June 22 Update

The roses seem to be doing well.  The above rose has aphids on it--not a lot--that I am trying to eradicate.

The picture below is of some yellowing leaves on one of my rose plants.  I'm trying to figure out what it is and what to do about it.  If you have any ideas, PLEASE let me know!

Everything else is coming right along.

My very first tomato of the season!! It is a Roma tomato.

I'm still having issues with the pole beans.  If you click on this photo, you can see two sprouts... where are the leaves? Are there supposed to be leaves right away?  Is something nibbling on these?  Yesterday I counted over 6 holes dug in the soil that I think is the work of squirrels--or birds. Ugh.

At least the peas are doing well. Yay!

In other parts of the yard, the double lilies have come up and bloomed.  So pretty!!

Killer Instinct

Peas!
I was really surprised at how quickly the little pea plants have begun fruiting--vegetabling? hehe  :)

I replanted the pole beans.  With only one shoot sprouted, it seemed as though the others were doomed.  Hopefully I'll have better luck this time.

This morning as I went out to admire my gorgeous roses, I spied some curious little green bugs on one of my new buds. Aphids! :(  I wasn't sure what to do with them.  Do I spray them? Cut off the bud?  I looked it up online quickly and someone suggested to squish them asap to keep the population down. So, that's what I did. I went around to all the new shoots/buds and squished every one I found.  Luckily, it was that first bud that was the problem. I found only 2-3 aphids elsewhere.  I'll keep my eyes open from now on.

With the taste of blood in my mouth and my neighbors out of town, I decided to jump the fence and kill more vine. Ha ha!  I started pulling up all the roots I could find and treating the stumps with root killer. Then it happened. :(  I pulled on the largest root so far--about 2" thick--and it slimed me.  I mean, that sucker slimed me good. It was like a khaki-colored mucus that soaked my gardening gloves and made me want to hurl. What the crap is that stuff?!  I did the best I could and cut that root away. I hope I never have to do that again.  I was following the roots along the fenceline when I got to the other fence where my neighbors' neighbor is and guess what?! That damn vine is all over the place! It was like the field of poppies from Wizard of Oz except this was a Virginia Creeper--my nemesis. I will plan my attack.....

Flock Tending

It seems I am now at the point where I am simply observing my garden except for the occasional watering.
A few of the pole beans are definitely sprouting.  I planted 16 beans and so far only 2 have erupted out of the soil and I see 3 more little mounds that suggest they'll be showing up soon.  I'm wondering how long I should wait until I give up on the rest and replant?  Any suggestions?

It appears that my basil plant is becoming very religious.  Almost all the leaves have holes in them. What the crap?!

I have 5 tomato plants:  1 Roma, 2 Grape, 2 Brandywine.  I looked up some info on the Brandwine tomatoes because they just didn't see to be growing as much as the other varieties.  Turns out they are some of the slowest growing tomatoes!  http://www.vegetable-gardening-online.com/brandywine-tomato.html  This morning, I went out to water them and I noticed growth on both plants--I am pleased.

The first black raspberry ripened!

My first yellow rose:

The other yellow rose has begun to bloom but I will wait to post a picture until it is fully bloomed.  This yellow rose has red/pink edges and I think it will be beautiful.

I'm looking for trellis ideas for my summer squash.  I'm thinking of putting in some sort of ramp, A-frame thingy to get them to flow out of the raised box and not cover the rest of my plants. Hmmm...

Weekend Update

I was out of town this weekend and when I returned, I found:

My purple rose has bloomed!

My tiger lilies have bloomed!

My peas are eagerly reaching out for someone to hold on to!

The battle of the vine continues...

Question of the Day: Is this a bean sprout coming up?!