Garden gloomarama

Another cool, gray, rainy day today. Great sleeping weather, but not so great for the garden. Here it is, almost September, and I still have more green tomatoes than red (or purple or yellow).

Not to whine too much. I've gotten some good meals in: Greek-style village salads of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, feta cheese and Kalamata olives with a fresh oregano vinaigrette; a stir-fry of pork with quartered cherry tomatoes thrown in at the last minute; plenty of tabbouleh. And it's nice when a friend comes over and you can serve a salad that came completely from the back porch -- greens, herbs, tomatoes. But it remains a disappointing tomato summer.

Last week I set up a third long self-watering box on the porch railing and sowed it with fall greens. It was way cool for August so I decided what the heck. I planted some ferny dill at one end, because I love dill, and for the rest I mixed together my remaining lettuce, spinach and chard seeds in a bowl, called it mesclun and slung them in the soil. Already have a nice crop of sprouts. I'll be eating all those greens young and small, before it gets to the point that their differing growth habits become an issue.

But then I realized that I will need more seeds for a second crop, so I went out to Mom's and begged for lettuce seeds. There is never any fear of a seed shortage at Mom's.

I have a lot of inside stuff to do today, but am hoping that I will get the chance to go out and dig a bit. I have two Pink Knock Out roses to plant. (Yes, I know it's the wrong time to plant roses, but these were hand-me-downs, and the right time to plant passalong plants is when somebody gives them to you).

And also some lily bulbs. Mom says they are Michigan lilies (Lilium michiganense). I suspect they might be Turk's cap lilies (Lilium superbum). Both are Midwestern native species, though from somewhat different habitats. Since I failed to get a picture of them when they were in bloom, I'll have to wait until next year to make the final determination.

Whatever these are, they were doing just fine in sandy soil in Indiana. I might try mixing some sand in along with compost when I plant them, to make life easier for them in my diligently amended but still basically clay soil.

In her garden they were very tall--a good 7 feet. I already have a floppy-lily problem, especially with the 'Casa Blanca' Oriental lilies (which I had forgotten I had planted until they bloomed) and some trumpet lilies.

Basically, next year, I will need to be a whole lot more conscientious about staking lilies when they are young. Almost all my lilies tend to stretch sideways for light because they are planted in too much shade. That's because my garden is pretty much all too much shade. I have come to terms with it in many respects -- I got rid of half the lawn, for example -- but I just can't stop myself from planting lilies. Later. When the sun comes out.


Got a garden question? I recommend you call or e-mail the Plant Clinic of The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, the Master Gardeners of the University of Illinois Extension or the Plant Information Service of the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe .

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