see a rose in bloom! Nice bonus this morning when I spotted it.
Here is a goya, the so called "green curtain" plant, that everyone is urged to grow for eco- friendliness. I planted 2 this year. They still aren't tall enough to cover a window yet, though.
For some variety, I planted a yellow mini-tomato besides the standard red ones. So far the red is producing far more fruits.
Waiting for dinner in a
few days time is the tomato below.
The mini-tomatoes that got a planter of their own are doing great.
Basil and tomatoes are supposed to be good companion plants. I've been picking basil nearly every day to add to lunch and dinner. My previous attempts of a lone basil plant produced a pathetic wispy plant that the bugs soon devoured. So, this has been a resounding success!
And, finally, the smell of an aging Japanese taxi driver's hair tonic has now been revealed as the scent of the kinkan (kumquat)!
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