We’ve had a heatwave.
Plain and simple, the vegies I usually plant for a later harvest have struggled.
So to compensate, I dug through my stash of old sheets and between the hubby and I, came up with an idea that just might do the trick.
I present the Cucumbers of July 16, 2018 complete with sunburn and impending death.
What our young cucs needed was some relief in the form of shade. So I looked into the mesh shade cloth that you see at greenhouses and larger gardens.
It’s very nice, but I want to save a few pennies. That’s the whole point of gardening right?! Grow your own vegies to save on the grocery bill? And of course there’s the flavor 😉
So here’s what we came up with. Two giant ‘sails’. Really just a curtain with rod pockets at top and bottom. Some old pipe came in handy to attach it to our raised bed. And when storm clouds rise or the weather turns fair, we gather it in the middle and tie it up until danger of getting ripped passes.
Taken just 1 week after assembling this shade curtain. And I will admit to having some nice rainfall to help the situation. Just a good all around combination.
And here’s the mandatory garden view.
Adding this post to my new page, “Free Tip Friday”. New content on the way!
This is my least productive veggie gardening season ever. Some plants died, some are struggling with blight and curled leaves from the uneven water from days of rain, and I’m going to have to buy a tomato to make a sandwich. LOL 🙂 I am holding 23 Kousa dogwood saplings until next year’s Master Gardener plant sale and decided to use my empty raised beds to sink the pots. However, it is in direct afternoon sun so I made some tents with wires and pipe and put shade cloth that I had over them to hopefully give them a little break. Like your use of sheets – good old Yankee ingenuity. 🙂
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This has been a wacky weather year for sure! Glad you found a multitask-storage solution. And when that shade cloth goes on sale I might have to nab some up for next year🤓
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