Mulch away

Happy to say that green beans have started growing already.

As of this week, it doesn't look like I'll have to buy lettuce for a while. Black seeded simpson is growing well. Never got a single head of it last year but planted it too late. Tried it this evening and it's really good. Tender with a sweet flavor. Some romaine is coming up, as well. So is iceberg but not holding out much hope for it with the temp jumping so high so fast.

It seems more and more definite that the mulch is doing damage to some of the plants. Not all but some. Many of the plants most surrounded by mulch sprout, begin to grow but then start looking lysed, like the nutrients or moisture are being bled out of them. Areas where I have thinned or removed mulch have stronger growth. So this afternoon I removed most of the mulch, raking it off to the sides. Maybe it was just too green and needs to compost more. Even where it is, it will help retain moisture and deter some weeds.

Planted more carrots and cucmbers. Figure it's difficult to overplant carrots and can thin cucumbers if necessary. Planted more pumpkins because many got frostbite and died off this week. They're supposed to make a good natural mulch (which isn't toxic).

Aside from the flowers, I've given up on the front yard until I get a pump for the well. Get that this week. Too expensive and too much work to water the whole yard front and back every day. Once I get the pump I can try a number of things which require more water. Just wouldn't make sense to try growing and wind up with such an excessive water bill that it defeats the purpose.

It will still be a gradual expansion. The pump alone won't be all I need. More water hoses. Different fittings and faucet splitter. Get those over time. I do still have that black piping which seems mostly patent, so can use that for some extensions. It may be all I need. Not sure yet.