by Thumper » Tue Aug 23, 2016 7:17 pm
A hot mess.
Or as the kids say now: A Dumpster Fire.
I kept the sunflowers fenced in until most were over 5 foot tall so that the big critters wouldn't decimate them. Kept cayenne sprinkled about and stinky soap hanging from the fencing. I tried to think them out some but couldn't bring myself to do it enough. Also, I planted some pumpkin and zucchini for ground cover. They never really did anything before. This year they went crazy and they attached themselves to everything, climbing up and pulling down the sunflowers. Most of them tipped over in the first big thunderstorm of late July. I put a bunch of stakes in and saved many of them. The pumpkins are out of control, but we will get some. Added bonus: I fertilized with compost when I planted and put some more in when I thinned and replanted. Some of my compost must have had tomato seeds in it. I ended up with 4-6 tomato plants, at least 3 different species (most small). I've gotten about 10 tomatoes a day for the last 20 days out of there. But it sure looks like crap. Most of the sunflowers are tall, skinny with small heads since they were competing for water and root space. I'll see what I can do better next year. Once things started to get out of hand I decided to just let them go.
Look for the Helpers. You will always find people who are helping.
-Mr. Rogers' Mom
